Amidst the prevailing gloominess over agrarian crisis, a recently released report says that the growth rate of agricultural output in both India and China were the same during 2008-2013. The agricultural gross domestic product (GDP) of both these countries on an average grew at 3.3 percent per annum during that period. The latest available data from the 2016 Global Food Policy Report, however, indicates that the neighbouring countries of Sri Lanka...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Failure of Bt cotton forces government to promote native seeds
-PTI NEW DELHI: With bollworm developing resistance to Bt cotton crop, the government has decided to promote cultivation of indigenous varieties of the crop in a big way this year. In 2015-16 crop year (July-June), there was a significant damage to cotton crop because of whitefly and pink bollworm pest attack in states like Haryana, Punjab, Rajashtan, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. Almost 90 per cent of the country's cotton cultivation area is under...
More »Farmers' conference demands law for guaranteed income -Vineet Kumar
-Down to Earth Participants voice concern on drought, farmers' suicide and water conservation, among other issues The three-day long Kisan Swaraj Sammelan held in Hyderabad (April 1 to 3) urged for the enactment of a Farmers’ Income Guarantee Act to ensure dignified earning levels for agricultural households among a host of other things. Organised by the Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture, a group comprising 400 diverse organisations from across India, the...
More »HRD to boost women’s entry in academia
-The Hindu New Delhi: With an aim to promote participation in Research, the HRD Ministry has decided to give additional time to women and persons with disabilities to complete their M.Phil and Ph.D, Union Minister Smriti Irani said on Monday. Speaking at an event to release the rankings of domestic institutes, Ms. Irani said that many women are getting enrolled for higher education but not many are seen in the faculty. She...
More »Punjab opens its heart - and purse - to farmers -Sanjeeb Mukherjee & Archis Mohan
-Business Standard Instead of addressing systemic problems in agriculture, farm politics in the state is about how much money the government can offer the farmer as a dole The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), led by Parkash Singh Badal and son Sukhbir, was in a dilemma a year before the 2012 Assembly elections in Punjab. The Akalis had ruled Punjab since 2007 but no party had ever returned to power for a second...
More »