-The Hindu Powerful lobbies with vested interests see agroecology as a threat to their influence on farming systems Agroecology is recognised worldwide as a system that enhances fertile landscapes, increases yields, restores soil health and biodiversity, promotes climate resilience and improves Farmers’ well-being. Its practices are supported by many agricultural scientists, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Farmers’ groups and several NGOs. It is therefore surprising that...

-The Indian Express Around October every year, Farmers in Punjab, Haryana and other North West Indian states set fire to paddy residue in order to clear their fields to sow fresh wheat crops. New Delhi: Stubble burning in Punjab can be controlled completely if Farmers are compensated for management of paddy straws, the state’s agriculture secretary K S Pannu told The Indian Express Monday. Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh would...

-The Hindu Business Line Write to Commerce Minister demanding negotiations be put on hold till they are consulted New Delhi: A number of Farmer organisations, trade unions, livestock and fisheries groups and civil society bodies have written an open letter to Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal stating that most of them had not been consulted on the on-going negotiations for the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) pact and expressed concerns that their...

-Financial Express We have been hearing the expression ‘Industry 4.0’ ever since the idea of ‘smart factory’ was unveiled in Hannover in April 2013. Many opine ‘Agriculture 4.0’ akin to 4G of telecom. I believe Agriculture 4.0 is “going back to basics, but with technology as its underpinning” to usher in sustainability, in the wake of climate change and degradation of our agricultural ecosystems. We need to re-look at agriculture with...

-TheWire.in The move itself reveals a deep-seated pro-consumer and anti-producer bias that has been, in large part, the reason for the agriculture economy being in doldrums. New Delhi: The government has decided to import onions from ‘Pakistan, Egypt, China, Afghanistan or any other origin’, according to a Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation Limited notifications. Some concerns were raised about importing from Pakistan. “And why import from Pakistan? Is the Indian Farmer a...