"There can be no development without women"
REACHING Doongri, a picturesque village perched 1,750 m above sea level in the Pindar valley in Chamoli district, is a daunting task. The nearest …
The milk that ate the grass
India may be the largest producer of milk in the world, but at an incredible cost. In achieving this distinction, the country's vast cattle …
The goat gamble
It has been a slow and steady shift over decades. Forced by declining returns from farming in ecologically fragile areas, small farmers have been …
SUBSIDISED KILLING
They may survive the drought. But they cannot survive government policies. When people have to abandon their livestock, they are reduced to misery,…
Saga of two villages
Sukhomajri was a dirt-poor village in Haryana. It started pulling itself out of its hole in the late 1970s, making a dizzying ascent to …
India’ fodder crisis: Why cattle owners in this Haryana village want to shift to dog-breeding
Cattle ranchers sold milch cows at throwaway prices after incurring losses of about Rs 3 lakh in 5 months
Rajasthan’s Udaipur and Bhilwara turned to village commons to overcome the fodder crisis; here’s why
Villagers in these districts restored pastureland in shamlat lands to ease impacts of fodder crisis in livestock farming
Hay days forever!
A simple procedure helps in the conversion of surplus fodder during the monsoons into hay, which can help overcome fodder shortage in the summer …
Community-based natural resource management in Himachal still weak
A host of measures are needed to ensure community-based natural resource management and better provisioning of ecological services for the …
2022 too short, too far: A tough year for farmers, cattle owners
Down To Earth recaps the primary environment, health and developmental news from 2022
Return of pastoralism: How villagers fought a long battle to regenerate grazing lands, assist herders
With help from civil society organisations, India’s rural population managed to increase their profits from raising cattle
Hit by extreme winter, Mongolia stares at humanitarian crisis
Livestock deaths due to extreme cold are robbing herders of livelihood, causing mass migration to cities
To feed the cattle of the West
Extensive soya bean cultivation in Madhya Pradesh to supply fodder to the West has cut a swathe of degradation
Afforestation project suspended as anti-poor
A scheme under which 75,000 families were to each get and maintain two ha of forest land has been put on hold following fears that it would …
Guiding growth
When nothing seemed to stop the desertification of the Banni grasslands, a government institution stepped in and showed the people how they …
A grass native to Africa could transform the continent’s dairy yields. Here’s how
Brachiaria has been instrumental to the beef industry’s success in the tropical Americas
North India faces an acute fodder shortage, courtesy wheat crisis, climate change
Wheat straw is being sold at Rs 1,100-1,700 per quintal; it was being sold at Rs 400-600 per quintal last year
How cow became the mother of demigods
The current political discourse on cow protection disregards the history of beef eating in India
Vanishing green
Participants at a recent conference conference on man, animal and environment discuss ways to solve the problem of overgrazing
Water wise in Uttarakhand
Scientific implementation of developmental programmes is needed for the optimal utilisation of water resources
Can goats secure livelihood for small and marginal farmers?
The Centre's discussions on boosting the goat sector to double farmers’ incomes may be futile if fodder and grazing lands, both …
As told to Parliament (December 23, 2022): Most crop damage due to heavy rains, floods in Karnataka this year
The state saw 1,031,102 hectares of damaged crop area, followed by Assam with 245,837.7 ha
How India is killing the country’s largest economy of the poor
New restriction on cattle slaughter will severely cripple the livestock economy which is bigger than crop economy; poor farmers shifted to …
Lalu Yadav convicted in fodder scam
Another former chief Minister of Bihar, Jagannath Mishra, also convicted; Supreme Court ruling disqualifies Lalu as member of Parliament
Fodder scam: two Bihar politicians get 5 years in jail
R K Rana and Dhruv Bhagat were considered close associates of RJD leader Laloo Praad Yadav at one time