-Outlook Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today emphasised on the need to shift large surplus farmers to non-agriculture sector, saying per capita income of farmers would rise only when fewer people engage in farming. He also said farmers' income and agri-land yields need to be enhanced to meet the growing foodgrains demand in the coming years, building on the success of the 11th Plan. Addressing the 57th meeting of the National Development Council (NDC),...

-Outlook The agriculture sector witnessed record foodgrains output of 257.44 million tonnes in this year enabling the country to become world's largest rice exporter for the first time, but the monsoon played spoilsport dashing farmers' hopes of an encore in 2013. A hefty increase of Rs 1 lakh crore in farm credit target to Rs 5.75 lakh crore was a major highlight for the sector in 2012, while the continuing farmers suicide...

-Outlook Opposing direct cash transfer and FDI in retail, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh today said inordinate delay in decision making and complicated procedures for statutory clearances were hurting the country's economy growth and investor sentiment. He told a meeting of National Development Council (NDC) here, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, that the 12th plan has been made on "patronage model" and impinges on the autonomy of the states by making...

-Frontline The Land Acquisition, Resettlement and Rehabilitation Bill is an attempt to circumvent the hurdles before acquisition, such as rehabilitation of land losers, without much increasing the cost of land. THE preamble to the draft Land Acquisition, Resettlement and Rehabilitation (LARR) Bill is very noble; it talks about a “humane, informed, consultative and transparent process for land acquisition for industrialisation, development of essential infrastructural facilities and urbanisation with the least disturbance...

-Outlook Farmers refuse to give up land for industry On the one hand, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan, who calls himself a ‘kisan ka beta’, wants to earn a following with farmers. On the other hand, he wants to be seen as investor-friendly. But industry needs land; so do farmers. And farmers seem unwilling to give up their land. Whatever the price offered. On November 13, Sunia Bai, a...