India is likely to harvest a record 16.5 million tonne pulses this year. This was announced by the Agriculture Minister, Shri Sharad Pawar, at the 6th Agriwatch Global Pulses Summit here today. The Minister said that though India presently imports a large quantity of pulses, the use of new production technologies and agronomic practices, and government support will lead to self sufficiency. Shri Pawar said that more aggressive promotion of available technologies...

Few politicians can match Sharad Pawar when it comes to having one’s finger on the aam aadmi’s pulse, er pulses.At a time Indian entrepreneurs are manufacturing Jaguars and Landrovers abroad, the Union agriculture and food minister wants them to cultivate daal overseas.That would not only help fulfil the growing domestic demand for lentils, Pawar declared today, but also curb the environment-unfriendly dependence on animal proteins.At the sixth Agriwatch Global Pulses...

India’s main challenge at the Cancun climate summit is to try and bring the US — the world’s second largest carbon emitter — on board with the emerging economies in tackling climate change. And to do this, it is willing to open itself up to international verification of its domestic mitigation measures. Before leaving for Mexico, environment minister Jairam Ramesh told HT his mandate was to “play a bridge” between the...

Union Minister for Labour and Employment Mallikarjun Kharge said the major challenge facing India today was that of the unorganised sector. He was speaking at the second World Social Security Summit organised by the International Social Security Association in Capetown, South Africa, on Friday. Mr. Kharge is heading a six-member high-level delegation from India, which held discussions with several Labour Ministers of the nearly 120 countries participating in the meet. Mr. Kharge...

India wants an eight-point pledge from the US and other developed countries at Cancun before yielding to their demand that developing nations must agree to international consultation and analysis (ICA) for monitoring domestic climate actions. A strategy paper on New Delhi's stand at the conference says that India has agreed, in principle, to the idea of ICA but with specific riders in place. And specifies that the details would be put...