-Kafila.org With depressing regularity, the newspapers have been reporting farmers' suicides in many states. Recently, P Sainath wrote on BBC that around 296,438 farmers have committed suicide since 1995. He also mentions that cash crop cultivators of cotton, sugar cane, vanilla, pepper, groundnut etc account for the bulk of those suicides. According to a PIL heard by the Supreme Court in December 2014, around 3146 farmers in Maharashtra have committed suicide...

-The Hindu Kalpetta (Kerala): A study conducted by scientists of Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) found that heavy and unscientific application of chemical fertilizers without regular application of lime was the major reason for the spread of yellowing disease in pepper vines. The study was led by K.M. Sreekumar, Associate Professor, Department of Entomology, Agriculture College, Padnnakkad. Sugandhi project It was conducted under the four-year Sugandhi project, organised jointly by the Indian Institute of Spices...

-The Hindu Kochi (Kerala): The State Horticulture Mission (SHM) is planning to implement organic farming and certification in 2,000 hectares in the State. The programme is to be implemented initially in the three districts of Idukki, Wayanad and Kasaragod during 2014-15, under the guidance of the National Horticulture Mission (NHM). Under the programme, financial assistance will be provided over a period of three years for groups of farmers covering an area of...

-The Statesman Prime Minister Narendra Modi has expressed anguish over suicides by farmers, whose condition has not improved despite the high rate of economic growth. The reason for this distressing state of affairs is that economic policies are badly crafted. The primary effort of the Government has been to increase agricultural production. The price factor is not taken into consideration, the perception being that the farmer will be better off...

-The Hindu Thiruvananthapuram: Farmers in Kerala can look forward to reducing their dependence on toxic chemicals for pest control. The Department of Agriculture has tied up with the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad, to introduce pheromone traps in the State. The technology uses the sex pheromones of a particular pest against itself. Pheromones are hormones released by insects and pests to attract the opposite sex for mating. The IICT has developed...