-The Hindu Business Line In view of the distortions arising out of excessive price support, direct income transfers to farmers is a better option The domestic debate has tended to conclude that the rise in MSP announced in the Budget is an essential part of achieving the government’s objective of doubling farm incomes. But MSP stands for minimum support prices and is an instrument designed for reducing income volatility, not for raising...

-Livemint.com The issue of frequent hikes in fuel prices is a matter of debate and concern, law and justice minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said after a Union cabinet meeting New Delhi: The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government on Wednesday signalled its intent to stay the course on fuel pricing reforms and said that it was working toward a “long-term solution”. This comes against the backdrop of an international crude oil price rally, with...

-The Hindu Abandoning the daily price revision of petrol and diesel sets back an important reform The price of oil has been shooting up for weeks now, with Brent crude oil futures hitting their highest level in more than three years on Monday, at more than $75. But for two weeks now, the state-owned oil companies have kept petrol and diesel prices unchanged. Since April 24, the oil companies have abandoned the...

-Livemint.com Farmers continue to be vulnerable to frequent episodes of losses that neither the state nor the markets have been able to mitigate The dramatic long march to Mumbai involving thousands of distressed farmers on 12 March is a remarkable feat of peaceful protest against the state, given its apathy towards farmers’ distress as well as its failures in safeguarding tribal land rights. However, what is surprisingly missing in this poignant narrative...

-The Hindu Rather than just increased budgetary outlays, farmers need plans that will rescue them from crop failure Similar to the last two Budgets, this year’s pro-agriculture intentions are palpable through increased outlays to the agricultural sector and initiation of various programmes. They seem impressive, but closer scrutiny shows that the measures may be of little help to stem the tide of agrarian distress. There are some real challenges confronting three...