-The Indian Express Around October every year, farmers in Punjab, Haryana and other North West Indian States set fire to paddy residue in order to clear their fields to sow fresh wheat crops. New Delhi: Stubble burning in Punjab can be controlled completely if farmers are compensated for management of paddy straws, the state’s agriculture secretary K S Pannu told The Indian Express Monday. Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh would...

-The Indian Express Defence is a national public good. It is the primary responsibility of the Centre. The amendment to the terms of reference (TOR) issued to the Fifteenth Finance Commission asking it to examine “..a separate mechanism for funding of defence and internal security ought to be set up and if so, how such a mechanism could be operationalised,” has triggered some suggestions on the need to have a relook...

-The Indian Express However, fines for violations such as overspeeding, drunken driving and racing will remain unchanged. Bengaluru: Falling in line with States like Gujarat and Uttarakhand, the Karnataka government has reduced the high traffic fines introduced by the Centre under the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019 by 30-50 per cent. The latest changes come after Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said last week that he will follow Gujarat’s footsteps in...

-Down to Earth India’s homegrown dairy industry would require a support of around Rs 8-10 per kilogram of milk if the government allows import of dairy products from New Zealand and Australia under RCEP The Union government would not take any decision against the interests of homegrown cooperatives and private dairy companies as far as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) was concerned. This was the assurance given by the Union Ministry...

Almost one in every five suicides in the world is committed by self-poisoning with pesticide, which mostly occur in rural, agricultural areas of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), States a new publication entitled 'Preventing Suicide: A resource for pesticide registrars and regulators'. Published jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the booklet says that the adoption of green revolution technology...