-The Indian Express The Union cabinet lacks a champion for agriculture Policymakers in the corridors of power in Delhi are feeling upbeat. There is recovery and resurgence in India’s stockmarkets. The Make in India campaign is getting more publicity and being noticed by foreign investors. FDI inflows are improving, and India’s ranking in the Ease of Doing Business index seems to be improving, as per some selective ratings. But agriculture, where almost half...

-Hindustan Times Ludhiana: Punjab Agricultural University’s (PAU) Centre of Communication and International Linkages (CCIL), which last year came out with a eight-minute video drama on harms of stubble burning, has restored to various social networking platforms to promote the video. Keeping in view of the ongoing stubble burning in the state following paddy harvest, experts want to popularise it among farmers of the state. Experts are also of the view that...

-TheBetterIndia.com Over 100 women farmers have come together to reduce the impact of whiteflies on cotton crops. They have started a campaign to spread awareness about natural sprays to get rid of the pests and improve the production. Whitefly pest attacks, which destroy cotton crops, have always been an issue in Punjab and Haryana. After many failed attempts by scientists and governments to find a solution, a group of women in Haryana...

-The Hindu MUMBAI: Around the time that Shiv Sainiks were blackening Sudheendra Kulkarni's face on Monday morning, a Pakistani girl and her mother were getting ready to leave Mumbai with warm memories of a 49-day stay and gratitude for Indians. Some Indians had, after all, contributed almost Rs 13 lakh to finance 15-year-old Karachi resident Saba Tariq Ahmed's treatment for Wilson's disease, a disorder that results in poisonous accumulation of copper in...

-The Hindu Government sources told The Hindu that at PDS packaging centres, new unbranded bags were being replaced with used ones. Jute bags meant for packaging of foodgrains under the Public Distribution System (PDS) allegedly provided their manufacturers — in league with some officials of procuring State government agencies, quality insurance inspectors and middlemen — an opportunity to siphon off thousands of crores in government revenue. So serious is the scam that the...