The government has also announced a slew of measures to ease cash flow for the rural sector.
Former Army Chief Gen VK Singh, whose last days in office were marred by a legal battle with the government in the Supreme Court, has sought to drag the Prime Minister's Office over his age row and the Tatra truck scandal saying a senior bureaucrat there was "orchestrating" the issues.
Opposition parties on Thursday launched a vociferous attack on the Centre over its handling of the farmers' agitation, callings its dialogues with the protestors 'monologues', even as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party defended the new laws asserting that its government is committed to the welfare of peasants and increase their incomes.
Declaring that the time had come to reopen Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday evening, "Self-employed people like technicians, plumbers, electricians, mechanics, sanitation workers, domestic helps, and people involved with laundry and ironing are allowed to work."
Rain deficiency in eastern and western Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Gangetic West Bengal, Assam and Meghalaya is 20-46 per cent less than normal as of June 17.
Open market price cools down as chief minister orders cold storages to empty stock by December 15.
Indian cotton and paddy could see their competitiveness in international markets take a hit
The price of export quality lady's finger, for example, shot up 150 per cent in two weeks to close on Thursday at Rs 40 a kg against Rs 16 a kg on September 16 in the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee, Vashi, near Mumbai.
Farmer interest groups predict that unless the government corrects its agricultural pricing and procurement policy, it will face a political blowback.
Till Thursday, the country had received 41 per cent less June rainfall than normal - the scantiest in a decade and one of the rarest occasions when the shortfall in the month was more than 30 per cent - private weather forecaster Skymet said in its daily weather forecast on Friday.
A provision of Rs 15,000 crore has been made in the budgetary estimate of 2016-17 towards interest subvention.
A delayed monsoon and abundant cotton in the international market could spell trouble in the state's suicide zone.
Lessons of Bengal's ill-advised restriction on potato trade.
'If the money we spend on importing pulses reach our farmers, there won't be any suicides'
Having made farmer suicides a campaign issue, Modi and the BJP should have no complaints in now having to live with it, says Aakar Patel.
Hordes of cows rampage through the fields, eating everything in sight. This is after the UP government banned slaughter of cattle. As a result, farmers whose cows become old and are a liability simply sets them loose.
Telangana's Rythu Bandhu policy is an embryonic UBI, or rather embryonic QUBI (a quasi-universal basic income, pronounced Kyoo-Bee). And it could potentially also be the future of agricultural policy in India, says Arvind Subramanian.
Fortune favours the brave and he has done well by taking risks and winning it all, says Aditi Phadnis.
Weather forecasts have notoriously large error margins.
Onion prices have been ruling at Rs 70-90 per kg in most parts of the country and even touched Rs 100 per kg in some cities like Patna and Jammu.
'There will always be hiccups given that the Namami Gange programme is spread over different sectors and involves several agencies.'
'The current crisis is one of incomes, driven by poor job growth, agrarian distress and poor investment sentiment,' notes Harsh Pati Singhania, director, JK Organisation.
'We are not talking pennies. The milk business is as large as the automobile industry (about Rs 4 trillion in sales),' points out T N Ninan.
Two young entrepreneurs from Tamil Nadu are making pencils eco-friendly.
'To bring about a paradigm shift in farmers's income, we need to change our approach to agriculture, and transit from the narrow prism of cultivation to a full-fledged enterprise, by building all associated supply chain linkages.' 'This alone will make the farmer an entrepreneur in his own right.'
Is the Budget sufficiently prudent? It probably is but at the cost of substantial under-provisioning for the many grand sounding schemes announced in it, says Nitin Desai.
Farmers find it difficult to source quality seeds or fertiliser on time from government agencies at subsidised rates.
Here's the full text of President Ram Nath Kovind's customary address to the joining sitting of Parliament on the first day of the budget session.
The BJP veteran was detained on Monday evening while protesting against the state government's "apathy" towards the farmers of Vidarbha. He was taken to the district police headquarters and later released.
Rice at Re 1 per kg for poor families, bonus for farmers, interest-free loans for peasants, free laptops and tablets for students are the key promises made by the ruling BJP in its manifesto for the Assembly polls to be held in the state this month.
While some CMs suggested reopening economic activity in phases, others pitched for the extension of the coronavirus lockdown, but with a carefully crafted exit strategy
However, strong rupee, concerns over production at home may spoil the party
Delhi, which has gained infamy as one of the world's most polluted cities, has for some years now witnessed a sustained campaign from various quarters seeking a ban on firecrackers. While the Centre launched the newly approved, eco-friendly firecrackers earlier this month as a "safer and cheaper" alternative, the mood in the market is tepid, says Ritwik Sharma.
Indian farming was transformed after the mid-60s.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the damages in the state due the worst floods in more than a century would run into "many thousands of crores" but he would approach the Centre only after the final assessment is complete.
This is for the first time that the US has slammed sanctions against an ISIS leader in India.
The BJP's manifesto for UP elections promised many things. But, given the state's precarious financial position, fulfilling these promises is likely to prove tricky, says Ishan Bakshi.
With only one day left, the Winter session of Parliament is on the verge of a washout as it failed to transact any business again on Thursday.
The Congress said arrogance of the BJP has touched its zenith as it turned 'blind' to farm distress.
'My election slogan will be 'kaam bolta hai.' 'Those who have lined up outside the banks will also line up on voting day and vote against the BJP.'
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