-Live Mint   FDI in retail and modernization of agriculture are two faces of the same coin In the season of elections animal spirits rule. India's equity markets have been ebullient for some time now. Spurred by a robust inflow of foreign investment capital, markets have reacted favourably. A lot now depends on the ability of the next government to enact meaningful structural reforms, especially in a sector such as agriculture that requires...

-Down to Earth Delisting fruits and vegetables from APMC Act in Congress-ruled states will not benefit farmers Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi last December said fruits and vegetables will become affordable if states allowed farmers to directly sell their produce to consumers. He also directed the chief ministers in Congress-ruled states to delist fruits and vegetables from the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act. The Act makes it mandatory for farmers to sell...

-The Hindustan Times New Delhi: Vegetable prices are likely to rise this week as wholesalers across the board have gone on strike protesting the Delhi government's decision to stop the 6% commission charged by distributors from farmers. Retailers in the city stated that even though they were selling at the previous rates on Monday, they would be forced to charge higher prices or not sell at all from Tuesday owing to the...

-The Business Standard The Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee law allows mandis to remain in the grip of a middlemen cartel, with clear links to politicians who run the governments Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi has, in effect, told chief ministers of party-ruled states that if food inflation is to be controlled, as many items as possible must be got out of the purview of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act. For the time...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The government seems to be facing another onion crisis. If just a month ago it was scarcity and high prices that forced the government to almost stop export, this time abundant production and crashing prices is likely to cause unrest among onion growers ahead of the general election. There were reports of farmers halting business in Nashik on Tuesday as the wholesale price touched Rs 9.5...