Burglars in Silicon Valley have been targeting desi homes recently, perhaps through property records or personal contacts (thanks, Sonya). If they were truly smart, they’d be looking for the stock options, not yo mama’s mangalasutra:

Of the 50 home burglaries that have occurred in Sunnyvale, Calif., in the last couple of months, 10 have happened in the homes of Indian Americans… [India-West]

Since December, the homes of at least 14 Indo-American families have been burglarized on weekend nights in Silicon Valley. The families fear they are being targeted because of their preference for 22- and 24-karat gold jewelry… “It looks like they know where to look. There are some subcultures in India where it’s pretty common to hide jewelry in the kitchen, and these burglars are also looking in kitchens…”

… they said they wanted to speak out to alert other families — and to tell them to store their jewelry and other valuables in safe-deposit boxes instead of at home. [Mercury News]

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A 52-year-old father from Guyana was beaten by an 18-year-old from Mexico on March 3 and died of a heart attack. Jagat Ram Balram of Queens was a marine engineer in his homeland:

A police source said Roque downed a number of drinks in a friend’s home, then hit the streets of Richmond Hill, confronting residents. After several confrontations, including one with a man who wouldn’t back down, Roque pounced on Balram, who was heading home from his job as a bus mechanic just before 1 a.m., police said.

The 120-pound Roque knocked the victim, who at 5-foot-10, 175 pounds towered over the suspect, to the snow-covered ground in front of Balram’s Jamaica Avenue home, then kicked him into unconsciousness, police said… Roque, who emigrated from Mexico… attends Richmond Hill High School and works as a busboy at nearby Alfies Pizza & Pasta. [MSNBC]

Two witnesses dialed 911 and ran to help Jagat Balram while another good Samaritan chased the fleeing suspect to Jamaica Ave. and 118th St. and flagged down a patrol car… Jagat Balram’s hard-earned savings will now be used to send his body back to South America, instead of bringing his 25-year-old son, Chateran, to New York.  [Daily News]

Keri Dowd, a history teacher at Richmond Hill HS, said Roque had a reputation as having “a discipline problem,” and said a fellow teacher — who had him in her class — said he was “disturbed, violent and aggressive.” [NY Post]

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In an effort to amend the salt tax without breaking the law, on March 2, 1930 Gandhi wrote to the Viceroy, Lord Irwin: “If my letter makes no appeal to your heart, on the eleventh day of this month I shall proceed with such co-workers of the Ashram as I can take, to disregard the provisions of the Salt Laws. I regard this tax to be the most iniquitous of all from the poor man’s standpoint. As the Independence movement is essentially for the poorest in the land, the beginning will be made with this evil.”

On March 12, 1930, Gandhi and approximately 78 male satyagrahis set out, on foot, for the coastal village of Dandi some 240 miles from their starting point in Sabarmati, a journey which was to last 23 days. Virtually every resident of each city along this journey watched the great procession, which was at least two miles in length. On April 6th he raised a lump of mud and salt (some say just a pinch, some say just a grain) and declared, “With this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire.” He then boiled it in seawater to make the commodity which no Indian could legally produce–salt.

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