Some analysts see more upside in FMCG stocks given the performance gap between the sector and the market.
Thousands of farmers, especially from Punjab and Haryana, have been camping at various border of Delhi for almost four weeks now as formal talks between the government and representatives of farmers' unions remained deadlocked with protesting peasants refusing to accept anything less than a repeal of the newly enacted laws.
Jayant Chaudhary has plenty of time to make his own mistakes. But this election is a crucial test of his leadership.
The head of an agri science centre in Madhya Pradesh wants Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli to stop eating grilled chicken and switch over to the 'Kadaknath' chicken, rich in iron and whose meat and blood are black.
On the Sensex chart, IndusInd Bank was the top gainer, rallying over 11 per cent, followed by ICICI Bank, SBI, HDFC, M&M and Axis Bank. On the other hand, Dr Reddy's, Tech Mahindra and TCS were among the laggards.
Modi told the leaders that Tomar was just a phone call away for protesting farmers and the agriculture minister had conveyed the same to farmer leaders earlier this month.
The Haryana Police closed the Ambala-Patiala highway after protesters gathered at the Shambhu border point with adjoining Punjab. The ruling Congress also held protests in Punjab, with the state unit chief Sunil Jakhar participating in one near the Shambhu border.
The Consumer Price Index hit the lowest in six months in March at 4.83 per cent.
Not carrying weapons, following fixed routes and entering Delhi with tractors sans trolleys, were among the several conditions set by farmer leaders and police that were violated by participants of the tractor parade in New Delhi on Tuesday.
The Union minister expressed hope that the government will be able to find the solution to the issues raised by the protesting farmers.
In the wake of farmers' tractor rally turning violent, the Centre on Tuesday decided to deploy additional paramilitary troops in Delhi to restore peace and maintain law and order, officials said.
The protests against farm laws saw a fair share of controversies as well with climate activist Greta Thunberg and pop sensation Rihanna making their way to India's prime time debates and terms such as 'toolkit' and 'andolanjeevi' entering the Indian political lexicon.
Protesting farmer leaders in the vulnerable age group Monday said they are not afraid of coronavirus and won't take vaccine jabs, even as the second phase of vaccination drive got underway to inoculate senior citizens and those above 45 with underlying medical conditions.
The Supreme Court may take into account the matter of recusal of the member from the panel on Monday when it is scheduled to hear the pleas relating to the controversial farm laws and the farmers protests.
With almost all opposition parties and several trade unions backing the 'Bharat Bandh' and many announcing parallel protests in support of the farmers, the Centre has issued an advisory directing all the states and Union Territories to tighten security and ensure COVID guidelines are followed.
'Mann's decision is a welcome move. The other three members of the panel, who have shown pro-new farm laws stance should also follow Mann's suit'
"Under this law, it is mandatory to pay farmers within three days of purchasing the produce. If payment is not made, then the farmer can lodge a complaint. Another major provision is that the SDM of the area must address the complaint of the farmer within one month," he said.
Mann said he would sacrifice any position offered to him so as not to compromise the interests of farmers.
"The final estimates in agriculture are much higher. It could be 3.5 per cent in the revised estimates," statistics and programme implementation secretary Pronab Sen said on Thursday, a day ahead of release of GDP growth figures for FY'08.
Expressing regret that some have created "misconception in a planned manner" in the hearts of protesting farmers on these farm laws, the minister said however the government is constantly engaging with such farmer unions.
MPs from 10 Opposition parties on Thursday wrote a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla saying that the situation at Ghazipur border was like that of India-Pakistan border and condition of farmers resembles prisoners in jail.
"Farmers would like to remind the PM that it is 'andolans' that have liberated India from colonial rulers and that is why we are proud to be 'Andolan-jivi'."
'These small efforts by the youngsters to help aged people like us will go a long way in strengthening our fight against the centre'
In a letter to 40 union leaders, Union Agriculture Ministry Joint Secretary Vivek Aggarwal said the Centre is making all efforts with "an open heart" to find an appropriate solution to resolve all the concerns raised by farmers.
Thousands of protesting farmers who reached ITO from the Ghazipur border clashed with police. Many of them driving tractors reached the Red Fort and entered the monument.
Wearing garlands, the farmer leaders, who had called for observing 'Sadbhavana Diwas' (Harmony Day) on Saturday after the immense outrage over violence by protesters during their Republic Day tractor rally, sat on the dais during the fast, as crowds of supporters swelled, especially in Gazipur where the Bharatiya Kisan Union is leading the protest.
The 'pizza langar' has hogged headlines and garnered compliments from different quarters, and also brickbats from a certain section.
Electoral politics is going to be an important part of farmer protests going forward.
Here are some of the key farmer leaders who fronted the protests.
A large number of farmers stayed put outside the gates of the district headquarters in Karnal on Wednesday as they remained firm on their demand for action against IAS officer Ayush Sinha, who ordered a police lathi-charge on a group of peasants last month.
Senior BJP leader and Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad alleged that a section of farmers has fallen in the grip of a few people with "vested interests" and asserted that the government was working to address their misgivings about the reforms, which have drawn strong protests from a section of cultivators.
'How can we have lunch offered by the government when our fellow farmers are sitting on roads'
A group of 200 farmers will travel to Jantar Mantar from the Singhu border in buses with a police escort and hold protests there from 11 am to 5 pm, sources in the Delhi Police said.
Higher prices are burdening household budgets and threatening the margins of leading manufacturers.
From the Republic Day violence to Lakhimpur Kheri incident and terms such as 'toolkit' and andolanjeevi entering the Indian political lexicon, it was controversies galore during the year-long farmers' movement against the contentious agri laws.
Two persons claiming to be the personnel of Delhi Police seized a computer hard disk and other items from the house of green activist Shantanu Muluk, a suspect in the "toolkit" case related to the farmers' protest, without a search warrant on February 12, in Beed in Maharashtra, his father Shivlal Muluk has told local police.
'Defence and aerospace show huge potential thanks to the government's Make in India push.'
The government on Friday expressed optimism over increase in the country's oilseeds and grains output driven by near normal rainfall in the current season.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had moved the resolution at a special session on Thursday which was unanimously passed by the House with the ruling Left Democratic Front, Opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front and the BJP supporting it.
