-The Times of India Bhopal: Amidst the looming agrarian crisis and reports of farmers' suicides in Madhya Pradesh, the peasants are once again under duress as the state stares at a possible drought. Rabi sowing area this year is all set to go down, thereby affecting the wheat production. This may also put a spanner in the state's ambition to bag yet another Krishi Karman award. Talking to TOI, minister for agriculture...

-Down to Earth Successive droughts lead to a substantial and unsustainable expansion of cropland at the expense of forested lands “Droughts are misery in slow motion” with impacts even deeper than previously believed. Although floods pose major economic threats, water scarcity and drought may be causing long-term harm in ways that are poorly understood and inadequately documented, claims Uncharted waters: the new economics of water scarcity and variability, a report by...

-Down to Earth Since April 2014, the rate of work completion has been declining at rapid pace, indicating that crucial assets for villages are not getting created In the last three and half years, the rate of work completion under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has drastically declined, leading to wastage of public money and leaving villages more prone to drought. This could also be a reason...

-Hindustan Times Productivity is also expected to drop further to about 35% owing to intermittent rains. Mumbai: Prolonged dry spells and deviation in rainfall for about six weeks in July and August has led to a drop in agricultural production and productivity when compared to the state’s five-year average and the bumper crop yielded last year. The drop, which ranges between 15% and 28%, in the production of pulses, cereals and oilseeds...

-Livemint.com Karnataka govt has stopped the sale of paddy seeds in some districts hoping to get farmers to switch to ragi and jowar among other coarse grains Bengaluru: Following a lukewarm response to its promotional efforts, Karnataka has resorted to more forceful measures to get farmers in the Cauvery command area to switch from cultivating water-intensive crops such as paddy and sugarcane to drought-tolerant millets as part of a plan to stabilize...