Tomatoes worth Rs 2.7 lakh stolen from Karnataka farm, as rising prices make it a precious commodity
Hassan (K'taka)/Hyderabad (Telangana), July 6: The skyrocketing prices of tomato have made the culinary staple so valuable that it has lured thieves into stealing them. In one such incident, thieves made away with tomatoes worth Rs 2.7 lakh right from a farm in Belur in this district.
This is not the only theft of tomatoes that has been reported. In a theft of a smaller scale, 20 kg of tomatoes was allegedly stolen from a shop in Mahabubabad district in Telangana, police said on Thursday.
Tomatoes are presently sold at Rs 150 a kg in Bengaluru.
According to the tomato farmer in Belur, who was in tears, the thieves decamped with the tomatoes on Tuesday night.
Parvathamma said her family had been guarding their tomato farm cautiously. "We had sown tomatoes in two acres but we got nothing. Tomatoes used to grow but they never ripened. This time they grew but day-before-yesterday, someone stole them," Parvathamma told PTI with tears in her eyes.
"We toiled so much on the farm but we got nothing. My husband can't speak. We only work here from morning 7 till 9 in the night. We poured all our labour and money but everything was looted," the farmer said.
Giving details of the incident, Hassan Superintendent of Police Hariram Shankar said on Wednesday a tomato cultivator Dharani lodged a complaint with the Halebid police.
On the previous night, she had watered the crop and gone home. When she returned on Wednesday morning, she realised that someone had illegally entered her farm and stolen all the tomatoes.
"According to the farmer, tomatoes that would fit in 90 boxes, which would cost around Rs 2.7 lakh, have been stolen from her farm. We have registered a case and are investigating the matter," Shankar told PTI.
In the theft in Telangana, the incident took place in Dornakal mandal on Wednesday night, police said.
The vegetable vendor said tomato weighing 20 kgs and four other vegetables weighing about 35 kg kept in two boxes in his shop were taken away by unidentified persons.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
