-The Hindu Indiscriminate digging of farm ponds has accelerated groundwater extraction The Maharashtra government’s flagship Jalyukt Shivar Yojana has been touted as a drought-proofing scheme, but a field study conducted by South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) gives a different picture. The organisation carried out the study at Hiwargaon-Pawasa, a backwater village with a population of 1,500, in Ahmadnagar district’s Sangamner Taluk. The research presents a microcosmic example of how...

-The Hindu Business Line MS Swaminathan talks of the problems plaguing farmers and possible solutions Father of the Indian Green Revolution and renowned agri-scientist, Prof MS Swaminathan, in an interview with BusinessLine, states emphatically that the Centre’s promise of doubling farmer income can become a reality if careful thought is applied and a comprehensive plan is drawn up. The role of the State and the public are crucial here, he stresses. Excerpts: *...

-The Indian Express Punjab farmers seek to move away from paddy-wheat, but not the way policymakers want it Jalandhar: Crop diversification and moving away from the entrenched paddy-wheat cycle has been the buzzword among Punjab’s policymakers for at least two decades now. It will remain so even when the next government takes over in a couple of weeks’ time. But on the ground, farmers are still planting paddy during kharif and wheat...

-The Times of India JAIPUR: Already upset with the abnormal weather conditions during March and April for two consecutive years, the farmers in Hadoti region and other parts of the state are jittery again.Though no abnormal conditions hinting at hail or dust storm have been witnessed so far, the farmers are praying to their local deities asking for favourable weather. It may be recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had presented `Krishi...

-TheWire.in Farmer suicides and hunger deaths plague flagship village of SP government. “Have you heard of kangaali mein aata geela? That is our situation,”says Sugha Singh as he sits outside Balwan Singh’s house along with other village men under the tree on a warm February afternoon. He is referring to an old Hindi idiom which means getting into more hardships one after another. They are mourning the death of Munni Devi, 78,...