-Livemint.com The agriculture ministry says an area of 12.1 million hectares has been planted with pulses, over 11% more than the five-year average sown under the crop New Delhi: Buoyed by good rains and higher prices, farmers across India have planted a record area under different varieties of pulses, shows data released by the agriculture ministry on Friday. So far, an area of 12.1 million hectares has been planted with pulses, over...

-The Hindu Business Line Govt’s production and distribution processes are out of sync with consumption patterns Of late, with growing income and awareness about nutritious food, there has been a noticeable decrease in the consumption of rice (a high-carb food) in Indian households. This change in consumption pattern, however, is not reflected in India’s agriculture policy which continues to revolve around rice and wheat. Moreover, current policies related to production, procurement, storage...

-The Indian Express State government says it won’t be able to foot the 50:50 share of bill. Tussle is brewing between the Nitish Kumar-led government in Bihar and the NDA government at the Centre on the issue of the implementation of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). Almost three-fourth of Bihar’s population is dependent on agriculture. While the state has expressed its difficulty in meeting the financial burden of its share in the...

-The Hindu Business Line New Delhi: Sowing of kharif crops in the first week of August remained on track as rains continued to be plentiful and acreage under most major crops such as rice, pulses, coarse cereals and oilseeds posted a rise compared to the previous year. Total acreage under kharif crops till August 5 this year at 885.29 lakh hectares (lh) compared to 841.65 lh sowed in the same period last...

-The Hindu While farmers in parts of Punjab have started uprooting cotton crop fearing whitefly pest attack, officials from the State government and the Centre are touring the cotton-belt to monitor the situation. The pest attack, which caused extensive damage to Bt cotton crop last year in Punjab and neighbouring Haryana, had been reported this year as well in a few villages of Malwa region, mainly Fazilka district of Punjab. Farmers are worried...