Remember the over 100 farmhouse plots allotted in Noida measuring at least 10,000 sq m each without an auction or a draw of lots, including two to Supreme Court advocate Shanti Bhushan and his son Jayant Bhushan? An audit has now found that not only was there no transparency in the allotment of these plots — 101 in all — but that the Noida Authority had fixed a very low rate,...

Large farm lobbies are backing the government's decision to allow foreign supermarkets to set up shop in the country, saying it will shorten the supply chain and get growers a larger share of the final selling price.  Most farmers, however, want the government to go a step further and make it mandatory for retailers to buy 75% of their produce directly from farmers, bypassing the restrictive 'mandi' auction system.  "Traders and middlemen...

-The Economic Times   Rapid urbanisation of villages and expansion of urban areas pose a more pressing challenge to Indian policymakers and administrators than migration of people from rural areas to the cities, a new report has said.  "A commonly held perception is that explosive rural to urban migration is the primary cause for the state of India's cities. This is not borne out by evidence," says 'Urban India 2011- Evidence', released by...

For some people, life is all about a fried hollow globe with a thumb-jabbed hole in the middle. Hot, sour, sweetened or served in dahi (curd), phuchkas are a part of growing up. Unfortunately, the men who sell the phuchkas don’t know where the next jab will come from. Their thumb, or the sudden snatch of officials. Reason: there’s no law to protect them from harassment for selling their stuff on streets. But things...

-The Telegraph   Sharad Pawar’s hometown Baramati was shut down today by farmers demanding higher remunerative prices for sugarcane. The protest by the farmers has sent a strong political message to the ruling Congress-NCP government. Baramati is the seat of Maharashtra’s powerful and influential sugar belt that controls the state politics. Shops and establishments were closed down as hundreds of sugarcane farmers camping here for the fourth consecutive day intensified their protest and organised rasta...