-Hindustan Times Both, the farmers who undertook the march and those who went on strike, represent the wide spectrum of the state’s ongoing agrarian and rural distress. Last year, on June 1, thousands of farmers in Maharashtra went on an unprecedented strike, refusing to sell their produce to markets and cutting off supply of daily necessities – milk, vegetables and fruits – to cities. The two-day strike forced the Devendra Fadnavis-led...

-PTI The government is not in favour of farm loan waiver as it negatively impacts credit and recovery climate and has systematic consequences New Delhi: The government is not in favour of farm loan waiver as it negatively impacts credit and recovery climate, parliament was informed on Tuesday. However, several measures have been initiated to reduce the debt burden on farmers and increase availability of institutional credit, minister of state for agriculture Gajendra...

-The Indian Express It is morally obtuse and analytically misleading to see farmers’ long march as a demand for handouts The “long march of the farmers” in Maharashtra refocused attention on the crisis in certain regions in Indian agriculture. It should be the headline news that jolts the nation out of a complacent stupor. The protest made a series of long-standing but familiar demands: Loan waivers, increase in MSP, implementation of Forest...

-The Hindu Business Line To be finalised by the end of this month New Delhi: The NITI-Aayog has initiated discussions on putting in place a system to fix minimum support price (MSP) for different crops. A consultation meeting to discuss various options was held on Friday chaired by the NITI-Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar. The move comes following an announcement in the Budget by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that the Aayog will work with States...

-The Times of India CHENNAI: Ever wondered how many passenger trains arrive late every day in the country? Data tabled by the ministry of railways in Parliament on Friday shows that between April 2017 and February 2018, 1.48 lakh trains, or 450 trains a day, arrived late at the destination station.   The worst performers on the punctuality benchmark are mail and express trains, with 75,880 arriving late during the period. The second...