-The New Indian Express Something remarkable happened when the farmers came marching to Mumbai recently. Instead of greeting them with hostility, Mumbaikars welcomed them with affection, food and water. This change in attitude was triggered by the farmers’ extraordinary discipline and their efforts to ensure minimal disruption to the Mumbaikars’ routines. Even hard-boiled journalists acknowledged, for a brief moment, urbanites had realised  our farmers and adivasis were indeed facing difficult times. The...

-The Financial Express As onion prices surge on the removal of curbs on minimum export price (MEP), Lasalgaon Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) – the largest wholesale market for onions in Asia – is all set to be part of the World Bank-implemented Maharashtra Agricultural Competitiveness Project (MACP). The APMC will receive funds to the tune of Rs 1 crore as part of the project to bring the entire auction process...

-Frontline.in The Assembly elections have put under intense scrutiny Narendra Modi’s Gujarat model of development which is touted as worthy of replication throughout the country. Audit reports of the CAG provide ample evidence of it being inefficient, corrupt and not beneficial to the common people. THE standard indicators of development, as is understood in theory and practice, comprise a range of indices, and not necessarily the level of private investment in...

-IANS UDAIPUR: Farming has rarely been a viable proposition in Rajasthan's dry and hilly Udaipur region. A new way has now been found to provide sustainable sustenance for the area's tribals by enabling them to sell -- for a staggering Rs 189 crore ($29 million) in the last two years -- minor forest produce (MFP) that is abundant in the area and has remained unutilised for almost nine decades. According to officials,...

-The Times of India BENGALURU: Major post-harvest losses of the mango value chain - from farmer to local market -- due to improper handling, transportation, grading, packaging and storage has finally caught the attention of the government, just as the season draws to a close. To stem these losses, the government is now looking to introduce a system of organic certification to increase scientific harvesting and storage of the fruit. According to...