-The Indian Express Agricultural prices crashed in April-June, just when a bumper rabi crop had been harvested after two years of drought, and despite demonetisation. 2017 was agriculture’s annus horribilis. The reason wasn’t monsoon failure (as in 2014 and 2015) or unseasonal rain and hail (as in March 2015); the year was, in fact, largely free of extreme weather events, resulting in a record output of wheat, pulses, cotton, potato and a...
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Madhya Pradesh govt mulls proposal to treat abandonment of cows as offence -Milind Ghatwai
-The Indian Express Animal Husbandry Minister Antarsingh Arya said the recommendations were under consideration but have not been sent to the state Cabinet. Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh government is considering a proposal to treat abandonment of cows as an offence and give district collectors the power to book owners who abandon their cows under the IPC. “The existing law can penalise only the kasai (butcher) when caught and not the owners who abandon...
More »Full Aadhaar data access for Rs 500? UIDAI says misuse traceable, system secure
-PTI The statement by UIDAI, which is also planning legal action, comes after news reports that anonymous sellers were offering unrestricted access to Aadhaar details for Rs 500 over WhatsApp. The UIDAI on Thursday dismissed reports of full Aadhaar details being made available on payment of Rs 500 by anonymous sellers, asserting that its system is “secure” and any misuse can be traced and action taken as it maintains a complete...
More »Seed body faults Monsanto for bollworm resistance -KV Kurmanath
-The Hindu Business Line Asks firm to own up responsibility; threatens to stop selling seeds Hyderabad: The National Seed Association of India, which represents the majority of the cotton seed companies in the country, has blamed Mahyco Monsanto and Monsanto India for widespread resistance developed by pink bollworm to Bollgard-II, the second-generation genetically modified cotton seed technology. The association has threatened to stop selling the seeds developed with BG-II technology if the two...
More »Why farmers don't have electoral clout -Avik Saha and Yogendra Yadav
-Down to Earth Although farmers vote at least as much, if not more than industrial workers or urban middle classes, elections are not fought around farmers' issues Elections are about numbers. Democratic politics is about stitching together a majority. So, the larger a group, the bigger is its “vote bank”, and greater is its electoral clout. A social group that constitutes a majority can therefore dictate its terms in an electoral democracy....
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