News Digest: In riot-hit Rohtak, Army helps a love story bloom

Here are some important reports from the biggest newspapers of India:

1. In riot-hit Rohtak, Army helps a love story bloom

The Army came to the aid of a beleaguered bride in violence-hit Rohtak on Monday. They escorted the girl and her family to a gurdwara, where soldiers stood guard outside allowing Neha Makkad, 23, to tie the knot, said a report in The Times of India.

Preparations for the wedding had been on for months. But when violence, arson and blockades hit large parts of the state due to the Jat agitation, the family ended up cooped up inside their house, unable to make it to the wedding venue barely kilometres away. The house is located in Gurcharanpura, the worst hit part of Rohtak.

With the police also unable to provide any assistance, Neha's family grew desperate. Fortunately for them, a 3/5 Gorkha Rifles battalion heard of their plight and helped Neha marry Gaurav.

2. 'Bring a tank on JNU campus to instil nationalism in students'

At the centre of a political row over a sedition case filed against its students' union president, the Jawaharlal Nehru University is "actively considering", among other things, "showcasing a tank" on its premises to "instil nationalism" among students.

According to Indian Express, the suggestions were made at a meeting of ex-servicemen with JNU Vice-Chancellor M Jagadesh Kumar on Tuesday.

A day later, JNU Registrar Bupinder Zutshi said, "The veterans met the administration on Wednesday and made a few suggestions. Having an Army memorial to commemorate the memories of soldiers who lost their lives fighting for the country is one such suggestion that the administration is actively considering."

3. Jat quota stir: How violence started; a protest on JNU row, hostel raid by cops

It may sound far-fetched, but the JNU row played a role in triggering the recent violence in Haryana.

According to reports, the violence began with a scuffle between non-Jats and lawyers in Rohtak who were protesting against "anti-nationals of JNU" on February 18.

According to police and eyewitness accounts, the Jat agitation for reservation began peacefully from Sampla on February 14. The initial few days only saw road blockades and protests across the state, the Indian Express reported.

4. Minister watching, minority panel official says: Can't sleep at night, mahaul worrying

On a day when Parliament debated the JNU arrests and the Rohith Vemula suicide, an officer in the National Commission of Minorities made an impassioned appeal for the security of minorities in presence of the minister, sources said.

As per a report in Indian Express, Additional Secretary in the National Commission for Minorities Ajoy Kumar reportedly said that the "situation in the country (regarding minorities) is not allowing him to sleep peacefully" and appealed to the government to ensure calm and confidence.

5. Vishal Sikka gets a pay hike, to helm Infy till 2021

Vishal Sikka has been rewarded with a pay raise and a redrawn employment contract just 18 months after he became the first non-founder CEO of Infosys, a nod to his gameplan for recapturing growth leadership by India's second-largest software.

Sikka, a former technology chief at Germany's SAP , will see a "big jump" in his compensation, according to two people aware of the board's conversations on the subject, reported Economic Times.

The term of the revised contract will run until March 31, 2021. His existing contract was to have been in force till June 2019.

6. There are doubts over Afzal's role in Parliament attack: Chidambaram

Nearly three years after the UPA government ordered the hanging of Afzal Guru, former home and finance minister P Chidambaram told Economic Times that he felt it was possible to hold an "honest opinion" that the case was "perhaps not correctly decided".

Chidambaram said that there were "grave doubts about the extent of his involvement" in the 2001 Parliament attack.

He was responding to a question on whether the courts had reached the correct conclusions in the Afzal case and also whether execution was the appropriate penalty .

7. Communal violence up in 2015 by nearly 17%

Communal violence was up in 2015 by nearly 17% from the previous year, with Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka reporting highest number of incidents.

As many as 751 incidents of communal violence were reported in 2015 compared to 644 in 2014, casualties rose marginally from 95 to 97, while the figure of those injured rose from 1,921 to 2,264, said a report in Economic Times.

The official admission in Parliament on Wednesday raises questions on the Home Ministry's argument that communal violence was down under the Narendra Modi government.

8. Foreigners make a beeline for 'sugar ka ped’ in Uttarakhand after FB post

A Facebook post has helped a little-known Indian herb take root in the lucrative ayurvedic medicine market with inquiries pouring in from residents of Saudi Arabia, Germany, the US and Thailand, forest department officials in Uttarakhand’s Nainital district told Hindustan Times.

Over the past 18 months, authorities have sold 20,000 Kasni herbs that traditional medicine experts say are effective in treating kidney and liver diseases, high blood sugar as well as piles.

The plant gained popularity at a time when once-sleepy Indian ayurvedic medicine companies have woken up to the opportunity to sell herbal remedies to urban Indians.

9. HC takes note of reports of 'rapes' during agitation

The Punjab and Haryana high court has taken cognisance of news reports about alleged incidents of rape at Murthal during the Jat community’s protest for reservation.

The state police have denied that any such incident had taken place and termed the report as "false”, reported Hindustan Times.

A news report in an English daily on Wednesday had claimed that vehicles with women were reportedly stopped on the National Highway-1 near Murthal on Monday morning, and the woman dragged out and raped in fields nearby. It said at least 10 women were raped.

10. Prabhu may unveil new premium trains in Rail Budget

Railway minister Suresh Prabhu is likely to announce a marquee train service that will have premium coaches aimed at giving competition to low-cost airlines and helping the state-run behemoth win back customers.

According to a report in The Times of India, the new service will be in the category of Shatabdi, Rajdhani and Duranto trains.

The rail budget to be presented by Prabhu on Thursday may include a slew of measures to ensure quality travel, including expansion of e-catering to all important stations beyond the 42 already covered and in more trains. Provisions for bar-coded tickets and travel insurance for passengers are also likely to be announced.