Scientists of the Central Potato Research Institute find ways to use drones in cultivation that will alert farmers about the health of their crops, spray agro-chemicals on their fields more effectively and in the process save them valuable time and expenses.

A new variety of the water spinach called Kashi Manu has been developed by agricultural scientists at the ICAR- Indian Institute of Vegetable Research, Varanasi, which promises an earning of Rs 15 lakh per hectare to the farmers.

MS Swaminathan, who led the efforts to increase food production in the 1960s and 70s, breathed his last in his hometown Chennai. Apart from Swaminathan being hailed as the ‘Father of the Green Revolution’, he also presided over the National Commission for Farmers which was constituted to deal with the agrarian distress in the country. The recommendations of this committee are popularly known as the Swaminathan commission report.

Researchers from University of Washington have reported that in the coming days, due to increasing temperature, crops will be highly susceptible to insects and diseases. Scientists fear that increasing temperature will enhance resistive power of insects. In other words, insecticides will become ineffective

A study conducted by ICAR has found that if coupled with the use of farm yard manure, the yield is much higher for farmers using natural farming methods. Also, due to the lower input costs, the profitability of natural farming is found to be higher than conventional farming which involves the use of chemical fertilisers, insecticides and pesticides. Read on to know more.