-The Telegraph Rohtas: The Kaimur plateau, once an arms training centre for Maoist cadres, is turning out to be a hub of medicinal plants. Thanks to Ritesh Kumar Pandey, a progressive farmer, the plateau has turned from "red to green". Cultivation of medicinal plants such as ghreet kumari (aloe vera), ashwagandha (withania somnifera) and shatavar or satavari (asparagus recemosus) on the water-starved land has created a buzz among the residents of Maoist-hit districts...

-Live Mint Mint examines why millions of women are missing from farms, factories, colleges, and offices in India, which has one of the lowest ratios of working women in the world Mumbai: Every monsoon, minivans ferrying women labourers can be seen making their way from the small sleepy town of Wardha to Waifad village, 18 kilometres away. Urban workers from Wardha have come to occupy an integral part of Waifad's farm...

-Outlook New Delhi: The future of the flagship scheme providing 20 kilolitres of water to households announced by the former chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal hangs in balance as the Delhi Jal Board is yet to receive the final confirmation for provision of subsidy of Rs 165 Crore for 2014-2015 from Delhi government. "The Board was informed that on the matter pertaining to the provision of subsidy of Rs 165 Crore for the...

-Down to Earth The National Agroforestry Policy 2014 can substantially reduce poverty in rural India AFTER becoming the first country in the world to frame an agroforestry policy, India has gone ahead and allocated Rs 444 crore to promote agroforestry in the country. The National Agroforestry Policy 2014, announced on February 10, has the potential to substantially reduce poverty in rural India and revive agroforestry industry. Agroforestry is a farming practice in which...

-PTI BHUBANESWAR: The country's eastern region has the tremendous potential to emerge as the country's 'rice bowl', a recent study industry body Assocham said. The study titled 'Towards Second Green Revolution in Eastern India: A Road Map' also said the eastern region would be able to achieve a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about ten per cent in paddy production, if the country manages to bridge the gap between potential yield...