-The Financial Express Likely to give bonus of up to Rs 425 per quintal on pulses In a bid to boost production of pulses and oilseeds, the government is likely to announce 5 to 10% hike in minimum support price (MSP) for the rabi crops, including wheat, barley, gram, masur and mustard, for the 2016-17 season besides a bonus on pulses in the range of Rs 250 to Rs 425 per quintal. Sources...

-The Hindu The Singur project was considered, at the time of inception, as the revival of industry in West Bengal. Singur (West Bengal): Bhaskar Kanrar and Bubai Kanrar were no more than children when their parents and uncles began the movement against forcible land acquisition for the setting up of Tata Motors’ Nano factory in Singur. Ten years later, with the Supreme Court verdict that went in favour of the protesting farmers, the...

-Hindustan Times Chandigarh: Thanks mainly to the largesse of 10,000 tubewells and mass switch from whitefly-shadowed cotton, Punjab’s paddy yield is going to be an all-time high of 186-lakh tonnes. What could be worse. The experts are worried that this non-native crop may bring “momentary respite” to farmers but “spell doom for Punjab”. Paddy — never grown over 30-lakh hectares or 94-lakh acres before — has eaten into the area of other...

-The Hindu Business Line Good rain, increased acreage and hike in minimum support prices likely to cool prices The Modi government has been struggling over the last two years to contain the unprecedented rise in the prices of pulses, the second-most important food item after cereals. In the interim, prices of tur have more than doubled, and near-doubled in the case of urad and chana. WPI prices for pulses increased 35.76 per...

-The Indian Express Govt must learn from mistakes in onions and potatoes, agriculture should be spared of bearing the burden of its inflation targeting. Last week, Union Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a 5% subsidy on onion exports in the form of transferable duty credit scrips that can be used to pay customs, excise or service tax. On top of it, the Maharashtra government extended a Rs 100 per quintal grant to...