Contaminating millets

Millets, suddenly, are a focus area for the Union Ministry of Agriculture.

Centre favours manufacture of endosulfan

Time to nail pesticides

ALMOST two years after it was found that fruits and vegetables in Delhi markets contain harmful levels of pesticides, the Centre has formed an expert committee to frame a policy to check pesticide residues in eatables.

Agriculture ministry bats for GM crops

One-sided deal

Contract farming is charting a rapid growth trajectory in India. Within a decade, it has grown by about 15 per cent. Almost 4,000 hectares are annually added to the area under this farming arrangement. While industry is aggressively making forays into this field, farmer leaders fear exploitation.

The desperation of farmers

Farmers are caught in a vicious circle of problems that could spell the doom for agriculture but does Sharad Pawar or anyone else care?

In the wrong ministry?

FEW laws have been embraced as wholeheartedly by industry as BRAI or the Biotech Regulatory Authority of India Bill, 2011. Yet to be introduced in Lok Sabha, following a last-minute hitch, the proposed law has received the full support of the Association of Biotech Led Enterprises (ABLE) and other leading organisations that campaign for the promotion of biotechnology primarily for one reason: a single-window mechanism that will streamline the regulatory processes.

Pesticide trap

In May when Kerala banned seven highly toxic insecticides so that it switches to safer chemicals, it did not fare better. It ended up replacing them with six others, banned or severely restricted in most parts of the world.

Can endosulfan be exported?

AFTER imposing a ban on endosulfan, the Supreme Court is now examining the possibility of allowing export of the pesticide. On August 5, the court-appointed joint committee was given a three-week deadline to submit an interim report on the possibility of exporting and disposing of the endosulfan stocks with the manufacturers.

Endosulfan: India in denial

UNION agriculture minister Sharad Pawar is rooting for endosulfan just before the fifth Conference of Parties (COP) of the Stockholm Convention meets in Geneva in April-end to decide the fate of the pesticide.