-The Hindu The system brought down input costs — two to four kg of seeds per acre against 30 kg needed for fertiliser-based, water-intensive farming A model evolved for applying Traditional wisdom in farming has also helped in conserving indigenous paddy varieties that are under threat of extinction. The Biodiversity Rainfed Farming System, promoted by Rural Organisation for Social Education, a not-for-profit voluntary organisation, in four blocks of Pudukottai district of Tamil Nadu,...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The current spike in pulse prices could have been anticipated, but India's cereal-centric food security policies emphasize rice and wheat while dis-incentivizing the production of pulses despite clear trends that show a declining preference for cereals. Even though India's dependency on imported pulses grew as imports rose from 2.7 million tonnes in 2010-11 to over four million tonnes this year, minimum support price-driven procurement and the...

-The Hindu Business Line Sustainable business model ensures fair price for growers and buyers alike It is perhaps the only organised market where farmers fix the price for their produce, by attaching a distinct value to the technique and cost of production. The Organic Farmers Market (OFM), a network of 20 outlets, has become an important destination for organic produce in Chennai. It connects directly to about 200 farmers and indirectly to a...

-The Hindu In Bihar, ‘development’ comes laced with caste. For the upper castes, it is Modi’s pitch on investment that matters while for Backward Classes, Nitish’s social welfare agenda makes him a governance icon. The BJP, having no regional match for Nitish, has banked on Modi’s popularity. “Development” is a word that one encounters frequently across poll-bound Bihar, with people across caste lines using it to explain their political preferences. However, this...

-The Times of India BATAGUDA (Odisha): Women and men working on the hillsides is a common sight when travelling through Odisha's Kandhamal district. All day, they crouch in the scorching sun, using crude tools to break large rocks into little stones. It takes each person several days to fill a 5ft-tall container with enough stones to earn about Rs 900. Most tribal women do this backbreaking work but with hardly any proteins...