-Down to Earth In the run up to World Food Day on October 16, a Food and Agriculture Organization report focuses on the role of social protection in breaking the cycle of rural poverty The Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) annual report on the State of Food and Agriculture (SOFA) 2015 explores the potential of social protection programmes in developing countries to tackle hunger and poverty. What is social protection? Social protection programmes...

-The Indian Express The Union cabinet lacks a champion for agriculture Policymakers in the corridors of power in Delhi are feeling upbeat. There is recovery and resurgence in India’s stockmarkets. The Make in India campaign is getting more publicity and being noticed by foreign investors. FDI inflows are improving, and India’s ranking in the Ease of Doing Business index seems to be improving, as per some selective ratings. But agriculture, where almost half...

-The Hindu Government sources told The Hindu that at PDS packaging centres, new unbranded bags were being replaced with used ones. Jute bags meant for packaging of foodgrains under the Public Distribution System (PDS) allegedly provided their manufacturers — in league with some officials of procuring State government agencies, quality insurance inspectors and middlemen — an opportunity to siphon off thousands of crores in government revenue. So serious is the scam that the...

-Down to Earth Reasons behind the trend include high inventory levels, lower oil prices and renewed strength of the US dollar The Food Outlook report released on Thursday states that agricultural commodities are going through a period of lower prices and less volatility. After dramatic price rise from 2007 till early 2011, cereal and vegetable oil prices are now steady as well as on the decline, the biannual publication of the Food...

-The Indian Express The recently-released India Rural Development Report, which is endorsed by the government, says 7% of the rural population is ‘very poor’; villages in eastern Indian states are the worst affected. A World Bank report released this week has proposed a new way to measure poverty, which suggests that India may have been overestimating the number of its poor. According to a separate set of figures and analysis endorsed by...