Theme

November 8, 2014

MGNREGA Reform: Fix the Holes in the Safety Net

That MGNREGA needs to be reformed is evident; however, what needs to change are not the basic tenets of the programme but implementation and supply-side issues that interfere with the smooth running of the programme and block benefits that provide a safety-net to the rural poor in the lean agricultural season and also to tide them through the sudden loss in livelihood opportunities.
November 6, 2014

MGNREGA: The Need to Go Beyond Ideologies

Rebutting Arvind Pangariya and Jagdish Bhagwati’s views on why MGNREGA should be limited and eventually phased out are the arguments that say the welfare scheme has the potential to save the life and dignity of the poor, and that efficiency is not the only criterion that should guide state policies.
November 2, 2014

MGNREGA: Fostering Real Citizenship

Moving from ignorance and non-participation to active involvement in planning and implementing, the women in Kesla are determined to develop their villages, conscious not only of their rights and entitlements but also of their roles and responsibility in developing their villages
November 1, 2014

MGNREGA: The Way Forward

Considering both the reach and the impact of MGNREGA on the rural poor, and notwithstanding the shroud of corruption, late payments and fears of its benefits not reaching the target group that hangs around it, discarding, diluting or curbing this “stellar example of rural development” would amount to throwing the baby out with the bathwater
October 5, 2014

Partnering with Civil Societies: Enhancing Food Security of Farmers in Chhattisgarh

Introducing the SRI method of crop cultivation in some regions of Chhattisgarh, PRADA N, in partnership with other NGOs and the support of Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, has been successful in extending the technology to thousands of families, to ensure yearround food sufficiency and increase soil health and fertility
October 4, 2014

Soil Biology and Ecological Farming

Emerging as an effective alternative to the agro-chemical-based modern or conventional agriculture, the detrimental impact of which is evident both on human health and the environment, ecological farming, based on sound scientific principles, has yielded rich harvests while maintaining the micro-nutrients, microorganisms and macro-fauna of the soil—the Source of Infinite Life (SOIL)
September 6, 2014

Adoption and Dis-adoption of SRI: A Study of the Dynamics

Quantifying the benefits and analysing the factors that encourage farmers to adopt or dis-adopt SRI methods in the four major rice-producing states in India, this study offers policy recommendations for up-scaling in order to attain agricultural sustainability
September 6, 2014

Line-Sown Direct Seed Rice: A Climate Resilient Strategy for Food Security

Introducing the line-sown DSR method of cultivation is proving to be viable and profitable because it is economical, labour friendly and assures a much greater yield to the farmers of EIP fighting against poverty, malnutrition and starvation
September 3, 2014

‘More Crop Per Drop’ in India

Modifying the methods of plant establishment and water management, changing agricultural practices, and creating more favourable growing conditions for crops, both above and below the ground, farmers have begun producing more crop per drop of water, more crop per acre of land and more crop per unit of work
August 10, 2014

MGNREGA: Investment in Soil Systems Asset Creation

Preserving and enriching soil and associated natural resources within the framework of MGNREGA and employment generation is a way of ensuring and enhancing individual and national productivity in the future