-Outlook India has long been the sleeping giant of global agriculture. But its misguided policies while boosting short-term output, yet may transform India into a food importer After decades on the sidelines of international agricultural trade, India was poised last year to become a major food supplier, overtaking traditional exporters of food grain and meat. This could prove to be flash in the pan. The sudden rise and fall of India...

-The Indian Express In all its versions, the food security bill places an unbearable fiscal burden, further distorts agriculture The design of policy in the revised version of the food security law proposed by the food ministry — cabinet approval for which was deferred on Monday — will make a bad idea worse. It is even less concerned about the imperatives of fiscal sustainability and the needs of the Indian population. Providing...

-The Times of India Retail inflation soared in February on the back of stubborn food prices sustaining pressure on consumers and complicating the policy choice for the central bank. Data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) on Tuesday showed the inflation rate based on all-India general CPI ( consumer price index) for February was 10.91% compared to 10.79% for the previous month. The inflation rates for rural and urban areas for...

-The Times of India It is budget time once again. Far away from the talk of lakhs and crores of rupees echoing from Parliament to television studios, a thin adivasi teenage girl stands in a queue at her hostel, her plate in her hand, waiting for her share of the gruel that she is given for lunch every day. Her family depends on the money from the minor forest produce her...

-The Economic Times vegetable prices have dropped thanks to good supplies across the country. Onion, tomato and potato prices have fallen by almost 20%-25% in the last fortnight bringing relief to consumers. Traders say prices are likely to remain low till June. Indians consume nearly 15 million tonne onions a year. A drop in the prices of staple vegetables like onion and potato helps bring down food inflation, a major worry for...