-Down to Earth System of crop intensification, specially in rice, has shown sizeable savings in water and seed usage. Yet its adoption has not spread despite incentives SIMPLE TECHNIQUES and manag-ement practices tend to be viewed with suspicion. In the age of input-intensive agriculture which calls for an array of machinery and a host of scientific props, a crop management system whose core basically is protecting the plant's roots to provide better...

-Down to Earth Civil society calls for pesticide-free, organic food under government programmes for children while Bihar focuses on building new kitchens in government schools A year after 23 school children in Bihar's Saran district died of insecticide poisoning after consuming food served under Mid Day Meal (MDM) Scheme, government agencies seem to have forgotten the serious concern over handling and banning of hazardous chemicals that the tragedy raised. The children of Dharmasati-Gandaman...

-Down to Earth India ranked 19th among 45 developing countries assessed by UK-based organisation India has made quite some progress in countering hunger and under-nutrition in the past two years but Nepal and Bangladesh have done better and have shown serious commitment through political will, says the Hunger and Nutrition Commitment Index (HANCI) report, 2013. The annual HANCI report, prepared by non-profit Institute of Development Studies and International Food Policy Research Institute funded...

-Down to Earth No acknowledgement from government as unofficial drought spells ruination for farmers in central and north-west India Even though IMD will declare a drought confirmation later in the year, the unofficial drought continues to exist. The threat of one of the worst droughts looms large over India. The India Meteorological Department declared that the country as a whole received 43 per cent less rainfall till July 11, 2014. The average amount...

-Down to Earth Rural development ministry to make social audit compulsory; create more durable assets in blocks and districts, instead of villages UPA's flagship programme, Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), is set to see some changes under the ruling NDA government. The Union Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) has decided to focus on social audit and create durable assets at block and district levels under the programme. In a letter, dated June...