Agrarian Distress
Agrarian Distress News

In Maharashtra's Vidarbha, voters choose livelihood over nationalism and Article 370, elect activist over 10-year MLA
Amravati falls in the agrarian region of Vidarbha, where the BJP has suffered the biggest setback.

Narendra Modi launches pension scheme for small farmers from Jharkhand; move reflects NDA's emphasis on rural development
In its manifesto called 'Sankalp Patra', the BJP had promised investment to the tune of Rs 25 lakh crore in the next five years for rural development.

Lok Sabha debates agrarian distress; Opposition seeks cut in GST rate on agricultural equipment
Members in Lok Sabha on Tuesday raised problems related to agriculture, including the delay in procurement of produce, rise in the cost of inputs, late payment of crop insurance and adversities of weather, and sought steps to increase the income of farmers.

Despite environmental benefits, experts doubt efficacy of zero budget natural farming, call for nation-wide scientific studies
Even if Zero Budget Natural Farming as proposed in the Economic Survey and the Union Budget 20198 is adopted nationally, challenges associated with modern agricultural farming like knowledge gap, availability of native seed banks, cold chain facilities, MSP, and marketing issues remain unresolved

Devendra Fadnavis defends Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur's candidature from Bhopal, but doesn't support her comment on Hemant Karkare
Amid the controversy created by Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur's statements on Hemant Karkare, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis defended the party's decision to field Pragya from the crucial Bhopal constituency for the ongoing Lok Sabha election.

BJP manifesto: Extension of PM-Kisan Yojana to all farmers, interest-free loans will impose a heavy cost on economy
If there is one big takeaway from the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) election manifesto ahead of 2019, it is that the party has promptly walked into a deadly trap of competitive populism laid by the Congress, especially after latter's populist measure of promising Rs 72,000 minimum income for 20 percent of the poor.

NCRB's silence on farmer suicides: RTI reply reveals why organisation has not released data since 2016
The number of farmer suicides is the tip of the iceberg of an agricultural crisis, and by not making “uncomfortable” figures public under various pretexts, the government is doing a disservice to itself and to the public at large

In Kerala, losses due to last year's floods add to woes of farmers reeling under crashing prices and growing debt
The floods in Kerala last year were just the final blow to farmers who were already reeling under crashing prices of various crops.

Four-day Agri-Science Congress to discuss farming tech kicks off in Delhi today
Around 2,000 delegates from 17 countries are expected to attend the event, which ends 23 February.

Anna Hazare calls off fast after talk with Devendra Fadnavis; Maharashtra CM says Lokpal appointment process to begin soon
Hazare has also been demanding implementation of the Swaminathan Commission recommendations on ways to address agrarian distress, besides electoral reforms.

Basic income support for the poor to cost at least Rs 1.5 trillion to the nation per annum: India Ratings
Domestic rating agency India Ratings Tuesday expects the interim budget to announce an income support scheme for the poor

Cabinet may announce relief package for farmers before interim budget; plan includes waiving premium for crop insurance
Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh had recently indicated that the government would announce an agriculture package before the 2019-20 budget. The NDA government will present an interim budget on 1 February.

BJP wants expansionary economic policy ahead of general election: Modi govt plans to keep fiscal deficit to 3.3%, say sources
Narendra Modi's BJP government at the Centre is in favour of an expansionary economic policy and does not consider the government’s plan to keep the fiscal deficit to 3.3 percent of GDP as “sacrosanct”.

Farm loan waivers against economic principles, cannot effectively address agrarian distress: ADB India chief
Yokoyama also advocated for direct transfer of funds to targeted beneficiaries as it would cut down leakages.

Indian economy in 2018 has seen its heroes and villains: What does 2019 hold for us?
Banking sector mess continued to dominate the Indian economy in 2018. At least eleven public sector banks continue to be under the prompt corrective action plan of the RBI

Chhattisgarh election results prove Rahul Gandhi's campaign resonated on ground, gives Congress 2019 model
Seeing the results of the Chhattisgarh elections, the state may well have given the Congress its campaign model for the 2019 polls.

'Farmers have realised only agitation, not reasoning will lead to action': MS Swaminathan extends support to march
Professor MS Swaminathan, better known as the 'Father of the Green Revolution', spoke in support of the Kisan Mukti March (farmers' freedom march) in Delhi on Friday.

Food inflation is falling sharply: Good news for urban consumers but not for poor farmers; shows MSP pill hasn’t worked yet
The situation is particularly bad for debt-ridden small farmers with tiny landholdings.

Kisan Kranti Yatra: Low income major cause of agrarian distress, but is higher MSP solution to farmers' woes?
The low income and income disparity are a major cause of the agrarian distress, leading to farmers’ suicides and youngsters leaving farming.

Maharashtra farm loan waiver: Govt expands scope of scheme; each member of farmer's family now to get benefit
The Maharashtra government has expanded the scope of the loan waiver scheme by extending the benefits to every member of the farmer's family.