-NDTV Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian says farmers would not only lose the income from livestock as meat but also have to incur additional costs to maintain unproductive cattle. Already, he adds, there was research to suggest that returns to livestock farming are in any case "very low or even negative". NEW DELHI:  Arvind Subramanian, the government's Chief Economic Adviser, has broken his silence on the issue of cattle slaughter. And...

-The Hindu Managers of around 3,000 privately-run markets are to meet and protest new rules that ban sale of animals for slaughter at cattle markets Fridays are festive days at Pachokhara. For nearly half-a-century now, farmers, cattle-rearers and tradesmen have made the weekly trip to the cricket stadium-sized grounds of the Upadhyay family— prominent local land-owners — to trade cattle. A dirt road splits the ground into a section for buffaloes and another for...

-PTI May 23 notification not “to influence food habits, or affect slaughtering business”, the Union Environment Minister says. The government on Sunday said it was open to suggestions from various groups on the May 23 cattle slaughter notification and was not viewing it as a prestige issue. Speaking to reporters here, Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan said the intention behind the notification was not to harm any particular group, influence food habits or affect...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI/ ONGOLE: Two senior Union ministers on Thursday sought to allay apprehensions over the new government order on Cattle Trade, emphasising that the Centre will not interfere with the food habits of people in the different regions of the country. While finance minister Arun Jaitley emphasised in Delhi that the Centre's order will not impact state laws on slaughter, information and broadcasting minister Venkaiah Naidu said in...

-The Indian Express Between 2013-14 and 2016-17, India’s exports of agricultural commodities have dipped from $43.2 billion to $33.8 billion, even as imports have climbed from $15.5 billion to $25.6 billion Falling exports and rising imports — this has been the story of the country’s agricultural trade over the last three years, notwithstanding the Narendra Modi government’s ambitious Make in India initiative. Between 2013-14 and 2016-17, India’s exports of agricultural commodities have dipped...