-Inclusion.in There is good news. And there’s bad news. The good news first. There’s been a bumper wheat crop and the granaries are overflowing. And the bad news? Where do we begin? A lot of that grain will rot. Millions will still remain hungry. Heavily in debt and distressed, farmers are committing suicide. Food prices are soaring. There’s more… Farmers don’t have money. Their land is too small and isn’t yielding much. Fertilisers and...

-The Business Standard The government must prepare for below-normal monsoon A massive 30 per cent deficiency in the monsoon rainfall in June, coupled with an anticipated low precipitation in September, may add to the government’s difficulties in achieving its growth and fiscal deficit targets. Agriculture may not be the only victim of poor rainfall. Its contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) may have dipped to mere 15 per cent but it still...

-The Telegraph Weather scientists today predicted two weeks of active monsoon coming up but cautioned that without steady excess rainfall over the next eight weeks, the prospects of a normal monsoon this year will recede. Atmospheric conditions now appear favourable for two weeks of good rainfall across peninsular, central and northern India, but the activity is unlikely to be driven by typical monsoon season mechanisms such as depressions in the Bay of...

There could be a turnaround in the monsoon scenario in the next four to five days, according to the latest forecast of the India Meteorological Department (IMD). In its weekly report released on Friday evening, the IMD said “an analysis of the current meteorological conditions indicate increase in rainfall activity in east, central, and north-west India due to development of the seasonal east-west trough, with embedded upper air cyclonic circulation. “The condition...

As the monsoon rains continue to play truant over much of the country, concerns about the fate of India’s rain-fed agricultural sector this year means that lakhs of farm labourers could be forced to look for other options. Anticipating an increase in demand for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) jobs this season, the Centre has indicated its willingness to sanction additional funds – to the tune...