-Business Standard Horticulture production to exceed Food grains output for fifth year in a row The Centre’s first advance estimates for horticulture production for 2016-17 crop year that will end in June showed onion output might fall 5.8 per cent during the year to 19.7 million tonnes, while potato and tomatoes could rise marginally. Onion production in 2016-17 could fall to 19.71 million tonnes as against 20.93 million tonnes last year. The output is...

-The Telegraph After the third general elections held in 1962, the scholar-statesman, C. Rajagopalachari, wrote a fascinating, if now forgotten, essay on the imperfections of our young democracy. "The Indian electorate", remarked Rajaji, "suffers from well-known defects from which Western democracies are relatively free. The Indian voters are in great measure poor and vulnerable to bribery: even a day's expense for Food serves to buy a large number of the poor...

-PTI New Delhi: Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Arvind Subramanian today took the line that the minimum support price on Foodgrains for farmers should not continue forever and there should be an "expiry date". "Minimum support price (MSP) originally came into being because we had a big problem of lack of self-sufficiency in Foodgrain production. It (MSP) was used as means of providing incentives to farmers. It has been successful. We no longer...

-The Hindu Business Line It should have considered universal basic income. But sadly, budgets are not seen as a means to meet socio-economic goals The Union Budget attracts considerable media hype and debate. Democracy, if understood as a contract between the state and its citizens, may have to use the budgetary process to ensure not only prosperity for all, but justice or fairness to the most disadvantaged among them as well. A rational...

After facing intense criticisms from various sections of the society following its policy of demonetisation during November-December, 2016, the NDA government has finally something solid to cheer about. Riding on the back of a normal monsoon, gross Foodgrain production is likely to reach a record level of about 272.0 million tonnes in the crop year 2016-17. As per the second advance estimates of Foodgrain production, which has been released by...