-The Hindu Given the recent policy changes, the CEA has done right to flag mid-year concerns Five months after the Economic Survey 2016-17 was released, Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian has presented the second volume of the annual economic review-cum-prognosticatory report. With the intervening period having provided a wealth of data points and policy developments, including the momentous roll-out of the Goods and Services Tax, there was a clear need to update...

-The Indian Express The Punjab government has sought to bring 5 lh area in the state under maize, as pART of the original plan of reducing paddy area by 12 lh between 2012-13 and 2017-18. Jalandhar: For policymakers wanting to wean away Punjab farmers from water-guzzling paddy, 1.35 lakh hectares (lh) area sown under maize this kharif season may not seem bad, even if it is way below the 29.11 lh...

-The Indian Express The woes of pulses farmers and traders like Kagi can be put down to all-time-high imports of 6.6 mt (valued at Rs 28,524.05 crore) on top of a record domestic production of 22.4 mt in 2016-17 — made worse by the weak, behind-the-curve policy response whether to do with trade or stockholding restrictions. Agriculture in India has always suffered from lethargic and uncoordinated policy response. And there can be...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: In a surprise move unmindful of the huge controversy it had sparked, the Maharashtra government has moved the Supreme Court seeking revival of a provision of law that made it an offence to carry or keep beef at home in the state. More than a year ago, the Bombay high court had doused protests against the beef ban by striking down Section 5D of the Maharashtra...

-The Indian Express The failure of populist rural credit schemes stems primarily from poor understanding of farm indebtedness in the first place. From the 1970s, a lot of private investment in tube-well irrigation, farm mechanisation and allied agricultural activities took place with bank credit support. After the establishment of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) in 1982, institutional credit flows not only accelerated, but also exhibited diversification to fund livestock...