-The Indian Express New FDI policy in food products is unlikely to be a game-changer by itself. Government must clear up the policy environment. n a rather bold move on June 20, the Modi government opened several key sectors such as defence, pharmaceuticals, civil aviation and food products to 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI). The objective behind this FDI policy is to attract higher investments, better technologies in manufacturing, commerce,...
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Govt readies mega pulses plan to rein in inflation, boost supply -Zia Haq
-Hindustan Times New Delhi: The government is readying a new policy framework to rein in the inflationary impact and stabilise the supply of pulses, a widely consumed but scarce food item with economy-wide implications. Three ministries – agriculture, food and finance – and the state-run policy think-tank Niti Aayog are coordinating efforts to frame the new measures that will see the government step in as one of the key importers of pulses. “The...
More »Freedom for the farmer
-The Hindu The Maharashtra government’s decision to promulgate an ordinance this week to exempt farmers from having to mandatorily sell their fruit and vegetable crop at mandis governed by a 1963 law on marketing farm produce, is a bold and laudable step. That Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has stood his ground against the powerful lobby of middlemen, who shut shop in protest, is even more commendable. The problem with the present...
More »Fact Check: Understanding the data on flowing milk, booming agricultural output -Harish Damodaran
-The Indian Express Agriculture Ministry’s harvest estimates don’t square with drought conditions in several cases, raise serious questions of credibility. We have had two consecutive drought years, yet India’s milk production, according to the Agriculture Ministry, has risen from 137.69 million tonnes (mt) in 2013-14 to 146.31 mt in 2014-15 and 160.35 mt in 2015-16. Never before has the country’s milk output grown at these rates — that too, in the face...
More »Fixing the pulses deficit
-The Hindu While the economy’s revival is still a work in progress, higher food prices, especially of pulses, are affecting nutritional intake across India. The government is counting on a good monsoon season to spur growth and cool down the prices of essential food items. Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said on Thursday that the government’s move to raise the minimum support price for pulses is expected to help push up...
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