The Food Outlook of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) that came out in June, 2010 has predicted that world cereal production would be reaching a record level of 2279.5 million tonnes in 2010-2011, which would be an increase of 1.2 percent over last year’s global production of 2253.1 million tonnes. As a result, it has been predicted that there would be a modest increase in world trade in cereal...

People of Poblung-B village in Dambuk Circle of Lower Dibang Valley are leveling allegations against eleven of their Anchal Samiti Members as well as Gram Panchayat Chairpersons of 6-Dambuk Anchal Block of misusing their positions to seek favors under NREGA. The people, en mass, are demanding the government for an enquiry committee to look into the allegations and warned of an outburst of public angst if it is left unattended...

Drought hit farmers in Himachal Pradesh will get 50 per cent subsidy on kharif seeds. “Due to deficient rains from October to March coupled with the abnormal rise in temperature in March and April the standing grain crops have been partly Damaged,” said a spokesman of the state agriculture department. The official said in the current kharif season, about 35,000 quintals of seeds will be supplied by the department to the farmers...

The country is in a vortex of challenges, counter-challenges and suspicious suggestions even amongst good friends on the desirability or otherwise of inclusion of caste in Census 2011. I feel that a calmer discussion may clear a number of cobwebs. It is common ground that the caste system exists in our country since centuries. It is unnecessary to dilate upon the origin of caste; whether due to the freezing of the...

What’s happened today in Bhopal is worse than what happened in 1984,” says a furious Syed M. Irfan, convenor of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha, referring to Monday’s verdict by a Bhopal court. Twenty-six years after the gas tragedy, just when time was beginning to heal the wounds, the scars have been reopened. The city’s residents, from those directly affected by the disaster to activists and even past...