-The Business Standard   A CAIU will be set up to analyse and collect field data for a transparent and accountable labour inspection system The Union labour ministry has approved a more liberal inspection scheme aimed at simplifying business regulations and bringing "transparency and accountability" in the system. For this purpose, a Central Analysis and Intelligence Unit (CAIU) will be set up to analyse and collect field data "for a transparent and accountable labour...

-The Hindu     Filmmakers Kavita Bahl and Nandan Saxena on their award-winning documentary "Candles in the Wind" which chronicles the struggles of the widows of the Green Revolution in Punjab As calls for a ‘second green revolution' begin to be heard, it is important to examine the legacy of the first. In Punjab, the laboratory of the revolution, the experiment seems to have gone wrong - water tables have declined, agriculture has become...

-The Times of India   AURANGABAD: The groundwater level in the Marathwada region has increased by 1.8 metres till May 2014 as compared to the corresponding period last year, according to a pre-monsoon survey conducted recently by the Groundwater Survey Development Agency (GSDA). Last year, the groundwater level till May was recorded at 11.44 mt, while this year it stood at 9.64 mt till the same period. Deputy director of GSDA, P L Salve,...

-The Hindu Business Line   Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose (The more things change the more they remain the same ): A French proverb. In its earnest to tackle rising food inflation the new Government has taken a welcome initiative to delist fruits/ vegetables including onions (FVO) from the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act, while all other measures are as usual - short term of political expediency, repeated several...

-The Hindu   Agriculture activities come to a standstill in Gulbarga Karnataka: It has been an agonising wait for farmers in Gulbarga district. After a gap of several years, the district faces the bleak prospect of losing the chance to take up sowing of green and black grams, soyabean and sesame this year because of inordinate delay in the onset of the monsoon. As per the details available with the Agriculture Department on Monday,...