-The Indian Express High powered commitee for transformation of agriculture should reform restrictive tenancy laws, protect rights of landowners. Early in its second term, on July 1, the Narendra Modi government constituted a High Powered Committee of Chief Ministers for Transformation of Indian Agriculture. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was appointed the committee’s convenor. The Committee is supposed to submit its report within two months. Its terms of reference (ToR) pertain...

-The Financial Express The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) recently rolled out a massive solar-pump programme called the PM-KUSUM scheme. The scheme has a target to set up 25,750 megawatts (MW) solar capacity by 2022 to power irrigation pumps, with central financial support of Rs 34,422 crore. It includes installation of 1.75 million off-grid and 1 million on-grid solar pumps as well as 10,000 MW of solar capacity in rural...

-The Hindu Officials say CMs of all States asked to take appropriate action under the law against quacks “At present, 57.3% of personnel currently practising allopathic medicine do not have a medical qualification,” states the Union Health Ministry’s data, adding that this puts at risk rural patients who suffer because of an urban to rural doctor density ratio of 3.8:1, and India’s poor doctor-population ratio of 1:1456 as compared with the World...

-The Times of India Manisha Verma, principal secretary, tribal development department, Maharashtra talks to Sugandha Indulkar about The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 and related issues, with today being World Tribal Day. * What’s the precise positioning of the tribal welfare departments at the Centre and states on FRA? This is a seminal legislation. The preamble to the Act itself states that it aims...

-Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), Working Paper 383 Farmers, especially small and marginal, do not directly trade in agri-futures market in India. Their small size, lack of trust and understanding of futures market and dependence on middlemen, are some of the main deterrents. The role of Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) is crucial in this context since they can procure commodities, aggregate them and ensure that size and...