-Hindustan Times The Rs 7,000-crore sector in Himalayan states reels under high temperature, low rainfall The drought-like situation prevailing in the northwest Himalayas may spell bad news for the Rs 7,000-crore apple economy that sustains people residing in the upper regions of Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir. This winter has been one of the warmest in the last decade, weather department officials said. Apple orchards usually need 500 to 1,000 chilling hours (with temperatures ranging...

-The Financial Express There has been an ongoing debate over India’s stand at the WTO Ministerial Conference on the issue of public stockholding for food security purposes, including in this newspaper. There have been strong arguments on whether India’s stand is correct in the context of the subsidy phase out, in various sectors that the Modi government has been following over the past couple of years. But when this issue is...

-The Economic Times BUENOS AIRES: India managed to protect its farmers' interests and ensure food security for its poor even as the ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) is unlikely to yield much progress. A series of work programmes on issues such as agriculture, domestic support, fisheries subsidies, e-commerce and services are expected, increasing the chances of some progress in next ministerial meet in 2019. "India's food security programmes are...

-Down to Earth India needs to find a permanent solution to the problem of public stock holding, as it is a matter of survival for hundreds of millions people During the negotiations for WTO Agreement on Agriculture in 2001, India raised concerns over food security and flexibility that developing nations must have when it comes to providing subsidies to key farm inputs. Seventeen years have passed since then and countries like...

-The Hindu Business Line Procurement of the excess output vis-a-vis a normal year, rather than open-ended purchase, is a viable option A bountiful harvest that implies an increase in output may not always increase the nominal income of the farming sector, which is subject to the behaviour of input and more particularly output prices, which may sometimes move sharply. There can, therefore, be years in which there is a sudden and sharp...