-Livemint.com Trade moving outside regulated markets could lead to speculation and volatile prices, warn experts NEW DELHI: After the Centre enacted a new set of laws freeing internal trade in farm produce, crop arrivals in regulated wholesale markets have witnessed a sharp decline. However, off-market transactions between farmers and traders which are going unrecorded could be fueling Food inflation as traders engage in speculation and hoarding, experts said. An analysis of numbers from...

-VillageSquare.in Deskilling of Central Indian Plateau Adivasis has led to loss of traditional knowledge and indigenous seeds. Efforts are on to reskill them by reviving traditional practices “The Food is not tasty anymore. We do not feel strong. We are taking poison,” said Temba Oraon, an elderly villager in Jana, a village in Gumla district of Jharkhand. Hirasand Oraon, another villager, his thoughts and added that the soil was more fertile earlier. The...

-Financial Express Signs of a weakening of the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) networks are now evident across major farm production centres in the country, heralding an era of unfettered market access and bolstered bargaining strength for farmers. On June 5, the Centre promulgated three Ordinances reforming the country’s agriculture marketing, and their impact on the trade has been rather sudden and material: During the June 6-August 31 period, mandi arrivals of...

-Down to Earth These communities have suffered on most social indicators due to a mix of poor logistics as well as prejudice and ostracisation   Dalit, Muslim and Adivasi households and neighbourhoods have suffered terribly in the aftermath of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the months following the declaration of the countrywide lockdown, data collected by a group of civil society organisations has showed. These communities were not able to avail...

-TheWire.in From seeds and machinery to livestock and irrigation, the state needs to change the status quo. One eye must be firmly kept on the future. If Punjab’s agriculture sector is to succeed, it has to think beyond short-term crises such as the current pandemic-induced one. For instance, the Expert Group headed by Montek Singh Ahluwalia has made important recommendations about seeds, agricultural research, livestock, dairy and Food processing. It has been noted that...