-Livemint.com Narendra Modi’s election promise in Uttar Pradesh comes back to haunt as other states demand the Union govt offer an agriculture bailout package across the country New Delhi: An election promise to farmers in the politically sensitive state of Uttar Pradesh is coming back to haunt Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as other states demand the Union government offer an agriculture bailout package across the country. During the hard-fought election campaign, Modi pledged...

-RuralIndiaOnline.org Despite the slow decline of the renowned handlooms of Dharmavaram in Andhra Pradesh, Shankara Dhanunjaya tried to work hard and prosper. But in 2016, at the age of 35, debts, crumbling dreams and crushing policy changes drove him to suicide All the handloom halls Into mortuary rooms Being metamorphosed That inexplicable sorrow! (From ‘Maggam bathuku’ an epic poem by Dr. U. Radheya, who is from a family of weavers; translated by Dr. P. Ramesh Narayana) In...

-TheWire.in In Gujarat’s Chhota Udaipur, MNREGA has helped villagers increase their earnings, improved connectivity in the area and led to higher farm yields. In the ubiquitous environment of the withdrawal of the welfare state across the globe, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) in India stands out as a critical and unique intervention. MNREGA is a social safety net that guarantees 100 days of employment to every rural household...

-The Hindu Most of the earnings of the average farm household were spent in meeting consumption expenditures. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced a slew of measures in the Union Budget 2017 to boost the agriculture sector. Higher agricultural credit, higher allocation for irrigation projects, a crop insurance scheme and increased allocations for MGNREGA to dig farm ponds were among the measures announced on February 1. But will these help attain the goal...

-Hindustan Times Nawanshahr: “The budget is far removed from reality.” That is how young Meet Pal Singh, an MBA who has set up a polyhouse in Mahalon village of Nawanshahr, dismisses the budget. The tall light-eyed youth, who is feted as a progressive farmer in the area, says the Modi government should first focus on implementing the MS Swaminathan report for farmers before coming up with a new set of proposals. Dr...