-Livemint.com The agriculture ministry says an area of 12.1 million hectares has been planted with pulses, over 11% more than the five-year average sown under the crop New Delhi: Buoyed by good rains and higher prices, farmers across India have planted a record area under different varieties of pulses, shows data released by the agriculture ministry on Friday. So far, an area of 12.1 million hectares has been planted with pulses, over...

-The Hindu Business Line Fourth advance estimate pegs wheat production at 93.5 million tonnes New Delhi: Reinforcing its earlier assessment, the Centre has pegged foodgrain production in the country at 252.22 million tonnes (mt) in 2015-16 in its fourth advance estimates — almost the same as 2014-15’s (July-June) production of 252.02 mt. Production of major commercial crops in 2015-16, including cotton, sugarcane and oilseeds, was lower than in the previous year, according to...

-Frontline The inability to resolve pressing problems with respect to the production, distribution and availability of food is one of the important failures of the entire economic reform process. IN the fateful month of July 1991, when the devaluation of the Indian rupee presaged the introduction of a whole series of liberalising economic reforms, agriculture was very far from the minds of most policymakers and commentators. The immediate focus was on...

-The Indian Express Government committee must work out a sustainable policy framework to address scarcity and inflation in pulses The government’s decision to form a panel headed by chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian to study and suggest ways to contain the rising prices of pulses is a welcome move. The committee is expected to frame a long-term policy, which will look into various aspects, including the MSP (minimum support price) and bonus...

-Livemint.com So far, an area of 8.4 million hectares has been sown, nearly 11% lower when compared with the 9.4 million hectares sown by this time last year New Delhi: A slower-than-normal progress of the south-west monsoon has impacted sowing of rain-fed kharif crops, shows data released by the agriculture ministry on Friday. So far, an area of 8.4 million hectares has been sown, nearly 11% lower when compared to 9.4 million...