One village,two farming world records After setting a world record for paddy production by following SRI,or system of rice intensification,Darveshpura village of Nalanda has now set a world record for potato production,too. The farmer this time,namesake of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar,harvested 72.9 tonnes of potato per hectare,dwarfing the previous record of 45 t/ha held by farmers in the Netherlands. CM Nitish,his eyes set on a 10-year agriculture target of Rs 1.5 lakh crore,called it an extraordinary feat coming from the same village within four months. He has also got farmers of the village to grow wheat through SRI. The other Nitish Kumar used organic farming on his way to his potato record. The Assembly and the Legislative Council have congratulated him,while the CM was so jubilant that he carried a basket of potatoes to the Assembly. Senior partner,sulking ally With Chief Minister Nitish Kumar having virtually forced the BJP to concede the last of Bihars vacant Rajya Sabha seats,BJP leaders have started grumbling about the senior partner. Several BJP MLAs,who have been against supporting the JD(U) candidate because the BJP has 21 votes to spare compared to the JD(U)s 13,are complaining that the JD(U) leadership would try to sideline them at every opportunity. We are not allowed to ask tough questions in the Assembly. At times when the Opposition too welcomes our questions and thumps their desks in approval,it displeases the JD(U), said a BJP MLA. State BJP president Dr C P Thakur sought to play this down: Such things happen in a coalition. But he could not answer why it is the BJP that makes the sacrifices every time. Vikramshila conservation The site of Vikramshila University,a major seat of learning in ancient India,will from next month see conservation work by the Archaeological Survey of India,which will also excavate new areas. The Bihar government has long been urging the Centre to conserve the Vikramshila ruins. The ASI will take up excavation over 116 acres of land not dug earlier,its Patna circle superintending archaeologist Sanjay K Manjul said. The ASI has engaged the National Culture Fund and NTPC in conserving the ruins already excavated,including 208 reading room-like structures. Vikramshila University,founded in the late eighth or early ninth century by King Dharmapala of the Pala dynasty,was among the most important centres of Buddhist learning. Border force turns educator The Sashastra Seema Bal,whose brief is to guard the Indo-Nepal border,has also been spreading the light of knowledge in East Champaran villages bordering Nepal. The 13th battalion of the SSB at Raxaul has joined voluntary groups in visiting neighbouring villages in groups to educate children and also motivate them to study with gifts including stationery. SSB officials said the literacy campaign was part of a social commitment to win the confidence of locals. Several villagers also seek the SSBs help to solve petty disputes; serious matters are referred to the local administration.
