The IMF’s April 2025 Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa presents a clear warning: regional growth is slowing, debt pressures are mounting, and donor assistance is declining. Yet the report outlines critical opportunities particularly in domestic revenue mobilization, structural reform, and private sector activation that can shape a more resilient …
Five South Korean companies have been using Starlink corn to make edible corn starch, despite a ban on its use, alleges the Korea Food and Drug Administration ( kfda ). Starlink, a genetically modified ( gm ) corn, causes allergy and its use for human consumption has been banned in …
Caution is good but it should not take the place of good policy making. By refusing environmental clearance to genetically modified cotton from Monsanto, the government of India has treaded the path of caution but not necessarily the path of good science and good policy. This should also not be …
the setting up of a decentralised foodgrain procurement system was once again stalled when prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee had to withdraw his suggestion in face of opposition from a number of chief ministers. At a recent meeting on agricultural food management, Vajpayee was left with no option but to …
G lobal trade in coarse grains in 1995 was to the magnitude of about 132 metric tonnes (mt) and is projected to rise to 175 mt by 2005. About 80-85 per cent of this export originates from industria lised countries, where coarse grains are cultivated for animal feed. In Japan, …
That they are called coarse grains summarises their present status in Indian society. Go anywhere in the country, and you will see a marked inferiority accorded to
The poorest of the poor women from downtrodden communities have initiated an alternative public distribution system (PDS) based on the coarse grains in 30 villages of Medak district of Andhra Pradesh. The Deccan Development Society, a non-governmental organisation, has provided the assistance. The system is based on coarse grains produced, …
Coarse grains are widely grown in harsh fragile and diversified environments where agricultural inputs are scarce. More than two-thirds of the cultivated area in India is rainfed. It contributes 44 per cent to the total foodgrain production and supports about 40 per cent of the country' population. Two-thirds of the …
farmers of Andhra Pradesh have been directed not to cultivate a second crop of rice during the winter season because of low levels of water at the Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar reservoirs of the state. "The farmers have been advised to cultivate crops which do not require a lot of water …
the Food Corporation of India ( fci ), the official procurement agency of the government of India, has rejected about 80 per cent of paddy from Punjab on the grounds that it was substandard. However, under pressure from the farmer's lobby, the government has relaxed the paddy procurement laws. The …
the Gujarat State Pollution Control Board has been forced to shut down Unimark Remedies, a chemical plant situated on the Ahmedabad-Bagodra highway. Pollution from the chemical plant has destroyed wheat crops growing on at least 40 hectares of land. The plant had no provisions to treat its water and gaseous …
It's been 50 years since politicians have been mouthing the slogan: Jai jawan, jai kisan (Long live soldiers, long live farmers). Now it has started to sound like a raucous chant, at least to the farmers struggling to survive. They till the soil harder, increase their spending to replenish their …
Gian kaur, 50, is a breast cancer patient. But in her village her ailment does not make her unique or get her visitors to check on her health. Almost every house in her village Giana in Bhatinda district has an ailing patient to tend to. Cancer or less fatal diseases …
A few months, India was besieged by a drought. But the drought did not lead to a famine. A comfortable grain reserve of 26 million tonnes -11 million tonnes more than would be required in a normal year to stave of the famine. But this may be the last time …
Undoubtedly, GR made Punjab one of the richest states in India in terms of per capita income. From Rs 2,674 in 1980-81, the per capita income at current prices rose to Rs 19,770 in 1997-98. Compared to Punjab, Tamil Nadu's per capita income was only Rs 12,989, while that of …
The food situation in drought-hit Kenya is a cause for serious concern. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation ( fao ), there has been a sharp increase in deaths due to starvation, especially among children. Most of the areas have received little or no rainfall, leading to …
as the sun kisses the desert dunes near the Sam village in Jaisalmer, it signals the end of a hectic day for the tourists. This has been the last leg of their journey into the unknown. They return to their desert camp near the Sam dunes tired and hungry. However, …
Despite being more expensive than conventionally grown crops, there is a growing preference for organic farming products, especially in the West and China. The primary reason seems to be their potential to push back genetically modified (GM) products. There is little hard evidence as to whether food produced by organic …
by the year 2025, it has been predicted that around 2.7 billion people will be living in regions plagued by water scarcity. To face this challenge, scientists and farmers are already innovating new crops like
