Depressed over his crop getting damaged due to frost, a farmer attempted suicide by consuming pesticide in Madhya Pradesh's Damoh district Monday. It was the second such incident in the past three days in the district. The BJP government denied that any farmer had tried to kill himself due to debt. State Minister and government spokesperson Narottam Mishra told reporters: 'No farmer has committed suicide due to debt and there is...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Microlenders, Honored With Nobel, Are Struggling by Vikas Bajaj
Microcredit is losing its halo in many developing countries. Microcredit was once extolled by world leaders like Bill Clinton and Tony Blair as a powerful tool that could help eliminate poverty, through Loans as small as $50 to cowherds, basket weavers and other poor people for starting or expanding businesses. But now microLoans have prompted political hostility in Bangladesh, India, Nicaragua and other developing countries. In December, the prime minister of...
More »NABARD to stream micro credit through grass root groups
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rurual Development (NABARD) will pay greater focus on financing through 'Joint Liability Groups' (JLs) in Kerala as it is found more effective way of priority sector lending. JLs are informal groups of even 4-10 individuals joining together for the purpose of availing bank Loans through group mechanisms against mutual guarantee. According to NABARD's State Credit Plan 2011-12, financial inclusion through JLGs would be deepened in partnerships...
More »More chaff, less wheat on PDS plate
Thirty-year-old Santa Meena, a tribal woman of Saru panchayat is probably unaware that a panel headed by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and the Manmohan Singh-led government are struggling to arrive at the quantity of grain that BPL families should get under the Public Distribution System. All this mother of five knows is that she has to trudge 10 km from her hamlet to the ration shop in Saru (10 km from...
More »2010 a nightmare for tobacco farmers by Prashanth Chintala
Crop loss estimated at Rs 625 crore For Andhra Pradesh tobacco farmers, 2010 was a tough year. Heavy rain in the last week of November and the first week of December damaged the crop extensively, resulting in a loss of around Rs 625 crore. “According to our estimates, standing crop in 52,000 hectares out of the total 110,000 hectares has been either partially or fully damaged. This is the worst crop loss...
More »