-FirstPost.com When a cart is put ahead of the horse, neither manages much progress. That's the best that can be said about the Maharashtra government's decision to deregulate the vegetables and fruits market, freeing the farmers from the clutches of the agricultural produce market committees (APMCs). Farmers have been told that they no longer have to be at the mercy of the commission agents who manipulate prices and instead, they can sell...

-The Indian Express Paddy rice acreage saw an increase of around 12 per cent from last year with almost 25 lakh hectares dedicated to the crop. Basmati rice may soon touch 5 lakh hectares only. Jalandhar: Farmers have taken to rice cultivation after their cotton crop failed last season and losing trust in Basmati’s returns. The area under rice this year has touched 30 lakh hectares — the highest in over a...

-Frontline A noteworthy study that provides much-needed insights into the nature and severity of the farm crisis in Punjab. There have been many studies on agrarian distress and farmer suicides in different parts of India in the last decade, including in Punjab. Most of the studies focus on a profile of the victims, mostly landowning farmers, and reasons thereof, with a sample of such farmers. In this context, this book makes a...

-The Indian Express The Rajasthan government, too, is providing a subsidy of Rs 2500 per quintal for certified seeds, besides a 50 per cent subsidy on micronutrient and bio-pesticides. Jaipur: Farmers in Rajasthan are looking towards pulses to reap, what seems for now, a double dividend from good southwest monsoon rains as well as remunerative prices. Sowing of kharif pulses — mainly moong, moth and urad — has already been completed in 22.75...

-Hindustan Times New Delhi: In chasing higher and higher GDP growth rates, India tends to gloss over two vital facts. One, farm growth cuts poverty twice as fast as industrial growth. Two, a 1% rise in agricultural output raises industrial production by 0.5% and national income by 0.7%, according to one calculation. In other words, the country’s fortunes are structurally tied to its farmers. Two-thirds of Indians rely on a farm-based income....