-Outlook Thousands of farmers from Niphad and Nashik tehsil towns took out a morcha to the Gangapur dam and squatted in front of Gangapur canal demanding release of water from the dam to Godavari canal. As many as 65 villages in these tehsils are facing shortage of water for irrigation and drinking purposes. The agitation, which was launched yesterday by the farmers, was withdrawn after the sub-divisional officer assured to release first rotation...

-Down to Earth Rice cultivation has led to waterlogging and soil salinity in Haryana’s Jhajjar district CASTE-BASED khap panchayats of Haryana are usually in the news for passing regressive and, often, controversial orders in the name of honouring social customs. But this year in January, the Jhakkar khap panchayat of Jhajjar district gave a rather unusual order in the larger interest of the farming community. It ordered that all the 36...

-Frontline There is growing violence against women and children in Haryana, aided by the apparent collusion between the State government and the upper-caste-dominated khap panchayats. THE road leading to Dabra village in Haryana’s Hisar district is not very difficult to locate. It was at Dabra, a mere 15 kilometres from the district headquarters, that a heinous crime was committed on September 9. It would have gone unnoticed had it not been accompanied...

-The Times of India While allegations of irrigation-related illegalities continue to fly thick and fast, with Maharashtra at the epicenter, the status of irrigation projectsacross the country presents a dismal picture.  Stalled projects are not only symptoms of corruption, they are depriving farmers of life-saving water for crops, weakening food security and pushing them to the brink of pauperization. In all, 77 major and 86 medium irrigation projects are running delayed by anything...

-The Hindu Crops destroyed due to waterlogging; khap panchayat bans paddy cultivation “Our village is unique: here people do not pray for rains but for a drought,” quipped Krishen Kumar, a farmer of Mundahera village of Jhajjar, as he showed how a rise in the water level in his village and adjoining areas has led to waterlogging and destruction of standing crops in his village. While after the construction of the Jawaharlal Nehru...