As opposed to what has been said officially about the positive impact of demonetisation on rabi sowing, acreage actually declined in 2016-17 as compared to a normal year. Let us see why this has been so. On New Year’s Eve, Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing the nation post-demonetisation, among other things, said: “...Friends in the last few weeks, an impression was sought to be created that the agriculture sector...

-TheWire.in Out of the 144 recorded farmer suicides, over 40 were from outside the Cauvery delta region. Observers and farmers directly attribute demonetisation as one major factor behind the suicides. Tamil Nadu is facing one of its worst agrarian crises since independence. All of the state’s 32 districts have been officially declared as ‘drought-affected’.  In a statement issued on January 10, chief minister O. Panneerselvam announced that the move was necessitated following...

-The Hindu Business Line Pulses, wheat, oilseeds gain area New Delhi: Sowing in the on-going rabi season maintained its pace of low growth in the new year with rice and coarse cereals posting a decline and oilseeds remaining stagnant compared with the average of the last five years. Total sowing till January 6 increased 2.76 per cent to 602.75 lakh hectares (lh) compared with the previous five year’s average (normal of corresponding week)...

-Livemint.com Sowing of wheat, the main winter or rabi crop, 0.9% lower than the normal area of 25.8 million hectares; rice sowing lagging by 33% New Delhi: Sowing of winter crops is 81% complete and overall planting is close to the normal acreage for this time of the year, shows data released by the farm ministry on Friday. Sowing of rice has been affected due to a deficit in the north-east monsoon in...

-The Hindu Business Line Sowing of rice, coarse cereals continues to be lower than last year New Delhi: An increase in sowing of pulses has pulled up total sowing in the ongoing Rabi season so far to 519.27 lakh hectare, which is marginally above the previous five-years’ average acreage (normal of corresponding weak) of 517.45 lakh hectare. Compared with the acreage last year, which was a drought year, sowing till December 16 is...