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Fighting without
aid against AIDS
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PAGREXCO for citrus revolution in Punjab
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Fighting without aid against AIDS One volunteer makes it his responsibility to spread awareness about the deadly disease which has so far claimed 11 young lives in Kala Khera village, reports
Deepkamal Kaur
It’s a one-man crusade that this zealous youth has launched in Kala Khera village, five kms from Kartarpur township, after 11 young lives have reportedly been lost in this tiny hamlet due to the AIDS in the past eight years. Even as the district health authorities have turned a blind eye towards this major health and social issue, 30-year-old Mohan Lal is striving all out to spread awareness about the disease in the village. Working as a volunteer for a Jalandhar-based NGO, Pehal, Mr Mohan Lal is helping the AIDS victims live up with the disease and undertake regular treatment. Persuading the villagers to shun social stigma, the volunteer also makes it a point to regularly counsel the entire family; though it is a different side of the story as to how difficult it is to influence the minds of the affected families. “It is very difficult to help them come out of the stigma. The old ladies in the family do not speak a word about the disease till the victim becomes too frail and is on his death bed. They even feel offended if they are asked anything about the infection. The men folk, however, are relatively less hesitant and open up after a bit of counseling. The most difficult and significant step is to get the tests done for the spouse and children of the victim and it takes weeks before they are ready to get that done,” the volunteer revealed. Mr Mohan Lal’s revelations were confirmed when Jalandhar Plus team visited the village last week. Even as the deaths of 11 youth due to AIDS is a popular talk in the village, no one from the families of the victims are ready to accept a word about it for they all say that they died of “high grade fever, extreme loss of weight and weakness.” Despite much insistence, no one is ready to take out the medical reports of the victims. A group of eight oldsters sitting in a haveli at the entrance of the village said most villagers avoided a talk on the matter for there was a popular myth went around the villagers that the victim would be taken to Chandigarh on the pretext of providing him treatment but there they would be administered an injection leading to their quick death. The villagers revealed that Manjit Singh, a 30-year-old daily wager, is reportedly the 11th AIDS victim to have succumbed to the disease about three months back. Family members of the deceased said Manjit was working as a labourer in Dubai about three years back, little before he had started showing signs of illness. In fact, most of these victims have a Dubai connection. Amarjit, the only son of septuagenarians, Jagga Singh and Gurbachan Kaur, was also working in Dubai before he came back and is said to have died of the disease. His nine-year-old daughter, Sharanjit Kaur, too has passed away because of the infection that got passed on to her. The deceased wife has long deserted the village with her younger daughter and their condition too is not known in the family. The villagers have pointed out there has been another tragic death in the same family due to the same ailment. Sukhdev, Amarjit’s cousin, too reportedly died of AIDS. Another youth, Ranjit Singh, was a truck driver who died about three years ago. Satnam Singh and his wife Paramjit too have been victims. Sarabjit is said to be the first case in the village, about eight years back. Jarnail Singh’s death has been the second last in the village. Cheerful and jovial, Mr Mohan Lal continues with his follow-up operation even after an AIDS victim succumbs to the disease. Enquiring about the health of the parents, playing with the little children and ensuring comfort with the family in all aspects, the volunteer is a familiar figure for his social activities in the village. “In fact that is the most crucial time to be with them. When they have lost a young blood, I wish they can find their son in me”, he explained. Prof Lakhbir Singh, President of Pehal, said he had appealed to the district health officers to launch a special campaign in the village so as to bring awareness among the villagers. However, no effort had been made in this regard despite repeated reminders, he added. Dr S.P. Sharma, Civil Surgeon, said since he had joined the office recently, he was not aware of the problem. He said he would send his team of doctors to check the prevalence of the disease.
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PAGREXCO for citrus revolution in Punjab An investment of Rs 5.28 crore on 38 acres of land for raising 40 lakh saplings of 28 varieties of citrus fruits. This is how the Punjab Agri Exports Corporation
in tie up with the Tata Energy Research Institute is coming up with what it claims to be the Asia’s largest citrus nursery in two years’ time.
Spread over an area of 38 acres at Jallowal and Lesriwal, about 22 kms from the city on Pathankot Road, the nursery has five green houses, two screen houses and net houses where six exotic varieties of oranges, 17 of malta and five varieties of grape fruit are being raised and undergoing the necessary trials. Before setting up the nursery, Pagrexco had also signed a protocol with Pepsi/Tropicana for processing grade cultivars of citrus in the state and imported 49 types of finished trees, 11 types of rootstocks, 17 types of rootstock seeds and 25 bud woods of citrus from California and Florida. Addressing a press meet organised at the site yesterday, Dr G.S. Kahlon, General Manager, Agri Programme, Pepsi Foods, said the nursery would also act as a germplasm bank in which the mother plants would be kept in a disease free, controlled environment. He said TERI would supply issue cultured rootstock plants to strengthen the nursery production. From 2007 onwards, the nursery plans to sell quality, disease free and high yielding varieties of saplings of the plants to the farmers of the state for citrus cultivation, which could prove to be a more profitable preposition as compared to wheat-rice cultivation, Dr Kahlon said. Giving statistics, Dr Kahlon said while wheat-paddy cultivation could fetch farmers Rs 20 thousand per year per acre and vegetable cultivation could get them Rs 30-40 thousand per year per acre, citrus cultivation could bring higher returns to the tune of Rs 50 to 60 thousand per acre per year after the plants start fruiting in the fourth year. He said Pepsi would also buy at least 30 per cent of the produce from the farmers at a pre-determined price. The GM said plant quarantine requirements were completed successfully and demonstration plots were set up at the farms of Punjab Agricultural University, Department of Horticulture and selected progressive farmers. the plants were being raised and tested simultaneously in four centres of the state, including Gangian near Dasuya, Khanaura on Phagwara-Hoshiarpur Road, Attari in Amritsar and Abohar, Dr Kahlon added. He said the tests had also been conducted in Patiala belt but these had failed owing to non-suitability of the soil. Dr Kahlon said Khanaura and Abohar centres would have processing units of 20 tonnes/hour capacity for citrus fruits. He said this was being done to encourage citrus cultivation and to protect them from market fluctuations. He said the centres would have grading, waxing and packing facilities, besides having units for processing non-citrus fruits like apples, musk melon, plums, peach, guavas and tomatoes. |
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Cultural show
Tiny tots from LKG and UKG of Innocent Hearts School, Green Model Town, presented a cultural show in the campus on Saturday. Dr Harmeet Pal Singh, father of the school’s head girl, Japneet Kaur, was the chief guest on the occasion. He was accorded a warm welcome by Ms Shelly Bowri, Principal. The little ones looked cute as they presented classical dance items, a drama based on the Ramayana, Ganpati puja and Punjabi folk dance. Annual function Ambika Modern School, Kapurthala Road, organised its annual function ‘Aprajita’ on Saturday. The function was presided over by Ms Sarojini Gautam Sharda, Deputy Director, Local Government, Punjab. Ms Sharda distributed prizes to the students who had excelled in academics, sports and cultural activities. The cultural programme was based on women, their social conditions, falling sex ratio and their empowerment. Three plays were staged, one each in English, Hindi and Punjabi, during which the students presented their dramatic skills. The pre-primary children dramatised the story of ‘Cindrella.’ Annual fete Tagore Day Boarding Senior Secondary Public School organised its annual fete on Sunday. Stalls of eatables and games were displayed and students had lot of fun. Parents of the wards were also invited for the show and raffle draws were taken out in the evening. Dr Pameela Goyal, Director, Forensic Laboratory, Chandigarh, was the chief guest. Ms Promila Seth, Principal, was also present. Theme show Students of Class II from Apeejay School, Model Town, organised a cultural show ‘Rajasthan — The land of Palaces, Princes and Timeless Tradition.’ The tiny tots began the show by welcoming everyone with a melodious song with puppets. The rich and diverse culture of Rajasthan was presented through songs, dance and drama. The problem of child marriage which was prevalent in Rajasthan was highlighted through a play in Hindi. Prithvi Raj and Samyogita’s love story was enacted by the young artists. The hallmark of the event was Manjira dance. Ms Aneela Kinder, headmistress, and Ms Roma Midha, coordinator, were present on the occasion. Maths mela A three-day mathematics mela organised at Eklavya School concluded last Friday. The school was decorated with charts and models based on shapes, numbers, fractions and money. The Montessori material, brown stairs, pink tower, cylindrical blocks and abacus, were displayed. The UKG children enacted a poem “Five Little Ducks.” The children also enjoyed playing Ludo, and Snakes and Ladders. Ms Seema Handa, Director, was present on the occasion. Workshop A four-day UGC-sponsored workshop on Hand Rehabilitation organised by the Department of Physiotherapy, Lyallpur Khalsa College, concluded on Tuesday. The chief guest on the valedictory function was Dr C.S. Pruthi, cardiac surgeon. He lauded the efforts of the college in spreading awareness on the latest techniques in physiotherapy. He said that after hand injury or surgery, physiotherapy played a significant role. Dr A.G.K. senior lecturer, Department of Physiotherapy, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Dr Satish Kapoor, Principal of the college, and Dr Raju Sharma, head of the department, also attended the function.
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