-The Indina Express The proposal holds significance given that the EC Act arms the government with powers to impose stock limits and movement restrictions on agricultural commodities. New Delhi: Arguing that the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, was framed during the era of food scarcity, the NITI Aayog has proposed that the Act be scrapped because it is an “impediment in the free movement of commodities” given that the country is now...
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Why govt's GM policy defers logic, hurts farmers
-The Financial Express When several NGOs and others protested against the GEAC report, the UPA's environment minister, Jairam Ramesh decided not to give the final go-ahead. As farmers under the umbrella of the Shetkari Sangathana start their civil disobedience movement and plant the banned Herbicide Tolerant (HT) GM seeds as well as Bt brinjal, chances are the authorities will treat this as yet another law and order issue and will arrest them;...
More »Technical glitches add to NREGA workers' despair -P Sujatha Varma
-The Hindu Wages to the tune of Rs.53.8 crore are yet to be paid in State Vijayawada; Frequent changes in wage disbursal methods and technical glitches, coupled with government apathy, have deprived 8.6 lakh porters of their hard-earned wages worth Rs.53.8 crore in the 13 districts of Andhra Pradesh under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). “Factors that stand between the workers and their wages range from failure of the...
More »Bt brinjal: Where do we stand? -Rohit Parakh
-Financial Express Given the health impacts of Bt brinjal on animals, one needs to keep in mind that the GM crop surely cannot be declared as safe. Bt brinjal has been found to be released illegally and predictably it has sparked furious reactions on all sides. Some have unsurprisingly already started to ask for Bt brinjal moratorium to be lifted in the light of illegal Bt brinjal cultivation. In the light of...
More »Agri sector: No fireworks in the short term -Rajalakshmi Nirmal
-The Hindu Business Line However, PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana will give instant relief to the rural India, improving demand for agri inputs BJP’s election manifesto promised many things for farmers. Now that it is clear that the NDA-led coalition is going to be back in power, companies in the agri space — manufacturers of seeds, fertilisers, agro-chemicals and farm equipment — will stand to benefit. However, do not expect fireworks immediately. Had it...
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