-Down to Earth New norms for declaring drought are too stringent to be practical and are indicative of Centre’s intention to pass on the financial burden to states Karnataka government has opposed Centre’s move to change parameters for drought assessment. The new manual for drought management limits Centre’s scope to offer financial assistance to states in the eventuality of drought. Unlike the 2009 manual for drought management—which was a mere guideline...

-Hindustan Times A report on sugar price policy for 2015-16 by union agriculture ministry had highlighted that Maharashtra’s sugarcane cultivation, which is less than 4% of the total cropped area, consumes 70% of water needed for irrigation Following criticism over sugarcane crop guzzling potable water, particularly in drought-prone Marathwada, the state government is set to introduce a policy for shifting 50% of sugarcane farming on drip irrigation in the next two years. Statistics...

-The Hindu The State, in an affidavit perused by Supreme Court on Friday, said it received information about the causes of farmers' deaths through reports collected from Collectors. The Tamil Nadu government on Friday blamed heart attacks, illness, and “in certain cases”, suicides for deaths of its farmers reeling under severe drought. The State, in an affidavit perused by the Supreme Court on Friday, said it had received information about the causes of...

-DNA India The Supreme Court on Wednesday is set to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by NGO 'Swaraj Abhiyan' seeking proper rehabilitation and financial assistance to the drought-affected people. In the previous hearing, the Apex Court had summoned nine state's Chief Secretaries in the case asking them to appear before it on April 26 in connection with the drought case. The court passed this order after hearing the plea filed by NGO 'Swaraj...

-The Hindu Business Line Karnataka, the first State to formulate an organic farming policy way back in 2004, has stepped up measures to spread the concept among farmers in recent years. Also, it has been working on rebuilding farmers’ interest in millets through incentives such as guaranteed buy-back and a bonus over the minimum support price. To provide market linkages to the over 1 lakh organic farmers in the State, the Karnataka government...