-The Economic Times New Delhi: The government has come out with a draft model contract farming act, which industry insiders said will protect farmers from price risks and encourage food processing companies to invest more in infrastructure and farming technology once states adopt it. The agriculture ministry has put up the model act on its website for various stakeholders, including contract farming and value chain promoting companies, producers' organisations and farmers, to...

-TheWire.in While the hike in power prices will increase rural distress, many farmers believe the move is particularly cruel because the quality of rural power supply hasn’t improved. Garhmukteshwar (Uttar Pradesh): Voting in the civic polls of Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP)-governed Uttar Pradesh (UP) concluded on November 29. A day later, a huge power tariff hike of up to 150% for rural consumers was announced in the state. While the tariff hike,...

-Press release by All India Transgender and Intersex Collective The Constitution of India, framed under the guidance of Dr. BR Ambedkar, was built on the framework of equality, justice, liberty and secularism. It is only due to these ideals that communities of people forced into society's margins have won some legal rights and also gathered the courage to fight against social injustice. The fight still continues, especially because transgender persons, dalits,...

-Down to Earth Death of cotton farmers due to pesticide poisoning in the Vidarbha region raises vital questions about the government's attitude towards regulation of toxic pesticides One more evil has reared its ugly head in Maharashtra’s arid Vidarbha region, which has so far been infamous for farmer suicides. Some 35 farmers in the region have died of pesticide poisoning in last four months. Most of them were working in cotton and...

-Down to Earth More than 180 farmer organisations from across the country proposed Bills related to debt waiver and fair crop prices in a mock parliament  On the second day of a protest organised by the All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC), farmers from more than 180 farmer organisations across the country proposed a bill each on debt waiver and fair prices for crops. For two days, thousands of farmers had gathered...