Aulakh for pvt sector investment in infrastructure
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 31
In a message for the coming year, Dr Kirpal Singh Aulakh, Vice-Chancellor, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), has called upon the organisations in public cooperative and private sectors to make heavy investment for creating infrastructure for marketing, transportation, bulk handling, storage and processing of agro products like vegetables, fruits, milk products, meat etc.

Dr Aulakh warned that in the absence of such infrastructure our farmers would not be able to compete in the international market which had become open as a result of the implementation of the WTO. In the current scenario of an open economy the export policies had to be liberalised and arrangements for direct air lifting of commodities like vegetables, fruits and milk products would also have to be made.

In the absence of these facilities the efforts to divert the area under cultivation, from wheat-paddy rotation to other crops, were not giving desired results. Dr Aulakh also disclosed that the PAU had started research on potatoes which covered 50,000 acres in the state. Earlier the entire responsibility for potato research in the state was with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

Dr Aulakh advised the farmers to gradually shift from high-volume low value crops to low-volume high value crops. Judicious use of chemicals and fertilisers also needed top most priority in order to minimise the cost of production and also to improve the quality of farm produce which was free from toxic residues. The present day agriculture required precision. Therefore, the farmers should perform the farm operations with their own hands instead of depending on hired labourers. Even a small mistake regarding the application of costly inputs could prove disastrous.

Dairy farming had also a great scope in the state as our farmers were producing the cheapest milk in the world. However, improvement in the quality of milk by maintaining bacterial count within permissible limits needed to be given urgent attention. For this purpose milk chilling and storage plants would have to be set up in the rural areas. In order to promote agro forestry the wood hardening technologies like plywood making from poplar should be adopted on a large scale.

Over investment in farm machinery was another area of serious concern. Instead of purchasing their own tractors and heavy machinery, the small farmers should depend on hired machinery and for this purpose liberal facilities should be given to unemployed rural youth for setting up hiring centers.

The social problems like drug addiction and extravagant expenditure on social ceremonies like marriages also needed the urgent attention of the government administrators, educationists and social organisations. Mass awareness should be created against these evils, the Vice Chancellor, maintained.

2001 — A year of witch hunting in PAU
Kanchan Vasdev
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 31
It was an year of various controversies, agitations, scandals, financial crunch and numerous drives launched by the new Vice Chancellor in Punjab Agricultural University (PAU). During the year PAU saw the termination of two teachers raising much stink, various scandals, including the hostel renovation, resurfacing of the infamous land scandal. PAU had to face embarrassment also as for the first time in the history of the university, it had to re-conduct CET examination after allegations of irregularities.

During the start of the year 2001 PAU saw the appointment of a new Vice Chancellor who was eclipsed by various controversies amidst the allegations that he was appointed as the rules were given a go-by. The appointment was followed by a writ petition in the court filed by a former professor of PAU challenging the VC’s appointment.

The VC after, taking over, launched many drives, including austerity measures, drive enforcing the punctuality and regularity among the staff and many more. Despite criticism from various quarters the austerity drive, under which the surplus ACs and heaters were removed, was a success and the punctuality was enforced to some extent.

In the first half of the year many strikes were reported from PAU by the students of College of Agriculture in favour of their demands to appoint agriculture teachers in the schools. The students had resorted to boycotting of classes, locking up various departments for many days but their demands were not met with by the Punjab government despite various assurances by different ministers. The demands stand as yet.

The university was yet to recover from these strikes that allegations of irregularities in the conduct of CET rocked PAU. The situation went out of control. The authorities had to cancel the examination and reconduct it besides facing a loss of image.

The authorities then terminated the services of Mrs Dhaliwal, an assistant professor in PAU, amidst allegations that the VC had to settle a score with her husband who is working as a professor in the Department of Bio Chemistry. The allegations reverberated in the corridors of PAU and then she went ahead and filed a writ petition against the PAU decision in the High Court.

The orders of the closure of various gates in PAU also shook the university, with every other day one gate or the other was closed. The former functionaries of PAU also stepped in the controversy in which the VC invited a lot of criticism.

In the last quarter of the year PAU was once again taken by a storm. This time it was an allegation of molestation levelled against a professor of soils by his student. The issue raised a lot of stink as fissures started appearing among the faculty members on the issue. While a group was allegedly trying to save the accused professor the other group was silently supporting the girl. Later these were the students who took up her side and launched a massive agitation which forced the authorities to suspend the teacher. The case is now with the police.

Two PAU professors were awarded with the Rafi Ahmed Kidwai award for their outstanding works in their fields. Dr G.S. Nanda, the Director, Research, and Dr P.P. Gupta, former ADR(veterinary) were given the awards.

The year also witnessed various scandals involving the hostel renovation in which various employees were issued chargesheets. The decade-long infamous land scandal in Kitchlu nagar involving a PAU land also resurfaced. The PAU Board of Management had recommended the CBI probe into the matter which was turned down by the SAD-BJP government.

Later, it was the turn of another professor, Dr Amarjit Singh Grewal, whose services were terminated by the authorities on the plea that the scheme under which he was invited by the government from Australia to work in PAU had expired. The allegations of “witch hunting” resurfaced on campus. 

PAU union calls scientists to be ready for WTO challenge
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 31
While congratulating the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) employees on the New Year the PAU Employees Union has called upon the intellectuals, scientists and politicians to build a better country ready meet the challenges posed by WTO, unemployment, commercialisation of education and health.

Mr Amritpal, general secretary of the union, said that with the sale of profit-earning public sector units at the throwaway prices, disinvestment policy and process of abolishing subsidies under the directions of World Trade Organisation, there would be a qualitatively new era of unprecedented unemployment, commercialisation of educational, health and other basic services, ruining of peasantry and cut on the benefits earned by employees.

President D P Maur and general secretary Amrit Pal wished prosperity, happiness and health for the PAU employees on the eve of 2002.