-PTI Mining output fell 3.4% in April-August compared to a dip of 1.8% a year ago, due to SC ban on mining in Karnataka and Goa The Planning Commission has convened a meeting of ministries concerned next month to discuss the issues related to mining, including the ban on such activities in some states. "We have called a high-level meeting of the ministries concerned next month to discuss the issues related to mining...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Worried over the rising prices of vegetables, particularly onion, chief minister Sheila Dikshit on Wednesday assured that the prices will come down by Rs 3-4 per kg on Thursday. Dikshit said Delhi is not an onion producing state, yet the vegetable is being sold for Rs 60 per kg at Safal outlets, whereas across the country the average price is Rs 83 per kg. "Delhi has...

-The Hindu     Realising that New Delhi needs to clear its food security legislation at the WTO in time for the election, the West has sought increased market access in return for temporary relief A few months ago, the most optimistic observers of international politics were not willing to hedge their bets on the Doha Development Round at the World Trade Organisation. The Doha Round negotiations have been stalled for more than a...

-The Hindustan Times The double standards are clear. In 2012, the US provided $100 billion for domestic food aid, up from the $95 billion it spent on feeding its 67 million undernourished population in 2010 including spending on food coupons and other supplementary nutrition programmes. In India, the Food Bill is expected to cost $20 billion and will feed an estimated 850 million people. Against an average supply of 358kg/person of...

-The Hindustan Times Mumbai: Indian companies have acquired land more than nine times the size of Delhi on foreign shores, as cultivable land at home is lost to urbanisation, industry and infrastructure projects. Land Matrix, a global land monitoring initiative that tracks land dealings worldwide, placed India among the top 10 countries that have acquired large tracts of land abroad, primarily for agriculture, in Africa and Asia. The country ranks eighth,...