-The Hindustan Times Narendra Modi has in his poll speeches blamed the UPA government on more than one occasion for farmer suicides while admitting to just one such death due to agrarian reasons in 10 years in Gujarat. But an HT investigation has established his claim to be false. Copies of FIRs, last declarations by farmers and internal records of the state police accessed by HT reveal at least 54 farmers in...

-PTI About 40 per cent of government's foodgrain is stored in an "unprofessional" way due to acute shortage of storage capacity to the tune of 35 million tonnes, industry chamber Assocham said on Wednesday. Currently, 70 per cent of the total warehousing capacity of 112 million tonnes is owned by the government. Additional 35 million tonnes of storage capacity is required in the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17) period, it said. "About 30-40...

-The Business Standard There is an urgent need to develop a strong warehousing system equipped with modern and scientific storage facilities Mumbai: Around 30% of India's foodgrains harvest gets wasted because it is unprofessionally managed in the warehouse, a joint study conducted by The Associated Chambersof Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) and Yes Bank, said.Owing to extreme dearthof about 35 million tonnes (MT) warehousing capacity together with massive foodgrain storage shortfall...

-The Business Standard   Had late winter rains not damaged some standing crops in northern states, India would have had record foodgrain production of 263 million tonnes (mt) in 2013-14. Whatever the loss of rabi crops, the good southwest monsoon allowed India to record the targeted growth of four per cent in production. However, a good season should not distract us from the reality of the farm sector's vulnerability to major shocks...

-Frontline     Significant part of economic migration is still the result of desperation rather than hard-headed economic calculation. This, in turn, affects the conditions under which workers migrate and their lives and work as well.   PERHAPS the most poignant moment in the film Peepli Live-even though the movie is really more about the media than about the socio-economic realities of India-is at the very end, when the hapless protagonist, now a former farmer...