-The Economic Times Kulvinder Gill, professor of breeding and genetics at the Washington State University in the US, describes himself as a dreamer and an optimist. One of his dreams is to make sure food production does not decline over the next few decades, when increasing temperatures act on the yields of major crops. Specifically, he is beginning a project with six other organisations in India to make wheat less sensitive to...

-The Hindu States told to have contingency plans ready, post-delay in onset in Kerala   Agriculture experts and officials are closely monitoring the advance of the southwest monsoon, which is crucial not only for the important summer kharif crop but also the socio-economic wellbeing of the country. There are apprehensions that with farm growth having slowed down in the pre-wheat harvest quarter to 1.7 per cent, if the monsoon were to be deficient, then...

-The United Nations The United Nations today reported a sharp drop in global food prices during May owing to generally favourable supplies, growing global economic uncertainties and a strengthening of the United States dollar. The monthly food price index of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) averaged 204 points in May, down 9 points from April, the agency said in a news release. This was the lowest level since September 2011. The index...

Islamapur, Nalanda: One family builds a house that has no walls, no doors, just a bizarre semi-circular curved strip buried in the sand; another builds a thatched house with no approach road so everyone has to sleep by the side of the highway and cook in the open. And 70 other families don’t know what to do because all the plots they got last November — to build their homes...

-The Economic Times     Rising fertiliser prices may lead to a drop in demand by 10-15 % this kharif season. The impact will be more on diammonium phosphate (DAP) whose prices are likely to double over last season.  DAP prices have gone up from Rs 12,000 a tonne last kharif to over Rs 18,000 a tonne and are likely to be revised to Rs 24,000 within a couple of weeks. "Yes, there are...