Several women in Karnataka's Mandya district like Jayalakshmamma, whose husband committed suicide four years ago, still stand up to the unending pressure with incredible resilience, writes P Sainath.

The state has witnessed 30,000 farm suicides in a decade. Vidarbha is the worst place in the nation to be a farmer, writes P Sainath.

While the number of farm suicides kept increasing, the number of farmers has fallen since 2001, with countless thousands abandoning agriculture in distress, writes P Sainath.

Close to 150,000 Indian farmers committed suicide in nine years from 1997 to 2005, official data show. While farm suicides have occurred in many States, nearly two thirds of these deaths are concentrated in five States, writes P Sainath.

Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh have together seen 89,362 farmers' suicides between 1997 and 2005. On average, one farmer took his or her life every 53 minutes between 1997 and 2005 in just these states, writes P Sainath.

The broad trends of the past decade seem unshaken. Farmer suicides in the country since 1997 now total 182,936, but the real causes behind this devastation remain unaddressed, reports P Sainath.

The share of the 'suicide belt' - Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh - remains very high; these states account for two-thirds of the total farm suicides in the country. P Sainath reports.

In 2006-08, Maharashtra saw 12, 493 farm suicides. That is 85 per cent higher than the 6,745 suicides it recorded during 1997-1999. And the worst three-year period for any State, any time. P Sainath reports.

Maybe the pro-farmer claim was a typing error. This is a budget crafted for, and perhaps by, the corporate farmer and agribusiness, writes P Sainath.

Suman Sahai discusses India's progressive legislation in the area of patents and protection for plant varieties.

The struggle to feed themselves and their families round the year drives millions of farmers in India to desperate measures. Abhijit Mohanty’s story shows how sustainable agriculture has helped transform the lives of farmers in Odisha’s backward Kalahandi district.

On G S Gidde Gowda's farm outside Hassan, the theories of conventional farming take a backseat, while he applies a systematic preference for nature's own hand.

Two farmers from Chamarajanagar, Karnataka, took the state government to court for not giving them water for the past three-four years. The twist is that they approached a district consumer court, and won the case in less than a year. Veena N reports.

There seems to be a steady increase in the acceptance of Bt cotton by Karnataka farmers. And, after experiencing the disastrous consequences of spurious seeds, farmers are particular about buying only from authorised sources. But disturbing and worrisome trends remain, reports Keya Acharya.

"Trying to measure the success of water harvesting only with increased water level is not fair. The vegetation improves, so does the soil moisture.” Shree Padre reports on an arecanut farming family's success.

The Maharashtra State Cotton Growers’ Marketing Federation was originally setup to procure cotton from growers at reasonable prices and sell it to mills and traders. Instead, with government policies not helping, it has trapped itself and farmers in a vicious cycle of debt and losses, reports Jaideep Hardikar.

Last year saw Maharashtra go to the polls and the incumbent government offer freebies to farmers. But cotton growers in Vidarbha saw their problems only worsen as they entered 2005. None of the political parties seem interested in a real way out, finds Jaideep Hardikar.

Thousands of cotton farmers in Maharashtra are due money from the state's procurement agency -- the marketing federation -- for the 2004-5 season. Though officials maintain that they have released payments, farmers are not getting money from the banks. Jaideep Hardikar reports.

The Ganesh festival is the most important event in Maharashtra. This season, farm distress has hit the utsav badly in Vidharbha. Very few have money to spend. Meanwhile, farmers' suicides there are going up. There has been one almost every 36 hours this year. P Sainath continues his series on the region's crisis.

"In the time of crisis, when no helping hand is coming forward to rescue us, we have to manage ourselves," says Bhagwat Jadhav, a resident of Bondgavhan village in Vidarbha. His neighour, cotton farmer Ramesh Rathod committed suicide recently. "It could be our turn tomorrow," says a worried Jadhav. Jaideep Hardikar reports.

More and more land in Vidarbha has come under women's cultivation, but pressures of culture and family economics are still strongly against their title to land itself. But increasingly, women are coming out to assert their rights, reports Aparna Pallavi.

As the fresh sowing season starts, beleaguered cotton farmers, already steeped in debt, are being forced to opt for the more-expensive Bt (genetically modified) cotton. Inputs dealers in Vidarbha say that there is hardly any non-Bt hybrid variety available in the market this year. Jaideep Hardikar reports.

The Maharashtra government claims that a huge transformation is taking place in Vidarbha; the milk collection has risen 37 per cent. Distressed farmers, who were given the 'princely' cows as relief, feel otherwise. Jaideep Hardikar does a reality check.

In Vidarbha, widowed women farmers have been hit hard by lack of viable farm credit. Quite a lot of women find themselves unable to carry out farm work in the absence of credit. Caught between fear and despair, their options are limited. Aparna Pallavi reports.

Rising health costs are proving disastrous for Vidarbha's farmers already under severe distress. Debt due to spiraling medical expenditures is worse than the illness itself for many, and the state government's health infrastructure is not helping, reports Jaideep Hardikar.

Land acquisition from Vidarbha farmers for irrigation projects is become a case of cure worse than the disease. The new projects are being commissioned over the prime minister's relief package. Jaideep Hardikar digs deeper.

Reuters Market Light, a professional content service, has been changing the way Vidarbha farmers make decisions on sowing, selling farm produce, and other important matters and increase their profits. Jaideep Hardikar reports.

Small rain-fed farms are crucial to agriculture turning around. Will India tackle this structural problem? Jaideep Hardikar has more.

Salman Khan and Jacqueline Fernandez talk about shooting for new song 'Tere Bina' at actor's farmhouse during lockdown

Farmers and arhtiyas (commission agents) in Ambala district are demanding payment for wheat for this season, citing that for want of money, the farmers are unable to prepare fields for the next crops.

The procurement of wheat and rice (second crop) during the ongoing Rabi season has picked up pace despite severe logistical constraints posed due to countrywide lockdown," the food ministry said in a statement.

Under the PM-KISAN (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi) scheme, each farmer gets Rs 6,000 in a year in three equal installments directly in bank account.

Salman Khan's picturesque Panvel farmhouse has turned into a shooting location for Jacqueline Fernandez, who released her short movie on social media recently.

A picture of Salman Khan with former 'Bigg Boss' contestant Niketan Madhok from Panvel has been shared on social media.

Jacqueline Fernandez has shot a short film at Salman Khan's farmhouse, Bachchans celebrated Navya Nanda's graduation at home. Here are the entertainment highlights of the day.

Jacqueline Fernandez is spending her quarantine at Salman Khan's Panvel farmhouse along with his sisters and some friends.

Salman shared a video of an interview with model Walusha De Sousa, in which he got candid about shooting the song along with Jacqueline at his Panvel farmhouse.

Taking a dig at the TRS-led state government, Sanjay asked ministers to make a field visit to know the ground reality and the problems faced by the farmers.

A reply from RBI which stated that the government has waived Rs 68,607 crore of the top 50 bank loan defaulters.

The former Chief Minister will hold discussions with them and seek their suggestions on measures to be taken to put pressure on the government on various issues and to resolve them, his office said in a statement.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that only two days ago, a "tughlaqi farmaan" was issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs "which is very quaint and funny".

Jacqueline Fernandez shoots for a magazine cover with Salman Khan's horse at his Panvel farmhouse amid the coronavirus lockdown.

Ed Sheeran and his wife Cherry Seaborn are growing organic fruits and vegetables in a greenhouse amid lockdown.

Because of the COVID-19 nationwide lockdown, Salman Khan is stranded at his Panvel farmhouse with his family and close friends including Aayush Sharma, Waluscha De Sousa, Jacqueline Fernandez, Daisy Shah, and his rumoured Iulia Vantur. However, the superstar is utilising this

At a press briefing, Jaitley announced that the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has decided to scrap nearly a century old practice of having a separate railway budget and merging it with general budget.

"They (farmers) fear that BJP government and Arun Jaitleyji will not give farmers their rightful share so I have asked the government to directly tell what it will do for the farmers next year", the Congress vice-president stressed.

Under the PM-KISAN (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi) scheme, each farmer gets Rs 6,000 in a year in three equal installments directly in bank account.