It used to be a dry and arid land legume grown by poor farmers in Rajasthan, Haryana , Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. Till a few years back, it sold for as low as Rs 1,000 a quintal. Eaten either at home by farmers (some may remember it as guar ki phalli) or sold off for export to be used as a binding and thickening agent in edible products like ice creams,...

A government report lends credence to the notion of “two Indias”, or the distinction between “India” and “Bharat” – a theme often debated in recent years. At a time when urban India is growing and policy makers have expressed clear preference for the trend, this report, by National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO), brings India’s deep urban-rural divide into focus, showing disparities in scale and levels of expenditure and consumption and, equally...

-PTI Retail inflation shot up to the double digit mark at 10.32 per cent in April on account of substantial increase in vegetable, Edible Oils and milk prices. Based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the inflation for March was revised to 9.38 per cent from the provisional estimate of 9.47 per cent, as per the government data release here on Friday. Vegetable prices recorded the maximum of 24.55 per cent, followed by...

-The Indian Express India's wholesale price inflation accelerated 7.23% in April, compared with 6.89% in the previous month, as food and manufactured items turned dearer, heaping pressure on the central bank against any dovish approach to monetary easing despite shrinking economic activity. The government has revised up the inflation figure for February to 7.36% from 6.95% estimated earlier, according to the data released by the industry ministry on Monday. Prices of food articles...

Rice, wheat production seen at highest ever, but other commodities show a decline from previous year’s harvest The government estimated a record high foodgrain crop for the 2011-12 crop year that ends in June, driven mainly by higher output of rice and wheat, but experts said prices are likely to remain firm and keep inflation at around 7%. The likelihood that the government will increase the minimum prices it guarantees farmers for...