-The Hindu Business Line Now that the gains from the first round have petered out, we need to embrace biotech to boost farm productivity As India seeks to ignite the next agrarian revolution, it must try and absorb some of the lessons of the Green Revolution. Currently, agricultural productivity and growth vary from State to State, resulting in regional disparities. Through targeted policymaking, investment in rural infrastructure and research, and ongoing support...

-The Hindustan Times Mumbai: In the past two decades, the National Crime Records Bureau has recorded 60,750 farmer suicides in the state. This means more than 3,000 farmers have killed themselves every year, reflecting a deepening agrarian crisis untouched by policies and subsidies doled out by the government. To get the state back on its feet, the new BJP government needs to start from agriculture and allied sectors. In the past...

-The Hindu Business Line Beefing up input delivery, expanding irrigation facilities & infusing technology are the key India needs rapid economic growth to lift people out of poverty and meet the basic needs of a growing population. It is well recognised that for growth to be inclusive, it must create adequate livelihood opportunities and add to decent employment commensurate with the expectations of a growing workforce. Massive growth in information and communication technologies...

-The Hindustan Times Continuing with its business-friendly regulatory changes, the Narendra Modi government has brought in a key change diminishing the applicability of watershed Forest Rights Act (FRA) for seeking statutory forest clearance for projects. The environment ministry has exempted plantations, notified as forests within 75 years of the FRA coming into force on 13 December 2005 - and not having tribal population as per 2001 and 2011 census - from the...

-BBC It's a riot of colours - yellow marigolds and bright pink roses spread out in the sun. But the people spreading the joy this festive season cannot see it themselves - they are all visually challenged. They take in tonnes of flower waste produced by temples and hotels in Delhi and turn it into organic skin-friendly colours for Hindu festivals. The Society for Child Development, which runs this programme, says the process does...