-Hindustan Times Jhabua: In the small, nondescript villages of Central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh's Jhabua district, a group of tribals have joined hands to show the way forward to sustainable future by adopting organic farming.   Two years ago, the tribals of Chhaya Paschim village in the district, about 300 kms from the state's capital Bhopal, were inspired to switch to organic farming by Mahesh Sharma, a social worker and local agriculture...

-The Indian Express It requires a far wider spectrum of interventions than mere clinical management. The latest edition of the Global Nutrition Report 2015 by the International Food Policy Research Institute, released on Tuesday, brings back the concerns over malnutrition into sharp focus. In July, the government of India, after much avoidable controversy, released malnutrition (used synonymously as undernutrition) figures from the Rapid Survey on Children (RSoC) data that was collected...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: With India's 40% of the area facing drought situation due to deficient Monsoon rainfall, the government on Wednesday approved additional 50 days of employment over and above 100 days per household per year under the MGNREGA in drought affected areas. The move to increase the days of employment from 100 days to 150 days was approved by the Union Cabinet, which met under Prime Minister Narendra...

-Hindustan Times The Centre has decided to slash its share of funds in about 18 social sector schemes including flagship education programme Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in a cutback that has been criticised by states. The central government and states would contribute equally for programmes such as SSA, Rashtriya Uchchtar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA), a departure from the previous 65%-35% formula. Sources said the department of economic affairs...

-Business Standard This is our season of despair. This year, it would seem, the gods have been most unkind to Indian farmers. Early in the year came the weird weather events, like hailstorms and freak and untimely rains that destroyed standing crops. Nobody knew what was happening. After all, each year we witness a natural weather phenomenon called the "western disturbance" - winds that emanate from the Mediterranean and travel eastward...