-India Today A top agricultural research official's idea that India's age-old plant genetic resources can be made available to MNCs in return for better technology for farmers has invited criticism from non-governmental groups as well as individuals. Dr S. K. Datta, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) deputy director-general for crop science, claimed that many of India's plant germplasm or species were in the public domain and already being used by MNCs...

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar’s statement in Parliament that the Government plans to shift subsidies from chemical fertilizers to organic manures has finally earned him some admiration from grassroots organisations working with small and marginal farmers in the country’s vast dry-lands. Pawar’s statement, if translated into policy action, may go a long way in improving the condition of some of India’s poorest farmers in the rain-fed areas which account for...

Veteran agricultural scientist and alumnus of Harvard and Berkeley Universities, Dr Peter Kenmore was in Mumbai for NABARD’s 30th anniversary lecture on ‘Future of Global Agriculture: Challenges and Opportunities for India.’ This United Nations Food & Agriculture Organization India representative spoke to Yogesh Pawar on the current scenario in agriculture. Some excerpts: There’s a lot of churn over GM technology in India. At a time when the country is grappling with...

-The Economic Times Soaring vegetable prices pushed inflation higher in April, while fuel and manufactured product prices sustained their pressure posing a fresh policy challenge and announcing the return of price pressures in Asia's third-largest economy. Data released by the commerce & industry ministry on Monday showed the annual rate of inflation, based on monthly wholesale price index, stood at 7.23% for April, 2012, compared to 6.89% for the previous month and...

-The Economic Times Grain stocks with state agencies are likely to cross 75 million tonnes some time in June 2012, while covered capacity to store is less than 50 million tonnes. The rest would be under CAP (with pucca or even kachcha plinths) exposed to potential large-scale damage. An early and rational policy decision is required to reduce the stocks by at least 7-10 million tonnes to avoid high costs of...