-Business Standard Spread of irrigation, rise in drought-tolerant seeds have come as saviour, says study The southwest Monsoon might have made a good start, but its future looks bleak, with many models predicting a let up in showers around the first week of July. The picture for north-west India, the country's premier paddy-producing region, looks gloomier with most weather forecasts predicting below-normal rains in the region this year. However, how far will...

-Livemint.com Rajan has indicated he will now pause, projecting consumer inflation could rise to about 6% by next January Aurangabad: Prices of many foodstuffs are surging in India, despite a good start to Monsoon rains—an unexpected boon for wholesalers, but a major headache for the central bank and a government hoping for its help to reboot the economy. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan has cut interest rates three times...

-The Financial Express With Delhi and its adjoining areas receiving moderate to heavy pre-Monsoon showers and the southwest winds active over Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand, the planting of key kharif crops, such as paddy, pulses, oilseeds, sugarcane and cotton, is set to get a boost. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday said Monsoon was expected to hit northern states over the next few days. “The conditions are favourable for...

-Business Standard Labour shortage and threat of deficient Monsoon are pushing adoption of farm machinery Taraori: Vikas Chaudhary, a farmer in Haryana's Karnal district, started using a maize planter in 2012. The acquisition of a happy seeder around the same time helped him sow wheat directly.  The two machines helped him reduce input costs substantially. "With the help of machines, I have managed to reduce the input cost for paddy by Rs 2,000...

-The Indian Express As several steps taken by the Centre for the sector hangs fire, clarity and implementation of ‘Housing for All’ scheme would be the key for its success. The Union Cabinet approved its flagship ‘Housing for All’ scheme this week, with a 2022 target and a renewed emphasis on the low-income group categories by way of relaxed income limits and higher interest subvention. While the government seems to have struck...