-The Indian Express Governments can learn much on how to construct a social welfare system for farmers from Odisha's KALIA scheme for DIS. The recent farmer agitation has brought the issue of farmer distress front and centre in the public consciousness. The time seems ripe to find new solutions to the structural challenges facing farmers. One promising step is the shift from non-targeted Agriculture Subsidies towards direct income support (DIS). A key...

-The Hindu Business Line Developed nations need to look at their own subsidies to farmers, policies on GM crop and pesticide exports The ongoing farmers’ protest has attracted a lot of global attention. So much so that the External Affairs Ministry even put out a rejoinder after some global celebrities tweeted in support of the protest. Some sections of the Indian diaspora, too, expressed their support which has attracted criticism back home. Agriculture...

-The Tribune Review skeptical about programmes such as ‘Make-in-India’ and ‘Self-Reliant India’ New Delhi: The World Trade Organisation’s review of India’s trade policies has expressed concern about the high level of government intervention in the agriculture sector. Members recognised the importance of the sector in supporting livelihoods and food security. At the same time, they urged India to reform its agricultural policies as they continue to be based on “significant levels” of domestic and...

-The Hindu The gender gap in the agriculture sector will only widen more with the current farm laws Eminent agriculture scientist M.S. Swaminathan once said, “Some historians believe that it was women who first domesticated crop plants and thereby initiated the art and science of farming. While men went out hunting in search of food, women started gathering seeds from the native flora and began cultivating those of interest from the point...

-The Hindu In the farm laws debate, the focus should be on the exchequer-farm subsidies issue and the spending on farm subsidies In the on-going debates around the three new pieces of agricultural legislation and the farmers’ demand for continuation of minimum support prices (MSP), questions have often been raised whether the government should be using the taxpayers’ money to provide subsidies to the farming community in this country. However, logically, two...