Aiding
the disabled to stand on their own
BRAVING chilly winds and
intermittent rain, polio-affected children in large
numbers, accompanied by their parents and well-wishers
started assembling at Roshni Centre in Rajpura on January
27 to participate in their annual prize distribution
programme the following day. A spirit of enthusiasm and
joy permeated the atmosphere as residents of Gulab Nagar
welcomed their 150 guests providing them with food and
accommodation.
The next day, the
programme started with a prayer by disabled children from
Ropar. The cultural programme presented by the students
of St Stephen's School (Bhangra) Mukat Public School,
Rajpura (Gidda), Lady Fatima Convent School, Patiala and
Holy Angels' School, Rajpura (Patriotic songs as a mark
of their solidarity with the disabled was well
appreciated.
Mr R.L. Kalsia, Director
of Social Security and Development of Women and Children,
Punjab, who was the chief guest, praising Roshni for
serving the disabled, said every religion taught about
service to the downtrodden and people were expected to
adopt it.
Father Emmanuel Y. Diwan,
Director of St Francis' Convent School, Tarn Taran,
explained how Roshni, being very true to its name, has
spread the light of awareness among the general public,
especially school children, to care for their less
fortunate brothers and sisters of society.
He explained how the
services of Roshni in different fields like polio camps
had enabled the disabled to stand on their own feet so as
to lead a life with dignity and to march towards a better
tomorrow.
Father K.J. Thomas,
president of Roshni, said all human beings, who were
created in the image and likeness of God, had the spark
of divinity in them and it was up to each one to reflect
that divine spark through his/her actions by treading the
path of service to the poor and the suffering in whom it
(God's image) shone brightly.
Mr Kalsia distributed
among the 70 children, who had assembled there from
different parts of Punjab, Haryana and UP, prizes and
schools bags containing items of daily use.
Sapna, a standard VI
disabled girl of St Antony's Convent School, Jalandhar,
was presented with the Col Vohra Memorial Award (see
photo) for having secured a distinction (71 p.c.) in
standard V Punjab Board exam. Roshan Tara under the care
of Guru Kripa Society, Ropar, and Master Ashok of Roshni
Centre, Rajpura, were also chosen for special awards for
their meritorious performance in their studies. Shields
and certificates were also presented to those
institutions and students great service to the cause of
the disabled as a mark of encouragement.
To commemorate the great
missionary Graham Staines, who spent 34 years in serving
lepers and finally offered the supreme sacrifice, 10
children belonging to leper colonies in Punjab and
Haryana were chosen for a comprehensive rehabilitation
programme.
National
award for Kangra club
Friends, Sports and Social
Welfare Club, a leading voluntary organisation of
Himachal Pradesh, has brought laurels to Rey, a small
village in Jawali subdivision of Kangra district by
winning a national award.
The club attained national
recognition when the Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee
honoured the club with the national award while presiding
over the national youth week celebration on January 12 at
Lucknow.
The club has set an
example of promoting talent and shown the path of social
welfare in the rural areas. The club has not only
received the state police award for doing commendable
task in eliminating illegal activities in the rural areas
but also adjudged as the best youth club in the state in
1995 and 1997.
The Friends Club has
become a challenge to social evils and illegal activities
in the area but on the other hand it is a ray of hope for
the, indigent, destitute and hapless persons.
Under the banner, youth
have rendered succour to the poor and handicapped persons
and contributed to women's welfare programmes, the
literacy campaign, environment preservation and health
service.
Notwithstanding, the
meagre financial resources, the club has launched a
number of social welfare programmes. It has also launched
a drive against bootlegging and illicit mining in the
foothills of Kangra district. Despite many hurdles the
youth have succeeded in wiping out bootlegging from the
surrounding villages. They have also worked for
afforestation and chlorination of water resources. The
club has also organised various free health check up and
blood donation camps in the rural areas.
The club has its own
building, Friends Campus, from where the club's
activities and administration are run.
With the assistance of the
Himachal Pradesh Women Advisory Board, the club launched
a computer training course for girls on the campus, a few
months ago. Thirty girls are given free training in
handling computers.
The club also organises a
week-long sports and cultural meet every year on the
occasion of Swami Vivekananda's jayanti. This year the
meet was conducted from January 15 to 21 in a big way
with the objective of strengthening national integration
and exchanging the customs of different states in which
cultural troupes from five states participated.
HAU
don honoured
Prof Randhir Singh,
Coordinator (Research) CCS Haryana Agricultural
University, and former Dean of the College of Basic
Sciences and Humanities, has been conferred the
Recognition Award of the National Academy of Agricultural
Sciences for his outstanding contribution to plant
improvement. The award consists of a medal and a cheque
of Rs 50,000. It would be presented to him during the
fourth agricultural science congress, being held from
February 21 to 24 at Jaipur.
Prof Randhir Singh, an
internationally known plant biochemist and
biotechnologist, is a decorated scientist of the
Chaudhary Charan Singh Agricultural University, Hisar,
and had earlier been honoured by Indian Council of
Agricultural Research with two of its most prestigious
awards — Hari Om Ashram Trust Award and Rafi Ahmed
Kidwai Memorial Award — for his pioneering work in
photosynthetic carbon metabolism of crop plants.
Besides, the Hisar don has
the unique distinction of being an elected fellow of
National Academy of Sciences, Indian Academy of Sciences,
National Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Indian
National Science Academy. His pioneering work in plant
biochemistry and molecular biology has helped in
understanding the mechanism of yield buildup in various
crop plants, which would have a direct bearing on
increasing agricultural productivity.
Dr Randhir Singh has
published over 250 research papers in journals of
international repute and has contributed about two dozen
chapters in various books published from India and
abroad. He has successfully handled a number of projects
funded by the US Department of Agriculture, Rockefeller
Foundation, and the Indian Council of Agricultural
Research and in the process has created a strong base of
sophisticated instrumentation in this region.
His selection for the
National Academy of Agricultural Sciences is a rare
honour to this brilliant scientist and to the institution
and state of Haryana, where he has been working for the
past three decades.
Contributed by
TNS, Rajiv Mahajan and D.S. Nandwal
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