-PTI/ Newsclick.in The economist said the word 'freebies' indicates the class position of those who use it. New Delhi: Economist Jayati Ghosh said that 'basic needs' like nutrition, healthcare, housing and education, which the government should provide for its citizens, are not freebies, while asserting that the poor are more entitled to receive their basic needs. Ghosh noted that the word 'freebies' indicates the class position of those who use it. "India has one...

-The Telegraph While the BJP and Opposition continue with their political machinations, the larger issues on the ground are these: climatic aberrations and consequent losses How are we supposed to deal with long, dry spells as well as sudden and extreme rainfall in the same season? Or drought in one state and floods in another,for that matter? While the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Opposition continue with their political machinations, the larger...

-Business Standard There is a possibility of a 10-15-million tonne drop in kharif rice production due to drought in several major growing states in eastern India Wheat prices in some markets have touched Rs 2,522 a quintal and cereal inflation is expected to remain sticky in the months ahead due to low wheat stocks in central granaries. Nomura India in a report said lower rice output will put pressure on domestic rice...

-PTI/ The Hindu Punjab’s Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal said according to initial investigation by the agriculture department, it appears that a sum of ₹125-150 crore has been misused The Punjab government has said it has initiated a vigilance probe into a ₹150-crore scam in the distribution of crop residue management machines among farmers during the previous dispensation led by the Congress. State Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, in a statement on Wednesday,...

-Business Standard While the production of foodgrains and the financial position of the government are important points, electoral compulsion may become the deciding factor for the survival of this scheme A sharp drawdown in India’s wheat inventory exacerbated by a fear of a fall in rice production due to drought-like conditions in the main growing states has raised questions on the government’s ability to sustain the free foodgrains distribution scheme beyond its...