-Economic and Political Weekly While the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act 2001 is a progressive piece of legislation that recognises Farmers' rights to seed, it demands payment of an annual maintenance fee by the Farmers to protect the varieties which they have been cultivating and conserving for years, only because these varieties have been brought under legal protection through national legislation. Parameswaran Prajeesh (prajeesh@mssrf.res.in) is a researcher with the...

-The Times of India AURANGABAD: Over 350 like-minded organizations are set to launch a nation-wide agitation from Monday to protest against the contentious Land Acquisition Bill. Social activist Medha Patkar made the announcement in the city while addressing a gathering of Farmers. She said organizations of Farmers, traders and fishermen would stage demonstration in different parts of the country and mount pressure on the Union government to stop it from going...

-PTI NEW DELHI: The Centre has told the Supreme Court that though the country has become self sufficient in production of cereals, it is dependent on imports to bridge the gap between domestic production and demand of edible oil and pulses. Responding to a PIL on increasing farmer suicides in the country, the Ministry of Agriculture said in an affidavit, "India has not only ensured self-sufficiency in most of the agricultural crops...

-The Times of India MUMBAI: In a landmark judgment, the Bombay high court has paved the way for the state to pay higher compensation to Farmers whose land it acquires for public projects. The court held that financial constraints or project cost escalations cannot be a reason to shortchange Farmers and set aside a government decision to fix a multiplier factor of 1.1 on market rates even though the law says...

-The New Indian Express For now the storm is over. Untimely monsoons, which create much havoc for Farmers, became a parliamentary allegory with the Congress raining on Modi's parade over the Land Bill. In spite of all the manoeuvring that will follow, clouds threaten to hang low over the next session too. This is indicated in Sonia Gandhi's decision to take to the streets in protest - a leaf taken from...