It favours companies voluntarily labelling products as not containing GMOs Monsanto not looking beyond Bt corn Controls on seed pricing opposed Monsanto, the biotechnology major, holds the view that mandatory labelling of products made from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in India would make no sense. It favours options such as companies voluntarily labelling products as not containing GMOs, and individuals making a personal decision not to consume food containing GM ingredients. During an interview...

When it was launched by the Centre 10 years ago, the Intensive Cotton Development Programme came as a ray of hope for cotton farmers in Punjab. The scheme was meant to enhance production through technology transfer, supply of quality seeds and educating and training the farmers — promising them a beautiful tomorrow. But 10 years down the line, the scheme has remained where it was for the cotton farmers, caught in...

KEY TRENDS   • Maternal Mortality Ratio for India was 370 in 2000, 286 in 2005, 210 in 2010, 158 in 2015 and 145 in 2017. Therefore, the MMRatio for the country decreased by almost 61 percent between 2000 and 2017 *14    • As per the NSS 71st round, among rural females aged 5-29 years, the main reasons for dropping out/ discontinuance were: engagement in domestic activities, not interested in education, financial constraints and marriage. Among rural males aged...

Farmers are improving crop yields, using new technologies besides learning video-making skills — thanks to Digital Green which is catalysing a quiet revolution in the little hamlets of India. Delhi-based Digital Green focusses on educating farmers about farming techniques through locally produced videos in which local cultivators are featured. The project works in over 200 villages across Jharkhand, Orissa, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh with seven NGOs, helping famers improve their...

IN A remote corner of Bahia state, in north-eastern Brazil, a vast new farm is springing out of the dry bush. Thirty years ago eucalyptus and pine were planted in this part of the cerrado (Brazil’s savannah). Native shrubs later reclaimed some of it. Now every field tells the story of a transformation. Some have been cut to a litter of tree stumps and scrub; on others, charcoal-makers have moved...