-Outlook The aim of achieving food security across the globe will become increasingly elusive unless countries take into account the planet's nature-based services into agricultural and related planning, said a report released by the United Nations Environment Programme today. Safeguarding the underlying ecological foundations that support food production, including biodiversity will be central if the world is to feed the seven billion people, climbing to over nine billion by 2050, according to...

-Live Mint The OECD forum is discussing how to make the aspirations of the common man relevant to policymaking New Delhi: In the face of a deepening economic crisis and social resistance to austerity measures, world leaders are considering a collective experiment to include parameters such as well-being and happiness in national and international statistics. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) World Forum on Measuring Well-being for Development Policy Making being...

-The Economic Times With reports of groundwater level going down in Punjab and Haryana, considered the rice bowl of India, Scientists and analysts suggest its cultivation be shifted to eastern states which have better water resources. They say Punjab and Haryana should focus on basmati rice, which is largely exported, and the eastern states should produce non-basmati varieties for meeting the domestic demand. Talking to ET, Dr Swapan Kumar Dutta, deputy director general...

-Deccan Herald At a time when many parts of the State are reeling under drought, Honnalli village in Gulbarga district has shown the way. Farmers here have raised millets in spite of inadequate rainfall, reports Ananda Teertha Pyati. With shortage of rain, the State is reeling under severe drought. Farmers from several districts across the State are facing losses. Honnalli village in Gulbarga district seems to be insulated from this problem. This...

-The Hindu In response to my recent article in The Hindu, “The real questions from Kudankulam” (edit page, September 14, 2012), supporting nuclear power and arguing for an independent regulatory authority, I received much feedback, largely positive, some critical; some of which deserves a response. Many of these points have been made by others, repeatedly, but some are new to me. 1) Independent oversight: Two credible people said that I was too...