-GRIST Media If hard work and enterprise inevitably made you prosperous, every rural woman would be a millionaire. These women have borne the brunt of the radical, often brutal transformation of rural India these past two decades. Our writers examine the hardships they continue to face as well as their remarkable vision to solve some of the greatest problems of our times such as food security, environmental justice and developing a...

-The Economic Times Dinkar Patil, a farmer from Buldhana district in Vidarbha, Maharashtra, normally cultivates cotton on his 13-acre farm land. This year, however, he has skipped the cotton crop and opted for soyabean and tur dal. "The rainfall started late. I did not cultivate cotton because of the delayed rains and the huge increase in cost of cultivation of the crop," said Patil. He is expecting a fall of about...

-The Hindustan Times Kapurthala (Punjab): Direct seeding of rice (DSR) and paddy straw management were the major issues at the Kisan Mela held in the city on Thursday. The mela, organised by the agriculture department in association with the Agriculture Technology Management Agency (ATMA), began with a message of 'save environment, say no to burn paddy straw'. Four farmers, including a woman, were honoured for using DSR technology in paddy farming. The technology...

-IANS CHANDIGARH: Punjab, a major producer of foodgrain, is all set to introduce direct seeding of paddy, Punjab Deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said Saturday. Badal, who was on a two-day visit to south India, said the Punjab government would launch a joint project with Nuziveedu Seeds to promote direct seeding of paddy in all blocks of the state next year. Paddy is generally sown in June-July every year. Badal, after a meeting...

-The Hindu Business Line Whether it is promoting a lease market in land or the use of tractors, credit should be tailored to the needs of marginal players The Finance Minister has announced several measures to make farming competitive and rev up growth in agriculture. While this is welcome, the sector as a whole needs an overhaul to make best use of these measures. To address the needs of landless farmers who are...