-Hindustan Times These women have come together to force the administration to give them designated work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. The scorching heat and glaring sun don’t seem to deter the spirit of villagers clearing weed and silt from a dry lake in Bevanahalli, Mandya district. Sowbhagya, one of the labourers, from the 75-member group is worried about completing the task assigned on time. “The authorities gave us...

-Livemint.com Last year’s abundant rains in drought-prone Marathwada region, of which Latur is a part, have helped farmers produce record amount of pulses Mumbai: Latur is back on its feet and its pulse mills are running again, a year after an acute drought. The dry bed of the Manjra river, the Water train from Sangli and the once ubiquitous Water tankers have become things of the past. Last year’s abundant rains in Marathwada—a...

-Hindustan Times A report on sugar price policy for 2015-16 by union agriculture ministry had highlighted that Maharashtra’s sugarcane cultivation, which is less than 4% of the total cropped area, consumes 70% of Water needed for irrigation Following criticism over sugarcane crop guzzling potable Water, particularly in drought-prone Marathwada, the state government is set to introduce a policy for shifting 50% of sugarcane farming on drip irrigation in the next two years. Statistics...

-Livemint.com An advance review of drought preparedness will help mitigate the impact of any sub-par rains on farmers, says agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh New Delhi: Despite the government’s weather office forecasting a normal south-west monsoon in 2017, agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh on Monday wrote to all state chief minister’s asking them to be ready with contingency plans in case of poor rains. An advance review of drought preparedness will help mitigate...

-Business Standard The programme will cover both Water-scarce and flood-affected areas in India Ahmedabad: Ahead of the monsoon, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) will be reaching out to 100,000 villages with its Water conservation programme. The Nabard will be working with villagers on better use of Water for agriculture and household purposes.   Amid a drought-like situation in several areas, the Nabard targets to help farmers extend Water availability and...