Onion sheds tears for common man
Varinder Singh
Tribune News Service

Onion has once again started bringing tears to the eyes of the common man, thanks to its price skyrocketing with each passing day and the failure of the government to contain the worst-ever price-hike monster.

Not only that just onion has been upsetting budget of the housewives, but other commonly-used vegetables have got bounced out of their reach for an unusually prolonged wet spell and incessant rain in the North.

On the fruit front, though apple price has doubled than the one prevailing in the corresponding period of last year, there has hardly been any hike in the price of other commonly-used fruits.

Apple has virtually turned bitter due to the shortage of the crop on account of a dry spell in Himachal Pradesh.

Imagine the hike in the price of onion. It has just been enormous or roughly about 100 per cent during the past fortnight alone. If a kilogram of onion was available between Rs 8 and Rs 10 about 15 days back, the same can be purchased now between Rs 18 and Rs 20 in the retail market. The price of five kg of the commodity has jumped from Rs 40-50 to Rs 80 during this period.

Interestingly, rehriwalas are even selling the onions with a price tag of Rs 25 to Rs 28 in certain areas of the city. They are also charging enhanced price for other vegetables from gullible consumers.

Surinder, a vendor in the apni mandi, said the price hike had been affected by the shortage of the vegetable in the market as it was in short supply from Nashik.

“There is a shortage since crop was damaged by excessive rains this time,” was the reason given by Surinder.

Sources in the trade, however, did not rule out of hoarding being the main culprit. They also apprehended that prices could jump even further in the absence of effective preventive steps on the part of the government.

Puniyatam, a fruit and vegetable wholesaler, however, blamed the government decision to continue with export of onions to Arab countries for price hike.

“There is a shortage in the domestic market for varied reasons. Even as India has stopped export of onions to Pakistan, but it is still continuing in case of other Arab countries. Halting of ongoing export can bring down the price of the commodity,” said Puniyatam.

Anyway, the hike has dampened the sprits of housewives.

“I had been taking two kilograms of onions home every week. But, this time I am taking just one kilogram as I cannot afford to pay the doubled price and that too just within a short span of two weeks,” said Amrit Kaur, a resident, who has come to purchase some vegetables in the apni mandi.

Cucumber also went the onion way as its price jumped from Rs 12 a kg to Rs 25 within past two weeks. There was, however, no hike in the price of tomato as it could still be purchased for Rs 12 a kg.

The potato price also increased from Rs 5 to Rs 8 a kg during this span of time.

The prices of cauliflower and cabbage touched the sky. If a kg of cauliflower was priced between Re 1 and Rs 2 two weeks ago, the same could be purchased for Rs 8 now. Cabbage jumped from Rs 4 a kg to Rs 8 a kg. Ladyfinger also jumped from Rs 15-20 to Rs 30 a kg during this period.

It has been comparatively a smooth sail for consumers in case of most of commonly-used fruits, except apple, the price of which has jumped to Rs 50 and Rs 60 a kg.

Interestingly, during the corresponding period of last year, apple remained priced in comfortable zone of Rs 25 to 30 a kg. Oranges were still available at a marginally increased price of Rs 450 (box of 141 pieces) in the wholesale and for Rs 35 to Rs 50 a dozen in retail market.

There has been no hike in the price of bananas as good quality of the fruit could be enjoyed for Rs 25 a dozen. Grapes are cheaper this time at Rs 25 to Rs 35 a kg in the main market. The same commodity was priced between Rs 40 and Rs 55 in case of phariwalas.

Young World
Tiny tots capture hearts
Tribune News Service

Tiny tots of the pre-primary wing of Police DAV Public School presented “Joy land: An open day” on Monday. Children dressed up as elephant, horse, camel and joker welcomed the guests.

The world of fun-frolic, magic games and toys was created by students to capture the hearts of toddlers and elders alike.

Nursery students presented land of “ball and balloon” in which they created joker, doll, piggy bank, tortoise and snowman using balloons.

LKG kids depicted a land of puppets presenting stories using hand, finger, string and socks puppets. UKG kids showcased mechanical toys and games created out of discarded objects.

Class I students presented the dream of every girl - a doll land.

Students played school band as the exhibition was opened by Mr R.S. Gill, DGP. He was accompanied by Mr Rajan Gupta, ADGP, and Dr Rashmi Vij, principal of the school.

Ms Sheetal Sharma, Director, DAV College Managing Committee, was the guest of honour.

Havan

A havan was organised for students of board classes in Dayanand Model School, Model Town. The students sang in chorus, “Hum honge kamyab” and “Ishwar tum daya karo”.

Students from junior sections recited poem “Koshish karke dekho”. Sweets, gifts and best wishes cards were given to the students.

Flower arrangement

Students of Class IV to X participated in a flower arrangement competition held at Saffron Public School. The students exhibited their talent by presenting arrangement on interesting themes such as summer beauty, nationalism, peace, harmony, blue heaven and paradise on earth. The judgment was made by the director, Ms Inderjeet Kaur, and the principal, Ms Sandeepa Sood.

A contest on table manners and etiquettes was organised for the students of Class pre-nursery to V.

Students were provided food items and judgment was made on how well they ate these. Their mannerism was also tested by judging their style of interacting with their friends and teachers.

Talent hunt

A talent hunt show was organised at State Public School, Jalandhar Cantonment. The programme began with jyoti prajvalan. The children performed on a variety of events, including dance, drama and music items.

Mr Amarjit Singh, Passport Officer, was the chief guest and Mr Gaggun Bedi, choreographer, was the guest of honour. Mr H.P.S. Sandhu, principal, read the annual report highlighting the cultural sports activities of the students.

Science Olympiad

Over 668 students from Punjab and Himachal took part in the second National Science Olympiad exam hosted by Mayor World School on Sunday. The exam was organised by the Science Olympiad Foundation for students from Class III to XII of English medium schools.

E-learning

Mr Ashwini Sharma, head, Department of Mechanical Engineering, CT Institute of Engineering, Management and Technology, has been selected as freelance consultant by NIIT to work on their e-learning project. He will be working with Mr Samir Verma on the project for developing and designing online as well as on-ground courses in the subject.

Honour

Dr Usha Kapoor, principal, Guru Nanak Dev University College, was honoured with “Eminent citizen of India Award” by the International Institute of Education and Management, New Delhi. The award was presented to her in recognition of her achievements in the field of education and management.

Placement

Five B.Tech students of the DAV Institute of Engineering and Technology have been placed with Infosys in a campus drive with a starting package of Rs 2.7 per annum. Seven B.Tech students of the institute have also secured placement with Perot Systems with a package of Rs 2.4 lakh per annum. The students would join the company next year.

MoU signed

The St Soldier Educational Society, the Canadian Institute of Telecommunications and the CIT College of Business and Technology, Ontario, have signed an MoU for an exchange programme for faculty and students, international placement of students and launching joint short-term educational projects both in India and Canada.

Mr Anil Chopra, chairman of the group, and Mr Bhagat Taggar, President of CIT, have signed the MoU.

Cerebral palsy camp
Tribune News Service

The Department of Physiotherapy, Lyallpur Khalsa College, organised a two-day cerebral palsy check-up camp that concluded on Monday.

More than 100 children suffering from cerebral palsy were evaluated for their complex problems related to movements and postures.

The children not only from Punjab but also from Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi and Rajasthan attended the camp.

Dr A.K. Purohit, head of the Department of Neurosurgery, Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, and Dr E. Rajendra Kumar and Dr Venkat Prasanna told the parents about the treatment remedies to cope with the disease.

Physiotherapists from the host department, Dr Raju Sharma, Dr Shivani, Dr Shikha Kanwar, Dr Pratibha and Dr Tanushree, organised a parent education programme to create awareness among them. A speech therapist also attended to the patients who suffered from speech disorders.