-PTI Besides 14% rain deficiency, Odisha experienced crop loss above 33% in over 5.23 lakh hectare of cultivated land Bhubaneswar: Odisha this monsoon received 14% deficit rainfall leading to a drought situation and crop loss above 33% in over 5.23 lakh hectare of cultivated land in the state. Officials said the state usually receives 1,144.3 mm of rainfall during monsoon starting from June to September but this year the precipitation was only 1,031...

-The Hindu Business Line 75% of those committed suicide were the ones who took land on rent Hyderabad: With the Telangana farmers continuing to end their lives, farmers’ leaders have begun to delve deep into the agrarian crisis. A study to analyse the issue found that about 70-75 per cent of all those who committed suicide were tenant farmers. This means that about 1,125 out of the 1,500 suicides reported – after the State...

-The Indian Express Punjab is a case study in agricultural and economic mismanagement in India From the breadbasket of India, Punjab has become a basket-case economy. Endowed with ample water and good soil, Punjab’s happy, progressive people had a dream that is now a distant memory. Punjab’s decline started with its trifurcation. In its bid to establish a separate identity, the poli-tical establishment obsessed over a religious-political agenda and steered the state...

-Livemint.com State seeks Rs300 crore more for drinking water supply and Rs750 crore for waiving off interest payments on loans New Delhi: Madhya Pradesh has declared 35 out of 51 districts in the state as drought affected and sought an initial central assistance of Rs.2,400 crore, indicating deepening rural distress. Karnataka, Maharashtra and Odisha have already declared parts of their state as drought affected. Madhya Pradesh finance minister Jayant Malaiya and agriculture minister...

-Livemint.com Large dairy farms are critical for the next stage of India's white revolution Nagara (Anand): Sunil Patel hardly looks like a dairy farmer in his loafers, sleek glasses and cotton trousers. As he guides me to his farm of 110 cows through the narrow lanes of Nagara, a small village around 60 km from India’s milk capital, Anand, I notice most of the houses have piped natural gas connections. Nagara, like...