Rohtak, May 8
The practice of natural farming appears to have caught the fancy of a section of farmers who have vowed to take it to a new level. This development surfaced at a congregation of progressive farmers held here recently.

“The wheat grown on three acres of my land through this technique has generated a new zest as the entire produce of 1,400 kg fetched a price of Rs 3,000 per quintal against the ordinary market rate of Rs 1,200 per quintal,” said Tej Singh of Deeghal village of Jhajjar district.

He said the produce was booked in advance and he did not face any hassle of taking it to the market to sell it. “I have decided to produce wheat and other crops through natural farming even though it involves extra work and care,’’ he added at a meeting of farmers here yesterday.

“The per acre produce of the crop may be lower than that of the crop cultivated with the help of urea and chemical fertilisers, but the land is free of chemicals which could cause various diseases in the long run,’’ said Udhay Bhan of Belarkha village of Jind district. He said he had been growing various crops on seven acres of land through natural farming techniques for the past two years and would never use any chemical to get more produce.

He said the per acre yield by using chemical fertilisers is around 45 to 60 quintals in comparison to just half through natural farming. This, however, could prove costly or harmful for consumption due to its contents in the long run with a large number of consumers becoming victims of diseases like cancer.

Claiming that awareness about the technique had been growing, he said all his produce was sold at handsome rates and he was spared the nexus of middlemen and commission agents in the market.

Ranbir Singh of Ahulana village in Sonepat district said the wheat sown by him on seven acres had fetched a rate ranging from Rs 2,000 to 2,200 per quintal and he had permanent consumers who booked the product in advance.

Narayan Singh from Lakha Majra, Om Prakash of Kheri Sadh, Ram Kishan of Kharawar and Naresh Balhara of Bahu Jamalpur village also claimed to be part of the new drive and described it as a huge success. Dr Rajinder Chaudhary, professor of the economics department of M.D.University who organised the meet, said it was the start of a new revolution in farming in the region.

Chandigarh, May 8
Even as the Haryana Government needs a whopping Rs 6,326.62 crore to tone up its infrastructure in 73 major towns in the state, the Hooda government has urged the Centre to chip in with Rs 2,000 crore.

In fact, the city development plans for 73 towns of the state prepared to find out the gaps in infrastructure, including roads, drainage system, water supply system and sewerage system, has pegged the amount at Rs 6,326.62 crore.

Over 20 towns located in the National Capital Region (NCR) bordering New Delhi, which are bursting at seams in the wake of large-scale urbanisation, alone need Rs 2,777 crore for infrastructure development, official sources said.

Officials highlighted that though the state government would be able to mobilise resources to the tune of Rs 1,500 crore from the Rajiv Gandhi Urban Development Mission (RGUDM) during the 12th five-year plan, yet liberal assistance from the Centre would go a long way in augmenting the infrastructural facilities in major towns.

New Delhi, May 8
Holding that the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl by her father “does not fall within the rarest of rare cases”, the Supreme Court has set aside the death sentence awarded to a man from Bilaspur in Yamunanagar district of Haryana.

Instead of being hanged, the convict, Neel Kumar alias Anil Kumar, would undergo life imprisonment for a “minimum of 30 years” without remissions before being considered for premature release, a Bench comprising Justices BS Chauhan and FMI Kalifulla ruled in a judgment.

Neel Kumar had three minor children at the time of committing the heinous crime in June 2007. They were 4-year-old Sanjana (the victim) and two sons -- one two years old and another just 15 days old. The FIR had been registered on a complaint by his wife, Roopa Devi.

The Additional Sessions Judge at Yamunanagar had sentenced him to death in March 2009, while the Punjab and Haryana High Court endorsed the verdict on July 17, 2009.

“For awarding the death sentence, there must be existence of aggravating circumstances and the consequential absence of mitigating circumstances. As to whether death sentence should be awarded would depend upon the factual scenario of the case in hand,” the SC Bench reasoned while quashing the extreme penalty awarded to Neel Kumar.

The Bench, however, noted that the convict “cannot be awarded a lenient punishment” in view of the nature of the offence and the relationship he had with the victim.

The Haryana Government had opposed Neel Kumar’s appeal, contending that he had committed the most heinous crime.

Since he had raped his own child, “the society cannot be safeguarded from such a person.” Further, the manner in which the offence had been committed and the nature of injuries caused to the child had made it a rarest of rare cases, warranting death penalty.

Chandigarh, May 8
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda conferred Haryana Vigyan Ratna and Haryana Yuva Vigyan Ratna Awards, 2010-11, upon four eminent scientists here today.

The Chief Minister said science and technology played a major role in improving quality of life and sustainability, which was the ultimate goal of any progressive society.

He said food security was a challenge and scientists should work on ways to maximise the yield with minimum use of land and water. Stating that it was time to switch over to vertical growth in farming, Hooda said Israel had maximised its output that by adopting this technique, and the Haryana Government, too, had taken many initiatives in this regard. Hooda rued the waning interest of students in science and highlighted the initiative to honour science toppers to encourage children to take up science subjects.

Haryana Science and Technology Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala said the Haryana Science and Technology Department was making efforts to motivate students to study science subjects. Science conclaves were organised all across the state to motivate students to study science subjects.

Those awarded were Dr Harsh Mohan, head of the Department of Pathology, Government Medical College Hospital, Sector 32, Chandigarh; and Dr SKS Marya, vice-chairman, Max Healthcare, New Delhi, who were conferred with the Haryana Vigyan Ratna Award. The award carries a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh, a citation and a trophy.

The Haryana Yuva Vigyan Ratna Award was presented to Dr Gitanjali Yadav and Dr. Mukesh Jain, scientists at the National Institute of Plant Genome Research, New Delhi. The award carries a cash prize of Rs 50,000, a citation and a trophy. 

Karnal, May 8
Furious over the failure of the police to take action against some youths from Shekhpura Suhana village, who allegedly attacked some Harijans of Nagla village, villagers blocked the Meerut-Karnal highway for more than two hours.

The injured villagers of Nagla who belonged to the Harijan community alleged that more than 24 young Jats of Shekhpura Suhana forcibly entered their homes and beat them up with lathis.

Kamal, one of the injured, said that youths beat up two persons of the village and went back, only to return with more villagers who barged into Harijans’ homes and lathicharged them. Nagla villagers blocked the Karnal-Meerut road to register protest as the police did not take prompt action, they claimed.

The injured - Kamal, Ajay, Praveen, Gopal, Raj Kumar, Arun Kumar and Usha Devi - have been admitted to Trauma Centre, Karnal, and are undergoing treatment.

Rajneesh of Shekhpura Suhana has also been admitted to hospital. Policemen have been deployed in the village.

Karnal, May 8
Angry residents of Modipur village today forced the transfer of peon and a woman teacher in connection with the molestation of a class IX girl by the social science teacher .

Demanding stringent action against woman teacher Urmilla and peon Madan Lal, the villagers locked the school.

The villagers alleged that the peon had sent the girl to the room of the social science teacher while Urmilla had not taken any action even after the victim told her about the incident.

Realising the gravity of the situation, the authorities reportedly issued the transfer orders of the teacher and the peon.

Meanwhile, the accused teacher, Sultan Singh, has been remanded in 14-day judicial custody.