-The Hindu The company’s registration of the variety has been revoked by the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights’ Authority. Two years after PepsiCo India provoked outrage by suing nine Gujarati farmers for allegedly infringing patent rights by growing its registered potato variety, the company’s registration has been revoked by the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights’ Authority (PPV&FRA). “This judgement is a historic victory for the farmers of India. It...
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What will a legal guarantee of MSP involve? -PRIscilla Jebaraj
-The Hindu Why are farm unions seeking a minimum support price for all crops? What are the terms of the committee set up to look into their demands? The story so far: After a year-long agitation on the borders of Delhi, protesting farm unions under the banner of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha have achieved their headline demand, namely the repeal of three contentious laws seeking to reform the storage and marketing of...
More »Rs.10,000 crore more for MGNREGA scheme -PRIscilla Jebaraj
-The Hindu However, the job scheme’s balance sheets remain in the red in 24 States, UTs. The Finance Ministry has allocated additional funds of ₹10,000 crore as an interim measure for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme after it ran out of funds allocated in the budget, according to the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD). More funds may be forthcoming based on the “assessment of demand,” added the...
More »School enrolment fell during pandemic: Annual Status of Education Report -PRIscilla Jebaraj
-The Hindu Yawning gap between States in access to online education, says the study. The percentage of rural children who were not enrolled in school doubled during the pandemic, with Government schools seeing an increase in enrolment at the expense of private schools, according to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2021. Over a third of children enrolled in Classes 1 and 2 have never attended school in person. However, enrolment does...
More »Explained: Internet access surges during pandemic -PRIscilla Jebaraj
-The Hindu But remote work, education, and healthcare still not equally available to all, says survey The story so far: Internet connectivity has shot up over the last year, with most new users attributing their new connections to the COVID-19 pandemic and shutdowns. However, a new nationwide survey found that remote work, education, and healthcare are still not equally available to all, even among those with digital access. How was the study designed? LIRNEasia,...
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