-Hindustan Times Farm policymaking slowed down after the repeal of three laws in 2021. But the climate crisis, geopolitical instability and inflation have exacerbated the urgency for reforms In November 2021, Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi repealed three contentious farm laws in a dramatic turnaround. The entire episode — from the passage of the laws, the protests that followed and the turnaround — had stalled national agriculture policymaking. Yet, as this column...

-Hindustan Times India on Thursday communicated strong objections to discussions under a special UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) effort known as the Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture, which has sought to expand efforts to reduce emissions of greenhouses gases to the agriculture sector. According to people aware of the matter, a draft decision under the Koronivia Joint Work mentions mitigation – the efforts to reduce emissions – multiple times. “Noted that...

-Hindustan Times In north India’s food-bowl states, farmers set aflame paddy stalks around October to clear their fields for their next crop. This releases millions of tonnes of smoke, carbon dioxide stored in plant biomass, toxins and planet-warming gases in the atmosphere. Some environmentalists reckon this to be the deadliest spell of pollution in all of South Asia. In north India’s food-bowl states, farmers set aflame paddy stalks around October to clear...

-India.mongabay.com * After the drop in wheat production due to heat waves, extreme weather events have now cast a shadow on rice production, which is likely to drop beyond centre’s initial 6% loss estimate. * In six years (2015-21), the country lost 33.9 million hectares of the cropped area due to floods and excess rains and 35 million hectares due to drought, which are likely to intensify as various studies predict. * Centre...

-Down to Earth Funds allocated in July for diesel subsidy haven't reached many farmers yet; irrigation projects needed, say locals The agriculture department of the Bihar government has allocated Rs 100 crore in diesel subsidy October 14, 2022 to help distressed farmers get diesel subsidy.  The plan announced in a public address by the newly appointed agriculture minister of the state, Kumar Sarvajeet, is in line with the state’s action plan to help...