Air quality in North India in general and Delhi National Capital Region (Delhi NCR) in particular plunged to its lowest point in recent years during October-November thanks to a variety of factors. Through media reports one comes to know that stubble burning (also called paddy straw burning/ crop residue burning) is chiefly responsible for the public health crisis in India's capital and its nearby regions. Data accessed from the website...

-The New Indian Express Odisha millet Mission is a unique initiative for revival and promotion of millet production. BHUBANESWAR: With focus shifting to nutrition in food and nutrient-rich millets becoming a favourite food to fight malnutrition, agricultural experts and officials lauded the millet Mission undertaken by the State Government to promote production, consumption and marketing of the grains. Inaugurating a national workshop on nutri-cereals here on Wednesday, Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy said Odisha...

The Hindu Business Line In an article on Monday, this writer pointed out how it is a challenging task to double farmers’ income, given the fall in output prices and the higher cost of farm inputs. In an interview, Ashok Dalwai, CEO, Doubling Farmers’ Income Committee, talks about the various measures the Centre is taking to ensure it is on the right track and reaches its target by 2022. According to...

-RuralIndiaOnline.org In Rayagada, Bt cotton acreage has risen by 5,200 per cent in 16 years. The result: this biodiversity hotspot, rich in indigenous millets, rice varieties and forest foods, is seeing an alarming ecological shift “Everybody is doing it. So we are too,” said Rupa Pirikaka, somewhat uncertainly. ‘It’ is genetically modified (GM) Bt cotton seeds, now easily bought at the local market, or even in one’s own village. ‘Everybody’ is countless other...

-The Hindu Business Line Noted Gandhian economist Dr Sudarshan Iyengar surveys the distressed agricultural landscape, pinpoints its weaknesses, and prescribes solutions with their roots in Gandhian agronomics. Edited excerpts from an interview to BusinessLine: * Given the agrarian crisis in India today, how relevant are Gandhi's economic principles based on the village economy, and equitable distribution of resources? They are relevant in the context of Gandhi's view of gram swaraj (village self-rule), which...