-The Hindu International Food Policy Research Institute projects scenario for 2030 India’s food production could drop 16% and the number of those at risk for hunger could increase 23% by 2030 due to climate change, says a report by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) on climate change and food systems. These projections are part of a model that was used to evaluate the impact of climate change on aggregate food production,...

-Down to Earth Women adopted specific strategies to further their interests in the context of wheat-based livelihoods, challenging men as sole decision-makers, the study found Women in societies practicing wheat-based agriculture have started challenging the norm of men being sole decision-makers. They are transitioning from workers to innovators and managers, a recent study has found. Women were adopting specific strategies to further their interests in the context of wheat-based livelihoods, the study found....

  Air quality in North India in general and Delhi National Capital Region (Delhi NCR) in particular plunged to its lowest point in recent years during October-November thanks to a variety of factors. Through media reports one comes to know that stubble burning (also called paddy straw burning/ crop residue burning) is chiefly responsible for the public health crisis in India's capital and its nearby regions. Data accessed from the website...

-Economic and Political Weekly P K Joshi (p.joshi@CGIAR.org), Avinash Kishore (a.kishore@CGIAR.org) and Devesh Roy (d.roy@CGIAR.org) are with the International Food Policy Research Institute, New Delhi. While outlining strategies to increase availability of pulses at affordable prices, it is argued that increasing domestic production of pulses is the only option. Access to one or two protective irrigation sources during the growing season can lead to sizeable increases in pulse production. The har khet...

Situation alarming: More than one-third population hit by drought   The country is facing severe drought for the second consecutive year. Conservative estimates from official sources show that over a quarter of rural habitations are facing drinking water scarcity. Although both India Meteorological Department and Skymet have predicted a more than normal rainfall during June-September, 2016, the water storage available in 91 major reservoirs of the country has declined from 22 percent...