-Economic and Political Weekly P K Joshi (p.joshi@cgiar.org), Avinash Kishore (a.kishore@cgiar.org) and Devesh Roy (d.roy@cgiar.org) are with the International Food Policy Research Institute, New Delhi. While outlining strategies to increase availability of pulses at affordable prices, it is argued that increasing domestic production of pulses is the only option. Access to one or two protective irrigation sources during the growing season can lead to sizeable increases in pulse production. The har khet...

-Livemint.com The impact of demonetisation on the organized sector creates a visible effect. The suffering of Bharat is diffused, invisible, but hugely more painful ‘Why doesn’t the informal sector, supposedly badly hit by demonetisation, protest or scream in pain?’. Defenders of demonetisation often pose this question. The question assumes that the suffering poor people face because of government policies always finds political expression. If you want an answer to the question, please...

-Business Standard According to the data of NCRB, of the 12,602 persons, 8,007 were farmers or cultivators New Delhi: Around 12,602 persons in the farm sector committed suicide in 2015, almost 2 per cent more than in 2014, highlighting the distress in rural areas of India because of two consecutive years of drought. According to the data of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), of the 12,602 persons, 8,007 were farmers or cultivators,...

-The Times of India MUMBAI: Demonetisation seems to have helped private moneylenders in Maharashtra. Of the Rs 13,558 crore of loans required for the rabi season, banks could disburse only about Rs 2,400 crore (18%), due to shortage of cash. Besides, there are restrictions on district cooperative banks (DCCBs). Officials said the crisis gave moneylenders an opportunity to get rid of defunct notes as loans were disbursed in old notes and they...

-Hindustan Times The government’s decision to scrap high-value currency has sent wholesale vegetable prices crashing to rock-bottom levels, bringing misery to millions of farmers hoping for good returns for their produce after two successive drought years. Onions sold for just Re 1 per kilogram in wholesale markets at Madhya Pradesh’s Neemuch and Mandsaur this week while tomatoes cost less than Rs 2 per kg in Andhra Pradesh and Chandigarh. A kilogram of cauliflower...