Need to adopt new methods in crop production
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 28
Dr M.S. Tiwana, Dean, College of Agriculture, PAU, today emphasised the need for adopting new and innovative methods for improving crops. Speaking at the opening ceremony of the training programme on “Plant breeding methodology — introspection and retrospection,” organised by the Department of Plant Breeding, Genetics and Biotechnology, here today stressed upon the scientists to work for more challenging situations where plant breeders were facing a lot of difficulties.

He pointed out that farmers of the state had great hopes from plant breeders which should help in solving the sufferings of the farming community and help them getting good returns from their crops.

Dr D.R. Satija, Director, Centre of Advanced Studies, enlightened the participants on the achievements of the department in crop improvement.

The training programme is being attended by 20 participants from various universities and ICAR institutes from 13 states of the country. In the course 45 lectures in theory and 15 practicals will be conducted. The participants will be given hands-on training in various aspects of plant breeding and methodology.

Quake-resistant design course begins
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 21
A two-week course on ‘Structural and geotechnical aspects of earthquake resistant design’ got under way at the Department of Civil Engineering, Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College, here today.

The event has been sponsored by the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and the Indian Society for Technical Education (ISTE), New Delhi. The course was inaugurated by Prof (Dr) M P. Kapoor, former Director, TIET, Patiala. Mr Mahesh Inder Singh Grewal, a former minister and additional secretary, Nankana Sahib Educational Trust, released the study material to be presented during the course.

According to coordinators, Dr Jagdanand Jha and Dr Hardeep Singh Rai, the course would be covered by eminent engineers like Dr D.K. Paul, Dr S.K. Kaushik and Dr Manish Shrikhande from IIT, Roorkee.

A special presentation would also be given by Dr A.S. Arya, Adviser, Disaster Mitigation Division, New Delhi and Mrs Mrinal Mathur from United National Development Programme (UNDP). Earthquake experts from Punjab, like Dr Satish Kumar, Dr S.P. Singh. and Dr I.C. Syal were also expected to give presentation.

Participants from Maharashtra, Karnataka, Jharkhand, UP, Haryana, Himachal, Madhya Pradesh are attending the course.

Dr Harpal Singh, Head of Department, welcomed the gathering while the chief guest, Dr M.P. Kapoor, presented the key note address. A vote of thanks was presented by Dr H.S. Rai. The course will continue upto December 31, Dr Jha added.

IGNOU to develop courses in art, craft
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 21
Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) has taken an initiative in collaboration with the Khadi and Village industries Commission (KVIC) to develop courses in the area of art and craft. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between IGNOU and the KVIC to develop educational programmes in four crafts.

Dr Umesh Chandra Pandey, Regional Director of IGNOU for Punjab and Chandigarh, said presently a number of craftsmen and rural artisans remain deprived of the existing facilities of training and development.

The certificate in art and craft launched by IGNOU will turn out to be an excellent opportunity for rural artisans to earn a certificate in recognition of their knowledge. It will the first such course started by any university in the country, he said.

He said the certificate in craft and design (pottery) launched by the university, will give a big boost to the status of rural artisans and their art.

Dr Pandey said the IGNOU-KVIC’s joint effort in this programme aims at skill development in the area of pottery, metal work, bamboo and stone-carving in the first phase. The training centres, called Village Industries Programme Study Centres (VIPSC), of these art and craft courses throughout the country will be of special nature. The certificate in craft and design (pottery) will be launched in January.

The application form and guidelines for this programme are available free of cost and their photocopies can also be used. The forms can also be downloaded from IGNOU’s website: www.ignou.ac.in.

HEALTH

2004: IN RETROSPECT
Health infrastructure not up to the mark
Kuldip Bhatia

Ludhiana, December 28
The year turned out to be rather uneventful and more of troublesome for the health and medical infrastructure in the city. The very beginning of the year saw a big scare as major breakout of diarrhoea was reported in Hargobind Nagar which, however, was brought under control. But city residents had to undergo yet another traumatic experience when cholera and gastroenteritis attacked a couple of colonies on the outskirts in June and July and claimed seven human lives.

An inquiry ordered by the district administration into the break-out of the epidemic indicted both the Municipal Corporation and the Health Department for lapses.

While the outbreak of disease was attributed to supply of contaminated water by the civic body, the district health administration was censured for lack of preparedness to deal with the situation and their failure to create awareness about preventive measures.

Even though the Health Department claimed to have adopted several new schemes floated by the state and union governments to improve healthcare facilities for the urban and rural population, work was done only on superficial level on health schemes like “Vande Matram” aimed at bringing down maternal mortality rate and the National TB Control Programme.

The health authorities apparently continued to operate on the cosmetic level by holding meetings, conferences and other functions on the prevention and treatment of several diseases without doing much practical work

The Health Department came under criticism for what was to have been a strategic survey of the city population for incidence of tuberculosis. It was alleged that the health workers did not move out of their offices and all data provided by them was made-up and fictitious. Further, not much work was done to check the menace of quackery and carrying of indecent and objectionable advertisements in print and electronic media. The sample-taking of foodstuff was also conducted in such a manner that it failed to have a deterrent effect on adulteration and sale of substandard items.

The Civil Hospital in the city also earned notoriety for providing “VIP treatment” to a prominent industrialist, Mr Sheetal Vij, arrested by the DRI and some other undertrials from time to time.

It was towards the end of the year that Dr Rajinder Kaur took over the reins of the Health Department as Civil Surgeon after the retirement of Dr S.N. Tiwari.

If the Health Department drew flak for its acts of omission and commission, the two premier medical institutions — the Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) and Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) — remained in the news for different reasons.

For several months, the CMCH was involved in a legal and administrative battle over the fee structure of medical courses, minority status and its entrance examination.

The uncertainty over the mode of entrance examination kept the aspirants on tenterhooks, but the institution got a reprieve, albeit on a temporary basis, over the entrance examination and filling of medical and dental college seats.

The DMCH, once again, was in the midst of labour trouble as a section of employees abstained from work in the beginning of this month, thereby bringing its functioning to a halt. It was only due to the firm handling of the situation by the management and the support extended by the district administration and the police that normalcy could be restored in the DMCH. In the process, five employees, including the erstwhile president of the employees union, were dismissed.

The metropolis also emerged as a major centre for providing specialised medical treatment, not only to a large number of NRIs, but also to the patients from the USA, Europe and other countries in Asia and the West Asia.

The CMCH and other private institutions delivered high-tech medicalcare to overseas patients in cardiology, cardiac surgery, urology, nephrology, orthopedics, obstetrics and gynaecology.