-The Times of India NAGPUR: Amid paddy growers of east Vidarbha reeling under a major pest attack, some of them who have adopted organic Farming claim they could prevent losses in their fields using natural pesticides. They had gathered at a meet organized in the city by Bijotsav — an organization promoting organic agriculture. As each of them spoke about their experiences, the farmers from Gondia and Chandrapur districts claimed to have...

-MoneyControl.com When agriculture’s GVA growth climbed from -0.2% in 2014-15, to 0.7% in 2015-16, everyone expected agriculture to continue doing well. This was confirmed by this growth rate further rising to 4.9% in 2016-17. But what happened now? So it is finally official.  The fears that most people had kept suppressed – about India witnessing an economic slowdown – have been realised. The Central Statistical Office (CSO) came out last week with...

-The Economic Times New Delhi: The government has come out with a draft model contract Farming act, which industry insiders said will protect farmers from price risks and encourage food processing companies to invest more in infrastructure and Farming technology once states adopt it. The agriculture ministry has put up the model act on its website for various stakeholders, including contract Farming and value chain promoting companies, producers' organisations and farmers, to...

-Hindustan Times Herein lies the crisis of farmer politicians. They have neither aspirations nor the power of coercion working for them. Rural distress dominated discussions around the political-economy in 2017, and will likely continue to do so in 2018, much to the consternation of political incumbents. Those in opposition will be looking forward to harvesting this anger for their own benefit. One question is worth asking though. Where is the farmer-politician in...

-The Hindu * What’s the problem? The year 2017 was marked by several farmers’ protests nationwide, with a few turning violent. Last month, in New Delhi, 184 farmer groups came together from Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Telangana to take part in a ‘protest walk.’ The protest once again highlighted the plight of farmers and the extent of agrarian distress. The agriculture sector is characterised by instability in incomes...