-The Business Standard Govt's unbalanced food policy has disastrous results Consider the following discrepancies in the farm sector. The country is now the world’s largest exporter of rice, a crop grown with huge quantities of scarce water and heavily subsidised fertilisers. At the same time, it is the leading importer of pulses, which require very little water to grow and fortify the land with nitrogen to reduce the fertiliser need even...

-The Indian Express Dhule: For 33 years, Deputy Tehsildar Abdul Halim Ansari worked for the state, never doubting that it was largely fair, just and honest towards all citizens. That perception changed on Sunday, after his 30-year-old son died before his eyes, allegedly gunned down by the orders of the same administration that he has served all his life. Ansari, 58, believes that the police shot his son in cold blood. He...

-The Hindu The retail vegetable sellers have now started quoting the prices of almost all items in pao or 250 grammes. The concept of darjan or dozen has almost been replaced by the kilogramme for the humblest of fruits like bananas and oranges. But this means little to the common household which now literally thinks twice before buying any grocery item. A common refrain heard often from politicians is that prices are...

-The Economic Times A couple of months ago, the UPA government cleared Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in retail. It is a politically risky step. But for once, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh showed both spine and spunk biting the bullet. Since then, both Left parties and the BJP have expressed serious reservations over the decision. The general view is that it will affect the lakhs of small, indigenous kirana stores spread across...

-The Economic Times What are the chances that a chicken infected with bird flu will land on your plate? Zero. What are the chances that a bird flu infection will increase the price you pay for chicken and Eggs? 100%. A virulent and deadly infection called avian influenza or bird flu is present in our country. The virus usually affects wild fowl which then infect chickens. The virus can survive for...