-The Hindu Business Line New Delhi: Renowned agricultural scientist and the chief architect of the green revolution in India, MS Swaminathan, was awarded the first World Agriculture Prize for his contributions to Indian agriculture by Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu here on Friday. While giving away the award, which carries prize money of $1,00,000 (?73,45,500), instituted by the nongovernmental Indian Council of Food and Agriculture, Naidu said “like we have most favoured nation, we...

-The Hindu Business Line The Department of Telecommunications on Friday directed telecom service providers to stop using Aadhaar authentication to verify the KYC of existing mobile customers and to issue new connections. It asked the operators to abide by the order by November 5. The use of “Aadhaar authentication is not permissible for eKYC for verification of telecom subscribers, nor for issuing new mobile connections”, said the DoT in a statement issued...

-The Hindu Farmers in Punjab continue to burn paddy stubble every winter despite a ban on the practice. Jacob Koshy and Vikas Vasudeva report on the compulsions that drive farmers to adopt this method of clearing their fields and the efforts by the State administration to wean them off it The highway to Bibipur, a hamlet about 50 km from Patiala town, cuts through acres of paddy. Some of the rice stalk...

-Down to Earth After the state agriculture department recently passed an order, manufacturers, marketers and dealers in Punjab will not be allowed to sell the toxic chemical or its form The secretary, Department of Agriculture, Punjab ordered on October 23, 2018 that the herbicide glyphosate would now be regulated in the state. The department has taken the step based on reports of adverse health effects of this chemical. PGIMER in Chandigarh has...

-Down to Earth The price of cereal, paddy and oilseed has crashed in more than 1,700 markets, according to government data On a vast farmland in Kalajhar mandi of Sangrur district, Punjab, farmers are waiting to negotiate with traders who have rejected their paddy crop infected due to humidity. Chand Singh, 70, a farmer who owns 4 hectares of farmland in Kalajhar village, says traders rejected 20 tonnes of paddy that he cultivated...