-Livemint.com New Delhi: Back from a walk through drought-affected parts of the country, Yogendra Yadav, political scientist and co-founder of non-profit Swaraj Abhiyan, speaks on state compliance of Supreme Court orders, a booming private water market in Marathwada, and why farmer movements are weakest at a time when agrarian distress is at its peak. Edited excerpts from an interview: * You just came back from a trip to Bundelkhand and Marathwada. What...

-Livemint.com Aided by distorted procurement, Punjab’s rich farmers are undertaking high, but damaging, investment Small farmers and fragmented land holdings are often cited as the main problem affecting India’s agricultural growth. After all, lower incomes will limit the ability of such farmers to make significant investments and also make them and more vulnerable to price or weather related shocks. Punjab – the poster boy of India’s green revolution – which has larger...

-Business Standard A recent report suggests different ways to eliminate poverty and argues that accelerated growth is the most suitable medicine to reduce incidence of poverty Adding some and modifying some others is how the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government is planning to go about its welfare programmes in the coming days. While the Mid-Day Meal Scheme (MDMS) is likely to be extended to some private schools, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural...

-The Hindu Business Line Advisory urges Kerala farmers to undertake nursery for rice, vegetables and orchard crop Thiruvananthapuram: Meteorological subdivision-level rainfall forecast indicates rainfall activity over South India during June 3 to 9, which can bring the onset of the South-West monsoon. Normal date for onset over Kerala is June 1. The June 3-9 window has been projected in the national agro-met advisory service bulletin based on extended range weather forecast valid for...

Situation alarming: More than one-third population hit by drought   The country is facing severe drought for the second consecutive year. Conservative estimates from official sources show that over a quarter of rural habitations are facing drinking water scarcity. Although both India Meteorological Department and Skymet have predicted a more than normal rainfall during June-September, 2016, the water storage available in 91 major reservoirs of the country has declined from 22 percent...