In 2010, subject to government approvals, Indian farmers will seed their fields with transgenic brinjals—brinjals with a genetic variant that, courtesy Monsanty-Mahyco Ltd and a clutch of agricultural universities, protect them from insects. But 14 years ago, Polumetla Ananda Kumar successfully planted the first Indian transgenic brinjals in a field in west Delhi. Then he promptly burnt the entire crop to the ground. Kumar, head of the National Plant Biotechnology Centre at...

Food prices have shot up by more than 20 per cent in the course of the past 12 months. A vast proportion of the nation is being battered by the price rise — the fixed income group, the working classes, landless peasantry and small farmers who have to buy at least a part of the grains they consume from the market. There is, however, no upheaval among the suffering people....

A large number of farmers, who had lost their crops, houses and other property in the recent floods in north Karnataka, took out protest rally here on Tuesday to draw the State Government’s attention towards alleged irregularities in disbursing compensation to them and implementing relief works in the affected villages. The farmers, who were planning to storm the Vidhana Soudha, wanted an assurance from the Government on providing adequate compensation to...

Curbing inflationary expectations is the priority Food price inflation has been in double digits for almost a year. Officially this week it is clocking up 20 per cent, the highest in 11 years. Stories of inflation in pulses and vegetables have appeared repeatedly in newspapers all over the country. The minimum support price for wheat has more than doubled in the past three years. The sugarcane farmers invaded the roads of...

Farmers of Chandauli district in Uttar Pradesh, who have been served a notice for acquisition of land for a freight corridor for Mamata Banerjee’s railway ministry, have decided to rope in all those who had backed the Singur agitation for a movement against the project. As a first, the farmers have written to Medha Patkar, the spearhead of the Narmada Bachao Andolan, who is one of the key social activists...