NEW DELHI, July 29:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the Government’s policy should be focussed on increasing the farmers’ income and asked scientists to take scientific technology to field for raising crop productivity.
Expressing concern over high import of cooking oil and pulses, he said scientists should help increase its productivity for reducing the country’s import dependence.
“We have to prove two points. One is our farmers are capable to feed the whole country and world, and second agriculture is capable of filling the pockets of our farmers,” Modi said while addressing the 86th foundation day of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)
The Prime Minister was of the view that if enough income is not generated for farmers it could be challenging to achieve the targets in the sector.
“Therefore our policies and actions should be focussed on this,” he said.
He laid emphasis on the need to take scientific technologies to agriculture field to boost farm production and meet growing food demand.
The Prime Minister said there is a need to increase crop yield at a faster pace without compromising on the quality.
Modi also called for blue revolution similar to green and white revolutions, saying the fisheries sector has great potential in the international trade.
He also asked scientists to focus on herbal medicines as is being done in China.
The Prime Minister suggested agriculture universities setting up their own radio stations to provide extension services to farmers.
He emphasised on the need for water conservation through rain harvesting and other measures in view of changing water and weather cycle.
Modi asked ICAR to start planning for celebrating the organisation’s 100th foundation day by setting specific targets and exhorted them to achieve more in the next 14 years than what was done in the last 86 years. (PTI)

KABUL, July 29:
A cousin and close associate of outgoing Afghan President Hamid Karzai was assassinated today by a suicide bomber who hid his explosives under his turban, a provincial official said.
The bomber walked up to the home of Hashmat Khalil Karzai to greet him after morning prayers for the Eid al-Fitr holiday, and detonated the explosives after shaking hands with the president’s cousin, said the official.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, which was reminiscent of the September 2011 killing of former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani, who at the time was the leader of a government-appointed peace council seeking reconciliation with militants.
In that attack, an insurgent posing as a Taliban peace envoy detonated a bomb that was hidden in his turban as he met Rabbani at his home in Kabul.
Today’s attack took place at the reception room for guests at the Karzai family home in southern Kandahar province’s district of Karz, according to Dawa Khan Minapal, the provincial governor’s spokesman.
Hashmat, a political figure in his own right, has been his cousin’s staunch supporter and has also backed former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai’s bid to succeed President Karzai.
It was not the first time that Karzai’s family members have been targeted. The president’s powerful half-brother, Ahmad Wali Karzai, who was the head of the provincial council, was slain in his home in the city of Kandahar by his bodyguard in July 2011.
The attack comes at a sensitive time in Afghanistan as an audit is taking place under international supervision of all 8 million ballots cast last month in the second round of the country’s presidential election. The process is key to insuring a peaceful transfer of power ahead of the withdrawal of most foreign troops by the end of the year.
The two presidential contenders, Ahmadzai and former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, are awaiting the results of the audit.
President Karzai yesterday appealed for a speedy conclusion to the audit that will determine his successor, saying that Afghanistan urgently needs a new president. His slain cousin Hashmat ran a private security company and was also on Ahmadzai’s election campaign team as campaign manager for Kandahar. (AGENCIES)

CHANDIGARH, July 29:
In a revolt against Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda ahead of Assembly elections, Haryana Power Minister Ajay Yadav resigned today, saying the leadership has “failed” to learn lessons from the Lok Sabha election debacle.
The 55-year-old six-time Congress MLA from Rewari alleged bias in matter of development, recruitment and flayed the controversial induction of members of various Commissions and statutory bodies and “domination” of the bureaucracy.
Yadav told PTI here that he had sent his resignation to Hooda. He, however, said he would continue in Congress till the end and Sonia Gandhi is his leader.
He said the Congress won only one seat in the state in the Lok Sabha elections, but has failed to learn any lessons.
“Somebody has to bell the cat…And I decided to take the step (resign),” he said.
Asked about Hooda’s response to his resignation, Yadav said the Chief Minister asked me to reconsider, but he declined.
“I am waiting for the Congress High Command to take a decision,” Yadav said.
Asked if he had raised the issues at various cabinet meetings, Yadav said the cabinet meetings are restricted to the agenda.
“I had detailed the reasons for the party’s defeat before the Antony Panel,” he said, adding he would soon meet the party leadership.
“I want respect. If that is not given what else can I do. I had to make the sacrifice of resigning under compulsion when the bias in matter of development, recruitment, induction of members of various Commissions and other statutory bodies, domination of the bureaucracy and neglect of party cadres, including MLAs continued and the party failed to learn any lessons from the Lok Sabha debacle,” he said.
“It was essential for me to resign to give a message so that the party does not face the same situation in forthcoming assembly elections which it faced in the recent Lok Sabha elections,” he said.
Yadav claimed that development and other activities in the state had been confined to a couple of districts, which he did not name.
Yadav also opposed the induction of two members to State Information Commission and three to Right to Service Commission, saying only bureaucrats have been inducted as members.
“Didn’t they (Government) see any politician or other persons? If the posts had been given to party cadres it would have been better,” he said.
Asked about reorganisation of the state unit of the Congress and appointment of youth leader as HPCC President, Yadav said, “Ashok Tanwar should work independently. He should take all leaders along in order to strengthen the party.”
On reports that another senior leader Birendar Singh was unhappy with the state leadership and that he may switch over to BJP, Yadav said that if that happens it will certainly be a loss for the party.
Yadav said a medical college proposed to be set up under the PPP model in his area had remained on paper only.
“No further action has been taken in the matter,” he said, adding there were various other instances reflecting “bias” of the state government in carrying out developmental works and recruitment to various departments, etc. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, July 29:
The more things change, the more they stay the same, judging by a PMO reply given to an RTI applicant.
In April last year, applicant retired Commodore Lokesh Batra was refused disclosure of steps taken by the Prime Minister’s Office to proactively part with information as mandated under the RTI Act.
That prompted Narendra Modi, the then Gujarat Chief Minister, to take a potshot at the PMO questioning the UPA for taking credit for RTI even as the top office was denying information.
Three weeks after Modi took over as Prime Minister, his office gave a similar reply in June this year refusing information to the RTI applicant on similar grounds.
CPIO S E Rizvi had then questioned the usefulness of giving the applicant details about the list of files related to RTI Act implementation which are maintained under the ES-2 Section of the PMO and other details.
He had refused to disclose information saying the query would fall in the category of one “where the applicant has not specified how the information is useful to him either personally, socially or nationally”.
Under the Right to Information Act, an RTI applicant is not required to give any reasons while seeking information. As per the Act, information can only be denied if it comes under exemption clauses of the transparency law.
Batra posed a similar question to the PMO on May 19 seeking details of the files maintained by it related to the implementation of RTI.
But he has now got the same answer from Rizvi which was given to him last year.
Batra regretted that despite change of Government, “nothing seems to have changed in the PMO”.
He said after the change of Government at the Centre on 26 May 2014, a message under the title “Quest for Transparency” was posted on the website of PMO.
“This created hope for all those working for ‘Transparency and Accountability’ in governance. Alas! Going by the RTI response of CPIO, PMO, nothing seems to have changed in PMO viz. ‘Transparency and Accountability’,” he said.
Among other pieces of information, Batra has also sought to know from the PMO the details of files and records which have been digitised and computerised by it as mandated in Section 4(1)(a) of the Right to Information Act. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, July 29:
Criminal proceedings in grave offences like rape and murder cannot be quashed despite the victim and the accused reaching a compromise and coming to an amicable settlement, the Supreme court has ruled saying it will have harmful effect on society.
A bench of justices Ranjana Prakash Desai and N V Ramana, however, said that proceedings in other offences, which are not related to public peace or tranquillity and confined to two individuals or groups, can be quashed after the parties reach a compromise.
“…The High Court can exercise its discretion to quash the proceedings will depend on facts and circumstances of each case. Offences which involve moral turpitude, grave offences like rape, murder etc. Cannot be effaced by quashing the proceedings because that will have harmful effect on the society,” the bench said.
The apex court said that grave offences cannot be said to be restricted to two individuals or two groups and quashing of such offences may send “wrong signal” to the society.
“However, when the High Court is convinced that the offences are entirely personal in nature and, therefore, do not affect public peace or tranquillity and where it feels that quashing of such proceedings on account of compromise would bring about peace and would secure ends of justice, it should not hesitate to quash them,” the bench said.
It said in such cases(where parties compromise), the prosecution becomes a lame prosecution and pursuing it would be waste of time and energy.
“That will also unsettle the compromise and obstruct restoration of peace,” the bench said.
The apex court passed the verdict on a bunch of petitions filed by various convicts seeking quashing of proceedings against them on the ground that they have reached amicable settlement with the victims. (PTI)

NEW DELHI, July 29:
Pitching for greater use of research for boosting the agriculture sector, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today gave the slogan ‘Lab-to-Land’, saying that farmers should be able to enhance production to increase their income and feed the country as well as the world.
He pressed for the use of scientific technologies to help raise the agricultural production in “less land, less time” as he expressed concern over the depleting natural resources and the challenge of climate change.
The Prime Minister also called for ‘Blue Revolution’ in fisheries sector on the lines of Green and White Revolutions.
“We have to prove two points. One is how we can make farmers capable of feeding the whole country and the world. Second is how we can make agriculture capable to fill the pocket of our farmers,” Modi said while addressing the 86th Foundation Day of Indian Council Agriculture Research (ICAR) here.
He asked the scientific community to plan for the centenary celebrations of ICAR and achieve more in the next 14 years than what they have over the last 86 years of the existence of the premium agriculture research body.
“‘Per drop, more crop’ can be our mission statement,” he said, while noting that India is still dependent on import of edible oil and pulses despite being an agrarian economy and efforts need to be made to become self-sufficient.
He emphasised upon the need for taking scientific research to fields and suggested setting up of radio stations by agri-colleges and universities to create awareness among farmers.
The farm growth target cannot be achieved unless farmers’ income is increased, Modi said, adding that the government’s policies therefore should focus in this direction.
Modi also talked about the need to address the challenge of taking farm research from ‘Lab-to-Land’ by making efforts to convince farmers about efficacy of new farm techniques in simple ways.
“Food demand is huge and this is an opportunity for us.
The biggest challenge before us how we take research work from Lab to Land. Unless this work does not reach field, we cannot get results,” Modi said
Exhorting agriculture universities/college to start radio stations, he said that young educated and progressive farmers along with farm research scholars can form a talent pool.
He asked ICAR to digitise database of all agri-research work in the country in the next 4-5 years.
On the need to achieve ‘Blue Revolution’ in the fishery sector, Modi said: “In India’s tri-colour flag, we talk about Green and White Revolution. But there is also blue colour Ashoka Chakra. That revolution we also need to look at.”
The development of the fishery sector is necessary as there is huge global market for this and has potential to change the life of fishermen, he said, and called for greater research and promotion of coastal seaweed.
In order to reduce dependence on import of pulses and cooking oils, the Prime Minister said that the production of pulses and oilseeds is a big challenge even today and priority should be given to raise productivity.
“Even today, production of pulses and oilseeds is a big challenge. There is a need to increase production of pulses. Poorest of the poor should also get pulses which has high protein. We need to work in this direction.” he said.
Noting that the country is still dependent on import of cooking oils despite being an agrarian economy, Modi emphasised
that there is a need to take it as challenge by both scientists and the farming community to address this issue.
Modi also asked ICAR to focus on harnessing the potential of Himalayan herbal medicine as China is ahead in this area.
Emphasising upon the need to address water crisis, he asked ICAR to explore scientific approach to manage water according to changing weather cycles.
“Water is God’s offering to us and we should ensure that no single drop of water is wasted. How do we spread this message among common man? How do we work in this direction? Can we make ‘Per drop more drop’ as our mission statement? Similarly ‘Kam Zameen, Kam samay and Zyada Upaj’,” he said.
Modi said that awareness about water conservation among people is necessary as they are the ones who have to work upon this, though seminars on global warming and environment in 5-Star hotels do have some benefit in this regard.
Besides addressing water crisis, he said that the country has “no choice” but to increase farm productivity in less land without compromising the quality, while special efforts are required on growing agri-crops in less timeframe.
Referring to the pace at which ICAR Director General S Ayyappan gave presentation on the institute’s achievement in last 86 years, Modi in a lighter note said: “I was listening to Ayyappanji, it was like superfast train. I am fully confident that the country’s agriculture will grow in the same speed.”
The Prime Minister, who was given a standing ovation before his address, asked scientists present in the auditorium to pay standing ovation to those crores of farmers who have contributed to farm growth. (PTI)