-The Hindu Why India is the only Bt cotton-growing country facing the problem of pink bollworm infestation Earlier this month, the government cut royalties that local seed companies pay to Monsanto, for the second time in two years. This follows previous attempts to defang Monsanto. In February, for instance, the anti-trust regulator, the Competition Commission of India, decided to probe into anti-competitive practices by Monsanto. At the centre of all this is...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: National Highways constitute only 2% of India’s road length, but account for nearly 35% deaths in road accidents. The corresponding figures for state highways are 3% and 28%. Of the total 1.5 lakh road fatalities in 2016, over 94,000 people died on national and state highways. On an average, one life is lost in every three accidents on NHs and state highways. Road safety experts feel...

-Scroll.in The existing policy bans commercial activity in natural forests to protect forest dwellers. The new draft policy is up for public comments till April 14. The Union Government has drafted a new National Forest Policy. If approved, the policy will allow the corporate sector to grow, harvest and sell trees on government-owned forest lands. So far, this is explicitly banned under the existing National Forest Policy, which was laid down...

-TheWire.in Union minister for information and broadcasting has announced the possibility of such a framework arguing that the present regulations on online content are “not clear” with regard to news and broadcast content material. New Delhi: In at attempt to regulate online content – particularly news and opinion –  the Modi government is working on a “code of conduct” and perhaps draft legislation too that it will be “incumbent upon [media] agencies”...

-The Hindu Business Line Eleven years since its inception, the State’s farmer’s debt relief commission has quietly eased the burden of debt on poor farmers, and grown to be a model worth emulating Earlier this week 35,000 debt-ridden farmers coursed through Maharashtra, walking 180 km on blistered soles, to converge at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan demanding freedom from debt and fair compensation for their produce. As the government scrounged for solutions, it could’ve...