-The United Nations A United Nations independent rights expert called today for policy changes that will allow developing countries the freedom to use their reserves to help secure the right to food without the threat of sanctions under current World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. "Trade rules must be shaped around the food security policies that developing countries need, rather than policies having to tiptoe around WTO rules," said Olivier De Schutter, Special...

-The Hindu     States that increase minimum wage will have to bear extra cost from their own resources A committee set up by the Ministry of Rural Development to revise wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has offered suggestions that are likely to iron out long-standing issues relating to disparity in earnings under the scheme. Currently, MGNREGA wages are lower than the minimum wages in several States, including in...

-Live Mint Our food procurement policies may be lopsided but there is no link between the food security law and free trade The upcoming World Trade Organization (WTO) summit in Bali has attracted considerable attention in India because of its repercussions on our food policy. It is feared that the recently passed food security law will breach the negotiated limits on the aggregate measure of support (AMS) to farmers. AMS is...

-Down to Earth Expresses concern over alcohol brands being advertised in violation of rules India is emerging as the favourite destination for alcohol promotion of marketing companies. Their new targets are women and youth, who at present comprise a very small percentage of alcohol consumers in India. These are the observations made by a report-Alcohol Marketing and Regulatory Policy Environment in India-put out by the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI). It...

-PTI   NEW DELHI: Backing the government's stance on food subsidy at the WTO, India Inc today said it is important to ensure legal entitlement of low-cost ration to the poor in order to achieve all-round development. "For us in India, we have to ring-fence the interest of subsistence farmers and poor by procuring grains at minimum support price (MSP) and ensuring legal entitlement of low-cost ration to the poor," Assocham President Rana...