With its granaries brimming over, the government faces a crippling dilemma: The tab for releasing foodgrain to make way for new arrivals adds up to Rs 20,000-25,000 crore, an unviable addition to the subsidy bill. The government's bind was succinctly outlined by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee when he told a meeting called by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday that vacating food silos will mean a hefty cost at a time...

The permission given by the Centre for new registrations for export of cotton has brought little cheer either to cotton farmers or to the huge cotton processing industry in Adilabad district. Both the segments feel the move is too little and too late. Almost all the cotton produced in this district has arrived in the markets and no trader has dared stocking cotton bales this season owing to its low price....

-The Economic Times Prime minister Manmohan Singh is meeting a group of ministers including Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, Food Minister KV Thomas and Commerce Minister Anand Sharma to arrive at a consensus on trade policies especially in sugar and cotton exports. Recently, Pawar had criticized the export policies of cotton and sugar. The sugar export is a contentious issue as even after having a surplus production and international...

-The United Nations A sustained rise in prices for raw natural resources and basic agricultural goods is defying long-standing patterns and appears to be hurting poor nations through rising food and fuel costs more than it is helping them through higher revenues for their commodities exports.   That was one of the findings of the Commodities and Development Report 2012, a study launched at the 13th session of the UN Conference on Trade...

-Reuters India may have average rainfall in 2012 despite fears the El Nino weather pattern may emerge in the second half of the season South Asia is likely to receive average monsoon rains in 2012, a global forum relied on by governments for forecasting said, erasing the possibility of any drought in the region and India, which is a major consumer and producer of farm commodities. "The region is likely to receive average...