-The Indian Express Farmers are unanimous that Punjab hasn’t seen such bad days, with one or the other crop failing in consecutive seasons — and now basmati selling even below parmal. Jalandhar: When farmers in Punjab began taking the harvested grain from their Pusa-1509 superfine basmati paddy crop early this month, they were shocked to see it fetch rates below not just half of last year’s levels, but even the official minimum...

-DNA State policies favouring certain food crops have rendered pulses forbiddingly expensive and the common man is feeling the pinch The huge spurt in dal prices, touching Rs180 per kilogram and even Rs200 in some cities, has come as a dampener to the festive season, and raised questions about the policies of the government. For some years now, India has been resorting to huge imports of pulses to meet domestic demand...

-The Hindu An OECD study shows that better technology in classrooms does not always translate into better learning outcomes. It is time for Indian policymakers to do some soul-searching on our over-reliance on technology in education and the resultant neglect shown to teacher training.The new-age administrators believe that the Internet can address all pedagogic needs. They do not understand curriculum policies or examination reforms. Nor do they appreciate the progressive initiatives...

-Hindustan Times Bhubaneswar: Debt and drought have reportedly forced five Odisha farmers to commit suicide in as many days, prompting the human rights commission on Tuesday to take note of the state’s deepening farm crisis. The farmers — all of them in their 40s — allegedly took the drastic step after their paddy crop wilted because of scanty rainfall and they have loans to repay. In another case, it was cotton. At least...

-Hindustan Times A migrant labourer not long ago, 37-year-old Sitaram Majhi is now a successful farmer. As Odisha’s agricultural fields starve for Water due to drought conditions this year, Majhi never had a problem Watering his crop in Kharamal village in Bargarh district’s parched Paikmal block, more than 500 km from Bhubaneswar. Equipped with chahala – a small traditional Water harvesting structure – and a vermi-compost pit the three-acre farm, on which he...