The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), the government's main advisory body on pricing policy for farm produce, has favoured a subsidy mechanism to encourage use of hybrid rice varieties. The commission's views are likely to be a part of the recommendations it plans to send to the government on pricing of farm produce. "China has gone ahead in hybrid rice and around 63 per cent of its total area is...

A new study has found that women in India working for news media are under-represented. The Survey of 170,000 people in 522 news companies by the International Women's Media Foundation in Washington found that women were best represented in Europe and worst in Asia. Across the entire newspaper, radio and television workforce studied, the Survey found that men held 65 percent of jobs, compared to 35 percent held by women. "There is still...

Scavengers, street vendors and other informal workers are falling further behind as the global economy recovers, amid rising competition from hordes of new working poor , a study released Wednesday said. A Survey of people struggling in the so-called "informal job sector" in nine Asian, African and Latin American countries found they had largely missed out on the benefits of the rebound from the 2008 financial crisis. "Incomes have risen for some...

Opposition parties on Wednesday asked Orissa government to hand over the investigation into the rural job scam under MGNREGA to CBI before the Supreme Court issues a direction to that effect as the Panchayati Raj Minister admitted diversion of funds in the scheme. "As the corruption is totally exposed, it is better to hand over the probe to CBI before the Supreme Court issues an order to that effect," Leader...

Kerala and Tamil Nadu with the lowest calorie consumption seem to show better health outcome indicators This report, a joint initiative by the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation — an institution with a remarkable long term commitment to issues related to food security — and the United Nations World Food Programme, should serve as an excellent hand book on urban food insecurity. Aside from providing all the relevant information in a consolidated...