-Society for Social and Economic Research Monograph 20/3 Key Messages Lack of planning and preparation by the Central government for tackling the COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a massive blow to India’s economy and has caused enormous hardships to working people of the country. Harvesting of Rabi crops • Unplanned and sudden imposition of the lockdown resulted in a massive and unprecedented disruption to agricultural activities such as harvesting, sale of agricultural produce, and purchase...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Punjab’s plan for seamless wheat procurement with social distancing -Raakhi Jagga
-The Indian Express To manage these efforts, the government is using IT. Starting with the arrival of wheat to its procurement by a private or government agency, the IT section of the Mandi Board will be shepherding the process. Ludhiana: In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, a key challenge for the Punjab government has been to ensure that the procurement of wheat is done in a seamless manner while adhering to...
More »It’s time to end monopoly of APMCs; food majors should be encouraged to procure directly -Rajalakshmi Nirmal
-The Hindu Business Line If mandi boards surpass the agent network and support trade, farmers will stand to benefit immensely This could be the right time for the Centre to nudge States to make their Agriculture Produce Market Committees (APMCs) play a more active role in primary market trade. If the private sector engages in direct procurement from farmers now, the crowding in mandis can be checked effectively. This is imperative in maintaining...
More »Informal sector workers don’t have the privilege to stay at home & work online in the time of COVID-19
After the outbreak of COVID-19 in China during early January this year and its dissemination globally within a few days, health experts have suggested ways to check its spread exponentially among the rest of the population. In the age of internet connectivity, work-from-home and self-isolation have been advised as solutions to ensure social distancing and avoid large-scale social gatherings. Experts have asked governments and private enterprises to keep people at...
More »First time in 30 years, why NAFED faces challenge -Harish Damodaran
-The Indian Express NAFED has been tasked with purchasing all the apples that growers bring to sell at mandis in the Valley. A bumper crop, for which there would hardly be any private buyers with all the current movement restrictions, makes it all the more challenging. The National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) has not bought a single kilogram of apples for the last three decades or more. “We did...
More »