Chief economic advisor to the finance ministry Kaushik Basu says the government should step in and acquire land for development projects to protect the interests of farmers. He also explains why the government cannot tackle food inflation by distributing free foodgrain among the poor. Excerpts from interview with ET: A large number of land-intensive project have run into opposition. Could it actually undermine our infrastructure thrust and growth? There is...

The Supreme Court tells the government: "It's criminal to let food rot in a chronically hungry country. Give it away free to the poor." It could have added: "Have you no political sense? Have you not read Anandamath, or at least seen the movie?" And Manmohan Singh ticks it off for transgressing on policymaking — doesn't it know there's no such thing as a free lunch? He could have added:...

Food inflation went up to 11.47 per cent for the week ended August 28, on the back of increase in prices of cereals, fruits and milk. This is the second consecutive week when food inflation has shown an upward trend, after a brief period of moderation in July and first half of August. Food inflation was 10.86 per cent during the previous week ending on August 21. On a yearly...

The Left parties may talk against privatization of the social sector but in their bastion, West Bengal, 97.5% of the anganwadis are served by contractors, 97% of the fair prices shops are privately owned, and the nutrition and food schemes are in disarray. These are the findings of the SC commissioners on food after their advisers conducted a survey of the state. The West Bengal report card looks dismal. About...

As rubber prices soared to Rs 180 per kg, even land, which is not traditionally best suited for rubber is getting converted in Kerala, thus shrinking the area under paddy cultivation. To stop diversion of paddy area towards rubber farms, the Kerala government has decided to implement a Rs 2,111-crore central package for paddy development in Kuttanad district, major producer of rice in the state. “Procurement price of paddy is now as...