Maharashtra recorded highest number of farmers' suicides during 2014

Data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has shown that Maharashtra recorded the highest number of farmers' suicides in 2014. Nearly 2,568 farmer suicides were registered in the state, which are fewer than those in 2013. However, activists say that NCRB has manipulated the data and that the total number of suicides in the state should be nearly 4,004. Maharashtra is followed by Telangana, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh in the list. 

Dry July for western and southern India

July has recorded 32.5% deficient rains thus far. The entire belt of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, western Madhya Pradesh and northern Karnataka remained dry during the month of July. However, good showers in the month of June have made up the cumulative rainfall for the current monsoon, which is just 6.1% below the long period average (LPA) for July. On the other hand, Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana, Delhi, Uttarakhand, western Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Jharkhand have received normal to excess rainfall this month.

Survey reveals that a third of Maharashtra's major dams need immediate repairs

Per a survey conducted by the Irrigation Department, 403 of the 1,231 major dams across Maharashtra have defects that need repair. The defects in the three major dams -- Ambeghar and Kudki dam in Raigad, and Nignur in Yavatmal are threat to dam safety. However, according to the Minister of State (Water Resources), the deficiencies in Kudki dam had been already corrected while the work on other two are still pending. 

Three new portals launched for Indian farmers

The Agriculture Ministry has launched three new websites for farmers with an aim to ease out the making of organic farming certification, fertiliser quality checks and disbursal of soil health cards. The ‘Participatory Guarantee System’ portal will help small and marginal farmers in securing organic certification. Through the ‘Soil Health Card’, portal farmers will be able to register soil samples and get the test results. The  ‘Fertiliser Quality Control System’ portal will collate analysis reports of imported fertilisers. 

Puttenahalli Lake revival efforts win accolade

The Puttenahalli Neighbourhood Lake Improvement Trust has won the national award from the Earth Day Network India for its efforts in rejuvnating the Puttenahalli Lake, Bengaluru. On March 28, about 30 volunteers gathered to clean up the lake, and revival efforts went on for four hours. The Trust competed against 220 other entries from 45 cities across the country. Karnataka Authorities have also chosen this lake to receive treated sewage water from adjacent apartment complexes to fill it up.

This is a roundup of important news from July 13 - 20, 2015. Also read last week's policy matters updates.