Regional kisan mela held
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, March 5
More than 5,000 farmers and farm women visited the zonal research station for kandi area at Ballowal Saunkhri to participate in a one-day kisan mela organised by Punjab Agricultural University today.

While inaugurating the mela, Dr K.S. Aulakh, Vice-Chancellor, PAU, said Punjab was producing record production of wheat and rice and contributing more than 50 per cent to the national pool. With the changing needs, the farmers should practice mixed farming comprising of dairy, poultry, fruit crops and other field crops like gram and pulses, he added. He further said that the climate of kandi area was different from the rest of Punjab and the farmers should cultivate only those crops which are more suitable for the area.

Dr Aulakh said under the WTO regime, economic as well as quality parameters have assumed greater significance and the farmers should improve quality while bringing down their cost of cultivation.

Addressing the farmers, Dr Jaspinder Singh Kolar, Director of Extension Education, PAU, said fruit crops like ber, guava, amla and field crops like gram, mustard and kharif maize can be successfully grown in kandi area. Dr Kolar called upon the farmers to adopt modern technology developed by the university to increase their output. He said that farmers could visit the university for getting training in poultry, dairy farming and other agro-allied occupations.

Dr G.S. Nanda, Director of Research, PAU, advised the farmers only recommended varieties of different crops as the un-recommended ones were prone to attack by various pests, thus damaging the crops.

Earlier, Dr Aulakh along with other senior scientists of the university and progressive farmers took a round of the various field demonstrations and farm exhibition. Farmers showed keen interest in a water pond built to harvest rain-water which could be used to irrigate the crops during dry season. Various departments of the university had put up their stalls to educate the farmers.

According to Dr S.S. Grewal, Director, Kandi Station, 2,000 packets of various varieties of paddy, basmati, maize, arhar, moong, soyabean, maize and okra were sold to the farmers during the mela. Besides, 1,000 vegetable seed kits and farm literature was also purchased by the farmers. 

Farewell function of MTS College
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, March 5
Final year students of BA, B.Com, BCA, MA and PGDCA from Master Tara Singh Memorial College for Women were given a warm farewell at a function held here today.

On the occasion, several music, dance and skits were presented by the students. Parminder and group from BA classes danced on the song ‘Koi kahe kahta rahe’. Amita and group from PGDCA classes presented a humorous skit ‘Pyjama’. Vaishali and her team presented a skit titled ‘Guddian de peche’. ‘Ghori’ was sung by the students of BA classes.

Final year students dressed in suits, sarees and lehngas also participated in a modelling session. Hardeep Kaur of MA II, while representing all the students of outgoing batches, recited a poem titled ‘Eh college de din yaad bade aonge’. The final year students presented gifts to their teachers and the principal, Ms Madanjit Kaur Sahota. Ms Sahota told the outgoing students to retain the cultural and moral values imbibed from the college. She wished them good luck for their examination and career.