-Business Today RCEP trade deal: The group said that the Indian govt should not agree to the RCEP even in future as it will be a 'bad deal for democracy, for farmers, workers, will subvert our sovereign laws and compromise India's industrialisation potential'. Forum for Trade Justice, a pan-civil society network has welcomed the failure of the 16 negotiating countries to reach a consensus over the conclusion of the world's largest free...

  Air quality in North India in general and Delhi National Capital Region (Delhi NCR) in particular plunged to its lowest point in recent years during October-November thanks to a variety of factors. Through media reports one comes to know that stubble burning (also called paddy straw burning/ crop residue burning) is chiefly responsible for the public health crisis in India's capital and its nearby regions. Data accessed from the website...

-The Hindu Business Line The seeds regime should protect farmers’ interests, says Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture Hyderabad: The Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA) has called for a seed regime that would protect the farmer’s right to breed, select, save, use, exchange, distribute and sell seeds. The regime should also encourage agro-diversity to ensure sustainable agriculture and resilience to climate change stresses. Referring to reports on the proposed amendments to...

-The Indian Express High powered commitee for transformation of agriculture should reform restrictive tenancy laws, protect rights of landowners. Early in its second term, on July 1, the Narendra Modi government constituted a High Powered Committee of Chief Ministers for Transformation of Indian Agriculture. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was appointed the committee’s convenor. The Committee is supposed to submit its report within two months. Its terms of reference (ToR) pertain...

-The Hindu How India can shift its agriculture from a high-yield ideal to a high-value one When the news broke that PepsiCo was suing small farmers in India for growing a potato variety that is used in its Lay’s chips, popular sympathies immediately went, of course, to the farmers. National and international pressure swiftly mounted, and in short order a humbled PepsiCo backtracked, announcing its withdrawal of the lawsuit. There was global...