-The Times of India MADURAI: The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), rolled out a decade ago, has impacted households and individuals in a positive as well as negative way, but the adverse impacts of the scheme could impact the nation's food security, according to an authoritative study. What may set the alarm bells ringing is the projected decline in acreage under Rice cultivation in states like Tamil Nadu and...
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Prelude to a contagion -Ashok Gulati & Siraj Hussain
-The Indian Express UP’s farm loan waiver could prompt other states to follow suit, evade real reasons for agricultural distress The new Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath, has hit the ground running. In his first cabinet meeting, he took three important decisions with regard to farmers. First, he waived farm loans of more than Rs 36,000 crore, primarily of the small and marginal farmers who comprise 92 per cent of the...
More »Sustainable Agriculture: Punjab's search for a less water-guzzling, yet high-yielding paddy -Divya Goyal & Harish Damodaran
-The Indian Express A new 125-day rice variety promises to provide some respite to Punjab farmers, depleting aquifers Ludhiana: A new variety maturing within 125 days, yet yielding nearly as much as those now grown over 135-160 days, could provide the ultimate solution to Punjab’s woes stemming from farming of water-guzzling paddy. Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has released a paddy variety PR-126 that gives an average of 30 quintals per acre. This is...
More »MS Swaminathan, Father of the Indian Green Revolution and renowned agri-scientist, interviewed by Rajalakshmi Nirmal (The Hindu Business Line)
-The Hindu Business Line MS Swaminathan talks of the problems plaguing farmers and possible solutions Father of the Indian Green Revolution and renowned agri-scientist, Prof MS Swaminathan, in an interview with BusinessLine, states emphatically that the Centre’s promise of doubling farmer income can become a reality if careful thought is applied and a comprehensive plan is drawn up. The role of the State and the public are crucial here, he stresses. Excerpts: *...
More »'Punjab exporting precious water via Rice cultivation' -Vibhor Mohan
-The Times of India CHANDIGARH: Punjab has been exporting its underground water (to the rest of India) in the form of rice. This strong statement has come from one of Punjab's respected economists R S Ghuman in his study titled 'Water Use Scenario in Punjab beyond the Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal'. The study was published in 'Economic & Political Weekly' journal in its January edition and some of its observations are crucial at...
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