The new draft National Water Policy (NWP) circulated by the Ministry of Water Resources to water experts suggests that the government is poised to withdraw from its responsibilities of water service delivery, and that multinational corporations and financial institutions might have too big a say in water allocation and policy. At first glance, it appears as if the policy takes a holistic approach to water resources management, with a clear recognition...

In a major boost to Gujarat's big farmers, the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) of the Government of India has approved commercial distribution of a new variety of Bt Cotton seed, developed jointly by US multinational Monsanto, Gujarat Seed Supply Corporation (GSSC) and Navsari Agricultural University. The new seed is expected to raise cotton productivity by up to 30 per cent as against the current Bt Cotton yield of 11...

-Reuters   Global warming will get worse as agricultural methods accelerate the rate of soil erosion, which depletes the amount of carbon the soil is able to store, a United Nations' Environment Programme report said on Monday. Soil contains huge quantities of carbon in the form of organic matter. which provides nutrients for plant growth and improves soil fertility and water movement. The top metre of soil alone stores around 2,200 billion tonnes of...

Observed changes in rainfall patterns and increased temperatures, particularly in the North-Eastern region, are the major projections on which Indian agriculture scientists are pegging their “mitigation and adaptation” plans in the farm sector in the absence of definitive long-term and area-specific data on climate change. Acknowledging that in India the “climate system is extremely complex and poorly understood in terms of extent, timing and impact”, Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR)...

The Centre's National Food Security Bill could face some hitches, irrespective to which party forms government in Punjab as both the Congress and Akali Dal-BJP have promised to diversify agricultural production by moving towards cash or commercial crops.  The poll promise by political parties to influence Punjab farmer to also grow crops other than wheat and paddy gives further weight to agriculture minister Sharad Pawar's warning that implementation of food security...