The revelation by the developer of pest-protected Bt cotton Bollgard, Monsanto-Mahyco, that pink bollworm pest has developed resistance to the killer Bt gene, Cry1Ac, in parts of Gujarat, and the rebuttal of this by a government-funded cotton research institute have created a fresh, albeit avoidable, controversy around genetically modified (GM) crops. The Monsanto statement had claimed that during field monitoring of the 2009 cotton crop in Gujarat, the company’s scientists...
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Sericulture cluster to come up at Berigai by R Arivanantham
A sericulture cluster will be established at Berigai, near Hosur, with assistance from National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD). NABARD will give Rs. 46.94 lakh to the project - Rs. 36.14 lakh as grant and Rs. 10.80 lakh as soft loan. The concept of the project is “soil to silk”. This is the first sericulture cluster project in the state sanctioned by NABARD. The project would be implemented...
More »Raising income per hectare is as much a concern as improving yield: Swaminathan by Aparna Alluri
Demanding attention to farmers, agricultural scientist M.S. Swaminathan on Tuesday said increasing income per hectare was as much of a concern as improving yield per hectare. “The National Farmer’s Policy is unique because it shifts focus from the land to its tiller.” Dr. Swaminathan was speaking at a conference here on implementing the Farmer’s Policy, drafted in 2007 by a National Commission with him as chairman. Revisit syllabi Revisit syllabi, he...
More »The Gene Gun At Your Head by Shoma Chaudhury
IMAGINE THE lowly brinjal you have always known turning into a sci-fi gizmo — with an uncharted potency for good and evil. Imagine a food turned into a pesticide — and you will have a measure of the essential uncertainty around Bt brinjal. When Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh announced his indefinite moratorium on Bt brinjal on February 9, he halted a juggernaut that could have swept India to a point...
More »Try a new recipe by Ashok Gulati and Kavery Ganguly
The Central Statistical Organisation estimate of overall GDP being likely to grow at 7.2 per cent this year has brought back the confidence of the industry and policymakers that the economy has truly turned the corner. But the growth of the farm sector is almost flat (-0.2 per cent), though this too is a pleasant surprise given that it was exposed to the worst drought since 1972. The real worry...
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