-Business Standard Nabard-Icrier study calls for moving high-water reliant crops like sugarcane in Maharashtra, rice in Punjab to other areas; Gadkari says not possible. With India staring at a looming water crisis, a new study on ‘water productivity mapping of major crops’ has called for putting a price on water used for irrigation to at least recover operating and maintenance costs of structures like canals. It has also called for an end...

-The Times of India blog Dozens of farming groups determined to stall supply of fruits, vegetables and dairy products to major Indian cities is a clear indicator of growing rural discontent that the Modi government has been struggling to deal with for quite some time, amidst supply glut and depressed farm produce prices. Worried that unhappy farmers could cost BJP dearly in upcoming state and national elections, the government has promised to...

-The Hindu To address concerns about depleting groundwater reserves in India, the government has joined hands with the World Bank to execute a ?6,000-crore scheme called the Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY). The scheme is to be implemented over a period of five years from 2018-19 to 2022-23, according to a statement from the Union water Ministry. It is yet to be cleared by the Cabinet. The Atal Bhujal Yojana “aims to improve ground...

-Livemint.com Farmer unions are divided over whether to inconvenience cities with their protests, and as a result the strikes have been limited to a few regions in Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Maharashtra New Delhi: The ongoing protests by farmers attempting to restrict the supply of milk and fresh produce to cities has highlighted differences between farmer unions on modes of protest, especially on the question of whether to risk rattling urban...

-The Hindu Why the drop in rates? Garlic has been the latest casualty of the price crash in the vegetable market after poor returns of tomato and potato crops forced many farmers to abandon their produce owing to a bumper output in recent days. The miseries of financially distressed farmers seem far from over even as they continue to demand waiver of farm loans and remunerative prices for their produce through several...