-The Hindu     Hema Vijay meets R. Rajamurugan who's on a quest to document and rejuvenate forgotten food traditions of the State Chennai: This young man visits obscure villages, speaking to farmers in the fields and elderly village women, sifting through folklore and oral history on food. R. Rajamurugan's grand vision is to document and rejuvenate ancient and forgotten food traditions of the State. "For instance, consider ‘Kongu Nadu' that includes regions such...

-The Hindu MSSRF launches second phase of ‘Knowledge Connectivity Programme,' FM station Chennai: The M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) has launched the second phase of its successful IT-driven rural empowerment initiative to help more farmers and fishermen in Nagapattinam and Karaikal districts. Ever since it was rolled out in 2011-12, the ‘Knowledge Connectivity Programme' supported by MARG Karaikal Port has benefited about 20,000 farmers, fishermen and women entrepreneurs of self-help groups in 34...

-The Hindu Switching to renewable energy sources in the country's midday meal programme will save millions of rupees. But only a few kitchens are doing anything about it, says the author. This is a story of facts and figures and sheer size. Of an auditorium-sized room dense with hot steam from cooking. Of seven tonnes of cooked rice and four tanker-loads of steaming sambar that needed 70 pairs of hands for cutting...

-PTI PUNE: A unique concept of "urban agriculture" is taking shape on a massive stretch of land in a mega township which is part of the burgeoning metropolis. Spread across 700 acres, 'Nanded city', which houses a population of about 10,000 residents, launched a green project coinciding with the World Environment Day on June 5. The venture envisages growing vegetables, fruits, medicinal and aromatic plants and flowers to cater the needs of the...

-The Hindu Caterpillar infestation and continuous drought have hit yield Ramanagaram: The precarious groundwater situation and the black-headed caterpillar infestation have hit Coconut growers in Ramanagaram district. Coconut is grown on nearly 12,000 hectares in the district, with growers here supplying at least four crore tender Coconuts annually to various parts of the country. This year, however, they have been forced to axe thousands of dying trees over the past two months. Along...