-The Times of India PATNA: Bihar's average annual growth rate has been 12% in the last seven fiscal years, one of the highest among all Indian states, on the back of high growth rate achieved in the agriculture and allied sectors. Besides, advancement has also been made in healthcare and education. The state's Economic Survey Report for 2013-14, which was tabled in the assembly on Friday, has concluded this. The summary of...

-The Hindu A NABARD scheme has led to the revival of the nearly-extinct variety of paddy PUDUKOTTAI (Tamil Nadu): A farmer of Marundhanthalai village near here has revived a paddy variety, garudan samba, which was on the verge of extinction. Adopting bio-cultivation practices and the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) technique, the farmer R. Ganesan raised the 160-day- crop under the Farm Innovation Promotion Fund scheme of the National Bank for Agriculture...

-The Hindu     Modified scheme benefits tenants and covers all food grain PUDUKOTTAI (Tiruchirapalli): Crop insurance scheme is being implemented as modified national agricultural insurance scheme in all the 13 blocks in Pudukottai district during 2013-14 based on the administrative sanction accorded by the Centre and approval by the State government. Under the scheme, weather-based crop insurance scheme and coconut palm insurance scheme are implemented at revenue-village-level for losses suffered due to nature's fury....

-The Hindustan Times Chandigarh: Rashtriya Krishi Vigyan Yojana (RKVY) is funding afforestation project in Punjab, which is part of the crop diversification project to help farmers shift from the wheat-paddy cycle to other crops. The project has been designed for the green revolution states, including Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh. RKVY has been funding different crop diversification projects; it is for the first time that it is funding an afforestation project....

-The Hindu     Huge quantities of stock being routinely seized from middle-men Hyderabad: How much of food grain supplied under the Public Distribution System (PDS) is actually being consumed by white-card holders? Does the scheme truly satisfy its beneficiaries? While the answers are elusive, the fact remains that large quantities of stock are being sold illegally. Statistics provided by the Vigilance & Enforcement (V&E) Department show that huge quantities of stock are routinely being...