-News18.com Acclaimed journalist and Founder-Editor of the People’s Archive of Rural India, P Sainath attributes the existential crisis confronting India’s agrarian society to macro-economic policies set in motion 25 years ago. Talking to Anuradha SenGupta, Sainath makes a case for state intervention in agriculture and says the Modi government, with its shifting positions and policies like demonetisation has only aggravated the assault on agrarian livelihoods. Dismissing the buzz about imminent new initiatives...

-The Indian Express An income transfer policy combined with direct cash transfer is the best way to help the farmer Losses in the recent elections to the assemblies of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have given the BJP a jolt. The party had misjudged the gravity of the farm distress problem till then: The Union agriculture minister described farmer agitations as “political drama”. However, the party not only acknowledges the crisis...

-The Hindu Business Line First nation-wide, agri market intelligence system — to help farmers get better price — will become operational from next kharif The government will give out price and demand forecasts for various major foodgrains and price-sensitive horticulture crops such as onions from the forthcoming kharif season helping farmers take informed decision on growing different crops, a senior official of the Agriculture Ministry said. “We will be making pre-seasonal as well...

-The Indian Express The new year could witness the first national elections being fought on farmers’ issues. And it could test both the ruling BJP pushed to the defensive, particularly in the larger sugar-producing states, and the Congress under pressure to deliver loan waivers If 2017 saw the beginnings of agrarian unrest in large swathes of the country, 2018 brought it centrestage as the numero uno political issue. And almost everyone’s...

-The Hindu Business Line Govt announces Rs. 2/kg subsidy to farmers who were selling their produce at low prices Mumbai: In a relief to the distressed onion growers in Maharashtra, the Fadnavis government on Thursday decided to provide ?2 per kg subsidy on the bulbs sold from November 1 till December 15 in the State. About three lakh farmers stand to gain up to Rs.40,000 from this decision by the State government. The money,...