-The Hindu Agriculture Department getting more and more enquiries Tiruchirapalli (TIRUCHI): There have been days when Mohan Kumaramangalam (51), a marginal farmer in Kalaththil Ventrar Pettai in Lalgudi taluk, seriously considered giving up farming because of acute shortage of workers. But he has had a change of mind after he acquired a paddy transplanter which helped him overcome shortage of workers. Although he had acquired the motorised but hand-held imported transplanter for his...

-The New Indian Express If a government survey report is to be believed, an agricultural household harvests a debt of Rs 3,000 every month, forget about making money to sustain itself. The agricultural household 70th round survey of National Sample Survey Office conducted during July 2012 and June 2013 has revealed that the total income of an agricultural household per month was just Rs 6,426. On the other hand, the total...

-The Times of India New Delhi: Tamil Nadu has taken the lead in skill training of urban poor in the past two years, followed by Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal. The southern state has also left others far behind in providing financial assistance for setting up individual and group enterprises besides forming maximum number of self-help groups. According to a release of housing and poverty alleviation ministry, 4.54 lakh urban poor have...

-The Times of India New Delhi: Only 16 districts in India have so far become open defecation free (ODF) - an indication of the formidable challenge ahead in achieving complete sanitation across 677 districts in the next three-and-half years. Government officials admit the deadline of October, 2019, is a tough one, though they have set year-wise goals. In the first phase, 163 districts have been identified and during the next financial year,...

-The Hindu Business Line The unique needs of those who work in Cities even as they maintain homes in the village must be addressed by policymakers   Cities bring with them a sense of permanence. Many of them have been around for hundreds of years. Some of their more memorable institutions too tend to have long histories. It is no surprise, then, that most of urban policy takes aspects of a city to...