-PTI RAIPUR: Over 50 per cent sowing of paddy crop has been completed for the current kharif season in Chhattisgarh where agriculture experts have advised farmers to cultivate of short and medium duration varieties of rice. Sowing for paddy crop has been carried out on 19.34 lakh hectares of land so far against the proposed target of 36.42 lakh hectares in the state, known as rice-bowl of the country, an agriculture department...

-Down to Earth System of crop intensification, specially in rice, has shown sizeable savings in water and seed usage. Yet its adoption has not spread despite incentives SIMPLE TECHNIQUES and manag-ement practices tend to be viewed with suspicion. In the age of input-intensive agriculture which calls for an array of machinery and a host of scientific props, a crop management system whose core basically is protecting the plant's roots to provide better...

-The Hindu Business Line The primary mandate of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) acting under directions of Food Ministry is to service requirements of the public distribution system (PDS) in association with State Government Agencies (SGAs). But over the years, FCI has also been called upon to intervene in managing market prices, albeit with little success. FCI efficiently procures wheat, paddy/milled rice but faces odds while selling surplus grains in the...

-The Hindu Programme on integrated pest management Tuticorin (Tamil Nadu): Farmers were exposed to better management practices and basic techniques of soil testing at a programme on integrated pest management, organised by Agricultural College and Research Institute, Killikulam, in association with Ratan Tata Trust, Mumbai. Delivering the inaugural address here on Tuesday, N.K. Dhakshinamoorthy, Joint Director of Agriculture, Tuticorin, stressed the importance of biological control of pests in paddy crop in the Tamirabarani...

-The Hindustan Times Sangrur: With a drought-like situation looming large in the state following a below-average monsoon so far, farmers in the district are worried that they will not get a bumper paddy crop this year. Now, the farmers are running from pillar to post to protect their crops from the scorching heat to reduce its impact on the produce. A less rainfall has also increased the input cost...