-Livemint.com According to govt data, the output of foodgrains is 11.9 million tonnes higher than the average production of 129.7 million tonnes between 2012-17 New Delhi: India’s foodgrain production during the rain-fed kharif season is estimated at a record 141.6 million tonnes in 2018-19, raising chances that wholesale crop prices will continue to hover low ahead of crucial Elections in states like Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. The first advance estimate of crop...

-The Hindu Vantangiyas, who derive their name from a Burmese tradition of hill cultivation, have lived in tin shacks without toilets for decades Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh): There is no proper road to Jungle Tinkonia-3. As its name suggests, one must pass a woodland of sal and teak trees to reach it. The situation gets even more precarious during monsoons and medical emergencies, as the village does not have any health centre. Its infrastructure is...

-Down to Earth For every million rupees spent on agricultural research, 328 people are pulled out of poverty. In contrast, the same amount spent on power subsidies brings only 23 people come out of poverty. The message is clear. With the Union Elections only a few months away, the Centre should prioritise capital investments over populist subsidies to deliver on its promise of strengthening the farm sector. This is important, especially when the...

-The Indian Express It is important to evaluate the consequences of the Centre’s agriculture policy. With Elections around the corner, it’s too late for a course correction of the farm sector, but it’s an opportune time to document the unintended consequences of half-baked policies for the next five years. Otherwise, the momentum of existing policies will continue to feed rural economic misery. Agriculture GDP growth plummeted just as India’s agricultural trade surplus,...

-National Herald Maitreesh Ghatak, Professor of Economics at London School of Economics, in an interview to Tathagata Bhattacharya says the government has failed on many counts At the end of the day, it is growth and employment generation via new investment that is key to long-term economic progress. Various welfare schemes are a way of providing a social safety net to the poor in the short-run. It is performance along these two...