The orange and vermicelli sold in the Dhaka city markets are all treated with formalin, said a test report by green rights activists on Sunday.

Forest protection policies potentially reduce deforestation and re-direct agricultural expansion to already-cleared areas. Using satellite imagery, we assessed whether deforestation for conversion to pasture and cropland decreased in the lowlands of northern Costa Rica following the 1996 ban on forest clearing, despite a tripling of area under pineapple cultivation in the last

A tiny black bug had caused much grief to banana farmers in the State but a successful trial has kindled hope that cultivation can be carried out without fear of pests or of the cost or side-effects of hazardous chemical pesticides.

Named ‘Nanma’ by researchers at the Central Tuber Crops Research Institute (CTCRI), this substance has proved to be effective. Testifying to its worth are the farmers near Pallichal, who agreed to its application.

A section of women self-help groups growing vegetables at Bahour in Puducherry had switched to organic fertilizers due to the growing demand for organically grown crops.

Compensation to be credited to their savings bank accounts

The State government has sanctioned Rs.60 crore for the distribution of compensation to 1.28 lakh farmers who suffered more than 50 per cent crop loss due to drought, according to Collector N.Venkatachalam. Presiding over a special drought relief meeting at the Collectorate here on Thursday, he said crops on 1.83 lakh acres, including paddy covering 9,919 acres, were damaged.

Anti-genetically modified (GM) food groups on Wednesday announced a campaign against the Government’s move to promote GM bananas to “save Indian women from anaemia”.

Several women’s NGOs, including Women for Diversity, Guild of Services, Diverse Women for Diversity and Gene Ethics Australia, have launched a combined campaign against genetically-engineered (GMO) bananas.

Dr Vandana Shiva has questioned why India should finance the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Australia to develop GMO bananas when research in this area has already been done by the a team from the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (Barc).

The State government will soon come out with a comprehensive organic agriculture policy, according to K. Ramasamy, Vice- Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University (TNAU).

Addressing the launch of ‘SUSTAIN,’ a Public Private Partnership initiative to deploy innovative drying and storage technology to farmers, Dr. Ramasamy said here on Tuesday that various components of the policy, including the formation of a Department of Sustainable Organic Agriculture and establishment of a Directorate for Organic Agriculture, were under preparation.

A team of researchers from the University of Calicut has reported the discovery of a new subspecies of wild banana that could be developed as an ornamental plant for tropical gardens.

The plant Musa velutina subsp. markkuana was discovered from the forests of Arunachal Pradesh and is characterised by smooth skinned fruits, purple pseudostems, erect maroon-coloured inflorescence and pink fruit. It has been named after Markku Hakkinen, an international expert on wild banana, attached to the Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Finland.

About 40 to 54 per cent of the daily consumed foods including fish, milk and baby foods are found adulterated and poisonous and the adulteration is increasing for the last couple of years.

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