-CaravanMagazine.in What the Modi economy has done to farmers On his way to the prime ministership in 2014, Narendra Modi promised that, if his Bharatiya Janata Party won power, the government would raise the minimum support prices paid for crops such as rice and wheat to guarantee farmers a 50-percent profit on their production costs. The benchmark was first proposed by the Swaminathan Commission, formed in 2004 to address farmers’ economic plight,...

-TheWire.in Why is Rs 1.84 lakh crore a "frightening challenge" for banks, but Rs 10.17 lakh crores not? The great farm loan waiver debate is back. The Congress kicked it off this time with the announcement of waivers in the newly-elected governments of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan. This was followed up by similar announcements from BJP-ruled Gujarat and Assam. Rahul Gandhi even went onto to demand a nation-wide farm loan waiver from...

-The Indian Express As there are 21.6 crore small and marginal farmers — most of whom are not in a position to repay the loan or put collateral — such a scheme is the only way to support their fund requirements, apart from ensuring market prices for their produce. Mumbai: The NDA government is considering a package of proposals for the distressed agriculture sector that includes interest-free loans, loans without collateral...

-News18.com Acclaimed journalist and Founder-Editor of the People’s Archive of Rural India, P Sainath attributes the existential crisis confronting India’s agrarian society to macro-economic policies set in motion 25 years ago. Talking to Anuradha SenGupta, Sainath makes a case for state intervention in agriculture and says the Modi government, with its shifting positions and policies like demonetisation has only aggravated the assault on agrarian livelihoods. Dismissing the buzz about imminent new initiatives...

-PTI About Rs. 1.47 lakh crore of agricultural loans are outstanding in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh Asian Development Bank (ADB) Country Director Kenichi Yokoyama Friday said farm loan waivers were against economic principles and cannot effectively address the agrarian distress. Yokoyama also advocated for direct transfer of funds to targeted beneficiaries as it would cut down leakages. On farm loan waiver, he said most of the people are sceptical about it as an...