DJ Parmar, the postmaster of Kukda village of Surendra Nagar district in Gujarat, besides handling letters and money orders, has now taken an additional responsibility. He will take orders from farmers for supplying of seeds prior to the forthcoming kharif sowing season. In the neighbouring Danawada village, post master VS Verma is also gearing up to take the additional responsibility for ensuring that quality seed reaches farmers on time. Thanks...

As the policies on better water management work themselves out and the larger sums of monies the UPA government is spending on them have an effect, technology is the major source of growth in Indian agriculture. Improved seeds matter. While the earlier seed suppliers in agricultural universities and seed corporations reorganise themselves with the support of the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, private and public private partnerships (PPP) are flourishing. Bt...

IF DISRUPTIONS over phone tapping and the India Premier League controversy had not taken Parliament sessions hostage, the Rajya Sabha may have passed the controversial Seeds Bill in the week of April 26, when it was slated to come up for discussion. The government was keen to give this Bill the force of law as soon as possible because the seed industry wants it. The Seeds Bill originally proposed in 2004...

Fearing that the proposed Seeds Bill, 2004, if enacted, would harm millions of small and medium farmers across the country and only benefit the multi-national companies, city-based United Coalition Against Genetic Engineering (Uncage) today said that all stakeholders in agriculture and environment sectors must come forward to oppose the move. The Bill, to be tabled in Parliament soon is not about ensuring quality seeds, the coalition said, but about harmonising Indian...

The six-year-old Seeds Bill could be the next headache for the UPA government in Parliament. As the government plans to introduce the Bill in the Rajya Sabha this week, the Opposition, especially the Left parties, and several farmers’ organisations have ganged up against some of its provisions. The Left is also in touch with other political parties to put pressure on the government to remove certain “ antifarmer” clauses in the Bill. The...