Full Coverage: Land

30.01.2006 Environmental activist Medha Patkar has asked Left parties to take a firm position against the machinations of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), International Monitory Fund (IMF), World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) whose funding programmes "are aimed at changing our priorities and culture.''

19.01.2006 ISLAMABAD: World Bank country director John Wall has said that the bank will decide to finance the Bhasha dam after examining its feasibility report and detailed engineering, geological and economic studies.

16.01.2006 [HYDERABAD] Scientists have urged South Asian nations to cooperate to boost their economies by tapping growing global demand for agricultural products such as herbal medicines that are derived from biological resources and traditional knowledge.

13.01.2006 The countryÂ’s first prototype of a multilingual, interactive, digital map of India was unveiled on Thursday by Minister of Science and Technology Kapil Sibal at Microsoft Research IndiaÂ’s annual research symposium, TechVista 2006.

13.01.2006 Madurai, Jan 12: A Tamil internet browser that would help rural people understand the web pages has been developed by a Dindigul-based youth R Duraipandiyan.

13.01.2006 BANGALORE: In compliance with the Centre's guidelines, the State Government has decided to constitute four-tier committees to identify and ascertain facts before initiating measures to regularise encroached forestlands.

10.01.2006 A total of 38 Brazilian Indians were murdered in 2005 - the highest figure for 11 years, a trend attributed by a Brazilian organisation to the government's failure to recognise Indian land.

09.01.2006 India's farmers and farm labourers are among the poorest in the world. Since Independence, all governments, some more than others, have directed considerable resources and effort at improving the economic well being of farmers. The farm sector, taken as a whole, has no sustainable, long-term prospect of increasing its revenue

09.01.2006 India will finally launch the ambitious National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) on February 2. The Rural Development Ministry announced that the initial financial hurdles in the ambitious social undertaking, which guarantees 100 days of employment to every rural Indian household, have also been overcome.

06.01.2006 Chinthala Venkat Reddy wanted a cost-effective way to restore soil fertility without using fertilizers. His efforts have borne fruit and the farmer from Lothukunta is now waiting for a patent for his technique.

06.01.2006 The Centre has decided to facilitate advance weather forecast for farmers. Under the new system — as part of Climate Risk Management in Agriculture — farmers will be able to get forecast on weather including monsoon conditions one month in advance. The move, which is seen as a boon for farmers, has been prompted by adverse weather conditions affecting farm production in recent years and farmers being caught unawares by climatic variations.

06.01.2006 Speakers at a seminar yesterday urged the government to ensure laboratory facilities for microbiological tests for exportable vegetables and fruits.

06.01.2006 After more than a decade raking in profits from apples and high-value seasonal vegetables, Himachal Pradesh is finally looking up and away. Backed by a scientific study, the state is embarking on an ambitious plan to change land-use patterns and delineate crop production domains. And they hope geo-IT tools can help transform some of the bare slopes of this mountainous state into new agro-clusters.

06.01.2006 Protestors have gathered on the road to the Kalinganagar industrial area in Orissa. The bodies of four of those killed in police firing on January 2, are laid out here. This on-the-spot report records the seething anger against the industries that are usurping the lands, livelihoods and basic rights of adivasi farmers.

05.01.2006 At least 12 tribal people died this week after police opened fire on a crowd protesting against plans to build a steel plant on their land in the Indian state of Orissa.

04.01.2006 Farmers, fishermen and villagers, made landless by the Narmada dam in central India, plan to intensify their stir over lack of rehabilitation. They accused officials of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh of massive corruption and intimidating villagers. Rahul Kumar attends a demonstration by the farmers in New Delhi.