‘Seeing life in the raw gives you moral courage’
Writing has been cathartic for Australia-based Ajit Rahi. And he has used his own experiences to pen poetry, travelogues and novels. Though more of a poet, he has not restricted his writings to one genre. His own life, with its varied experiences, could well be an interesting subject of a potboiler. “I have experienced life in its countless hues. I have seen the seamiest side, too. 

Confusion over village name at Kapurthala War Memorial
History reveals its own stories about the bygone days. And it documents the deeds of those who lived in very different times. The Jhaggar Singh War Memorial at Kapurthala, too, offers a peep into the early part of the last century, when India was still under the British rule.

A view of the war memorial, Kapurthala. The display at the memorial gives the name of Capt Jhaggar Singh’s village incorrectly (top left).  — Photos by Pawan Sharma

Students of Sainik School, Kapurthala, share their ‘band’ experiences
They have come back with memories chock-a-block with the "best" of India. "Our country is so rich culturally that you almost feel as if you are in a different land every time you meet people from other states," gushes Dihem Gangmei, class VII student of Sainik School, Kapurthala. 

In harmony: Students of Sainik School playing brass band on the school premises. 
— Photo by Pawan Sharma

Phagwara fire station in a pathetic condition
Only one fire tender in a city with a population of one million? Hard to believe? But this is true in case of Phagwara. There is just one fire tender at the Phagwara Fire Brigade Station for meeting the emergency requirements. Further still, there are just six firemen!

Saint Soldier Management and Technical Institute focuses on holistic approach
J.S. Malhotra
A holistic approach and an emphasis on total personality development of students are the hallmarks of Saint Soldier Management and Technical Institute. This institute has made a mark for itself in the field of technical education. The institute has been the dream venture of Mr Anil Chopra, Chairman of the Saint Soldier Educational Society.

A view of Saint Soldier Management and Technical Institute, Jalandhar. 
— Photo by S.S. Chopra

From the Schools
The annual sports day of C.J.S. Public School was organised on Tuesday. Students participated in shot put and long jump, while the school authorities organised a teachers' race and a musical chair contest for the faculty members.

• Farewell party

• Prize distribution

• 'Fun with Math'

• Educational trust

From agriculture to floriculture
Doabite farmers find floriculture lucrative, though marketing bottlenecks remain
Varinder Singh
Tribune News Service

Floriculture has finally come of age in Punjab, particularly in Doaba region. Farmers, shunning the traditional crops, are taking it up in a big way. What makes floriculture business rather attractive is that it caters not only to domestic market but also to foreign markets.

That flowers are finding more favour among farmers is evident from the fact that presently over 1500 acres of land in the state is under floriculture. The state saw an average 15-20 per cent growth in the area under floriculture in the year 2004 as compared to the year 2005. The floriculture area in Jalandhar has increased from 25 hectares in 2003 to 40 hectares in 2004.

In fact, no figures need to be put forth. Just visit the countryside and you would find colourful patches of flowers amidst lush green wheat shoots. Bright coloured marigold, chrysanthemum, gladiolus, petunia, pansy, larkspur, flox, barbina and zenia, which have a high demand even in the UK and Holland, are a delightful sight.

Perhaps, the traditional crop scenario has been changed jointly by farmers and the Punjab Horticulture Department. “In Doaba, more people have started growing flowers like marigold, gladiolus and chrysanthemum. Marigold is favoured more for its resistant nature and three-four crop yields in a year. Another factor is that marigold requires less effort. So half of the total area under flowers in Punjab is dominated by marigold. It also requires lesser input costs,” said Dr Daljit Singh, a horticulture expert. Dr Vinod Kumar, another expert, also agreed with him.

Apart from farmers of Jalandhar, those of Ludhiana, Sangrur, Amritsar, Hoshiarpur and Patiala are also going for floriculture. So far, these farmers had been dependent on traditional crops like wheat and paddy.

In Jalandhar, Sangeeta Deol and Ram Lubhaya are the two farmers who grow marigold, gladiolus and chrysanthemum in abundance in their small fields. Ram Lubhaya has been so fascinated with flowers that he had to take 12-13 acres of land in Basti Peer Daad to fulfill his dream of becoming a floriculturist.

In Hoshiarpur, the name of Baba Kashmira Singh, who is also the chairman of a hospital in the city, is synonymous with flowers. He has not only grown flowers on his more than 100 acres of land near Mahilpur, but also set up a rose and marigold oil extraction plant. The extracted oil produced at his farm is being exported to countries like the UK, the USA and France. At his plant, a special variety of wild rose is favoured for oil extraction. Baba Kashmira Singh has also encouraged other small farmers to grow flowers.

“Yes, floriculture is gaining momentum these days. A few years back I had to leave floriculture, as then there was no marketing facility available. Thankfully, now the scene is somewhat better. Market for flowers is also growing. Even at domestic level, hotels and marriage palaces are entering into contracts with flower growers,” said Mr Rajiv Sood, a flower-lover who runs his own nursery and who had bid goodbye to floriculture about four years back.

“Apart from herb-growing, I am planning to take up floriculture to boost my income and satisfy my urge to see colours around me. I am planning to utilise my piece of land on the outskirts of Hoshiarpur,” said Mr Anurag Sood, a Hoshiarpur-based progressive farmer.

According to Dr Daljeet Singh, a horticulture expert and Dr Naresh Gulati, a farm expert, though the initial cost of gladiolus-farming is very high as compared to marigold-farming, the cost goes down gradually within three years. Multiplied gladiolus bulbs can be sold as seeds. A single bulb of gladiolus can be sold for Rs 2 to Rs 3. But initially, you require 60000 to 80000 bulbs for an acre of land and the total cost turns out to be around Rs 2.5 lakh,” said Dr Daljeet Singh and Dr Gulati.

In case of marigold, a farmer can earn a neat profit of Rs 25,000-Rs 40,000, with almost no risk of damage to the crop. Though four marigold crops can be had in a year, yet the maximum yield of 250 quintal per hectare can be had in the September-October cycle from an acre of land. On the part of consumers, gladiolus is favoured, as its shoots can be used in a vase for about 15 days. “Flox and pansy have a very high demand in the UK and even in Holland, which itself is known as the flower basket,” said Mr Gulati.

Marketing, however, is still a problem for common farmers, due to which floriculture is confined to a select few progressive farmers, who create their own path by contacting hotels, marriage palaces and flower vendors or by trying to export their ‘crop’ in case it measures up to the required international standards. “The PAU, Ludhiana, is providing training in floriculture, while full technical support is being provided by the Punjab Horticulture Department to interested farmers,” said Dr Daljit Singh. The government subsidy, however, was withdrawn about three years ago by the Punjab government, which ironically has been trying hard to project that it wants farmers to go in for alternative crops!

‘Seeing life in the raw gives you moral courage’
Minna Zutshi
Tribune News Service

Writing has been cathartic for Australia-based Ajit Rahi. And he has used his own experiences to pen poetry, travelogues and novels. Though more of a poet, he has not restricted his writings to one genre. His own life, with its varied experiences, could well be an interesting subject of a potboiler. “I have experienced life in its countless hues. I have seen the seamiest side, too. I think seeing life in the raw gives you moral courage and strength, and you can hold on to your own,” he says.

Rahi has been some kind of a rebel right from his young days. Perhaps, the word “rebel”, too, rests rather uneasily on him. “The corruption and the dishonesty that I saw around me made me an angry young man. I took refuge in politics. My leftist tryst left me high and dry. Soon, I was sucked into the vortex of the Naxalite Movement. But disillusionment, pain and oppression was my destiny,” he says, recalling the days when he was hounded by authorities.

Poverty, with its grind and toil, seasoned him into a sensitive individual. There was a time when he did not have enough money to pursue his education. Somehow, he was able to manage, thanks to some good Samaritans, whose names find mention in his book Zameen Khaa Gaayi…(Earth swallowed…).

The survival-games, in their blandest, and sometimes, basest forms, often aroused his poetic feelings. “I still remember that sweltering noon. The sun was shining fiercely and a few girls, in tattered clothes and worn-out shoes, were gleaning wheat,” he says, adding that the incident touched him deeply. His feelings found their expression in his poetry book Silaehaar (Wheat Gleaners).

His poetry also drew its sustenance from his experience of leaving behind his family in India, while trying to find a foothold in Australia. “At the time of leaving my little son back here, I felt like the modern-day Siddhartha who steals away at the dead of the night, lest his son should wake up,” he says, while quoting from his book Ajj Daa Gautam (Today’s Gautam).

However, there’s nothing in his writings to suggest that his stay abroad has him languishing for his roots. He feels it’s not difficult to remain rooted to your culture, even if you stay away from your motherland. You have to live your culture, and not make it an item of display or emotional-tug, he says. He’s happy to have kept his culture alive on the foreign shores. “You will never catch me conversing in any language except Punjabi at my home in Australia,” he says.

Yet, there’s something in his native land that disturbs this poet. He says that our culture is losing its relevance, as some culture-shenanigans have taken upon themselves to give it an “overhaul”. “It’s sad to see how our historical and religious places are being given a facelift indiscriminately. There’s nothing inspiring about ‘beautifully’ redone historical places, where each unembellished stone and brick could have told sagas of valour and heroism,” he rues, adding that our country needs to take a cue or two from the Western nations, where even a writer’s unfinished page is preserved right up to the incomplete word.

Having already penned seven poetical anthologies, three novels, apart from non-fiction works and travelogues, he has three books under publication. His yet-to-be-published autobiographical book Aapnay Sanmukh (In My Own Presence) may ruffle quite a few feathers, he signs off.

Confusion over village name at Kapurthala War Memorial
Minna Zutshi
Tribune News Service

History reveals its own stories about the bygone days. And it documents the deeds of those who lived in very different times. The Jhaggar Singh War Memorial at Kapurthala, too, offers a peep into the early part of the last century, when India was still under the British rule.

The foundation stone of the war memorial was laid in the early 1920s "in honour of the officers and men of the Kapurthala state forces who died serving their state and empire during the Great War" (as the plaque reads). A statue of Lieutenant (A/Capt.) Jhaggar Singh, who lost his life in this war (World War 1), was installed there in 1926. Interestingly, for many years, hardly any information was available about this man, who had fought a war that (many would now say) was not his own.

In the year 2002, the Zila Sainik Welfare Board put on display some information about Jhaggar Singh. However, the name of the village to which he belonged was incorrectly mentioned as "Sherpur Dona". In fact, he hailed from Dhaliwal Bet. The error would have gone unnoticed had not the great-grandsons of Jhaggar Singh visited the memorial.

"The past invariably holds some fascination. For our family, the last century has been rather eventful, though in a slightly warped way. My great-grandfather, who was in army, died fighting on alien land during World War 1. His younger brother, Amar Singh, too, died very young. Posted as subedar in the British army, he died while leading a rebellion against the British rule. Every year, people of Dhaliwal Bet commemorate Amar Singh's sacrifice," explains Mr H.S. Dhaliwal, great-grandson of Jhaggar Singh.

He adds, "But it's sad when inaccuracies are glossed over. At least, the name of our village should have been correctly mentioned. To cap it all, since the past one month, my cousin has been trying to get the name of the village rectified. But so far, we have not met with any success."

When contacted, Captain S.P.S. Panesar from the Zila Sainik Welfare Board (that maintains the memorial) said he was willing to rectify the error. "Before 2002, there was almost no information available about Jhaggar Singh. I managed to get a few facts from a descendant of the 'Maharaja' of Kapurthala. If there was some error in the display info, descendants of Jhaggar Singh should have contacted us," said Captain Panesar, adding, "Our aim is to provide correct information as far as possible and we are open to suggestions."

Students of Sainik School, Kapurthala, share their ‘band’ experiences
Minna Zutshi
Tribune News Service

They have come back with memories chock-a-block with the "best" of India. "Our country is so rich culturally that you almost feel as if you are in a different land every time you meet people from other states," gushes Dihem Gangmei, class VII student of Sainik School, Kapurthala. He belongs to Manipur and was a part of the 43-member brass band that performed impressively during the Republic Day celebrations held at Rajpath in Delhi recently.

Many students of Sainik School even made "good friends" during their month-long stay at the camp (in the national capital) that was a prelude to their Republic Day performance. 

During their stay in the camp, some of the students were motivated all-the-more to join armed forces. Sudhir Kumar, class VII student, says that the interaction with the Air Chief Marshal was quite inspiring. R. Ravin, class VIII student, adds that post-camp, his motivation level is at its zenith and he is determined to work hard to achieve his goal of clearing the NDA test.

Phagwara fire station in a pathetic condition
J.S. Gandam

Only one fire tender in a city with a population of one million? Hard to believe? But this is true in case of Phagwara. There is just one fire tender at the Phagwara Fire Brigade Station for meeting the emergency requirements. Further still, there are just six firemen!

In round-the-clock service, two firemen work in each of the total three shifts. In case of leave or day off, the under-staffing gets so alarming that sometimes a good Samaritan from public is asked to help in the office and attend to telephone, it was learnt from reliable sources.

When this correspondent went to the Fire Brigade Station outside the Town Hall, the Superintendent, Mr Lakhwinder Singh, was himself attending the phone calls, and the lone vehicle of the station was out, as it had been requisitioned by administration in view of a protest march in the city.

"Whenever there is any protest march or a rally in the city, the fire tender is at the disposal of the administration. Whenever any VVIP visits the city, the vehicle is again out of the station. God forbid, if any major fire breaks out at this time, there would be no fire tender to meet the emergency," says a city resident.

When there is a big fire, fire tenders from Jalandhar and Kapurthala have to be requisitioned. In case of fire breaking out at more than one places in the area, the local fire brigade finds itself insufficiently equipped to meet the emergencies. Besides, the vehicle is also old. It cannot enter crowded narrow lanes of interior bazaars, especially the Bansawala Bazaar. The fire fighting staff faced an uphill task when fire had broken out in a multi-storeyed building in the narrow alley of the Bansawala Bazaar sometime back. For these alleys, a small fire tender is urgently needed.

Interestingly, the fire station at Phagwara is among the oldest mainline fire stations in Punjab. It was established in 1955-1956. At that time, the population of the city was just about 40,000. For several years, the fire station continued to be the only one up to Chandigarh and fire tenders from the station used to go as far as 100 km beyond Ropar for quelling fires. It served the requirements of hundreds of villages. The fire station still fulfils the demands of Goraya and Phillaur areas, as neither of the twin municipalities have a fire tender. Even now, it is the only fire station till Ludhiana on Phagwara-Ludhiana section.

Earlier, it used to have two fire tenders and about 12 staff members. After one vehicle was declared condemned, no new vehicle was bought. The reduced staff strength was never augmented.

"At least one more fire tender should be purchased by the Nagar Council to meet the needs of the long-spread area. To cope with the understaffing, at least six more firemen should be recruited," said an insider, requesting anonymity. The demand for one more fire tender had been sent formally to the authorities, it was learnt.

The Nagar Council authorities disclosed that the council had already passed a resolution about buying a new fire tender. "Even though resource crunch is a big hurdle, we have decided to purchase one new fire tender," asserted Mr Malkiat Singh Ragbotra, council President. The council authorities added that the council was aware of the problem of understaffing, but its hands were tied due to government's ban on fresh recruitments. The government should exempt fire brigade from this ban, as it was an emergency service, the authorities added.

Saint Soldier Management and Technical Institute focuses on holistic approach
J.S. Malhotra

A holistic approach and an emphasis on total personality development of students are the hallmarks of Saint Soldier Management and Technical Institute. This institute has made a mark for itself in the field of technical education.

The institute has been the dream venture of Mr Anil Chopra, Chairman of the Saint Soldier Educational Society. Mr Chopra entered the field of education by setting up a single-room, single-teacher school in 1958. Gradually, his efforts bore fruit. Today, the society has a group of 32 schools and six postgraduate colleges in different parts of the state.

Keeping in view the changing trends in national and international job arenas, Mr Chopra set up Saint Soldier Management and Technical Institute to produce successful technocrats and managers, who could be instrumental in bringing about transformation of the society, particularly in the countryside.

The institute, affiliated with Punjab Technical University (PTU), is situated on the Jalandhar-Kapurthala Road. It offers various courses, including bachelor in business administration (BBA), bachelor in computer applications (BCA), masters in business administration (MBA) and masters in computers applications (MCA). "We are going to introduce M.Sc. (Bio-Informatics) course under distance education programme from the next academic session, for which the university has allotted us 15 seats in the first phase. The classes for this course would, however, be conducted under the regular mode," Mr Chopra tells us.

The institute is committed to creating a judicious blend of the traditional and the modern, so that students are able to develop a well-rounded personality, claim institute authorities. Seminars, workshops and lectures are organised regularly at the institute. Eminent figures of industrial sector and renowned management experts are invited to share their expert views with the students under the 'Knowledge Reservoir" series.

"Our endeavour is to make the students aware of their culture and also to help them understand problems of the industrial sector. Organising industrial visits for budding mangers and technocrats is a regular feature," Mr Chopra adds.

The institute is known for its "impressive" enrollment of Kashmiri students, most of them hailing from Anantnag. Presently, there are 21 Kashmiri students, who are studying in the institute under an arrangement between the Punjab Government and the Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Government.

Two computer labs, a career counselling centre, audio-visual teaching aids - all are used to facilitate effective learning among the students, institute's authorities maintain. "Keeping abreast of the changing trends, we have started imparting quality training by using LCD, overhead projectors and laptops," the authorities add. The well-catalogued computerised library has over 4000 books. Besides, there are encyclopedias, research journals, magazines and newspapers in the library.

The students of this institute have excelled in the sports arena. Gurdeep Singh, a student of BCA (Ist year), recently bagged a silver medal in 20-km marathon in the PTU Inter-College Sports Championship, while Bikramjeet Singh was declared the fourth best-walker in 20-km walk during the All- India Inter-University Tournament held at Nagarjunaga University in Andhra Pradesh recently.

A career counselling and placement cell has been set up to train final year students to prepare their resumes and improve their communication skills in an effective manner. "The cell primarily coordinates with national and multi-national companies for campus recruitment of bright students. Besides, it maintains a complete record of students and informs them about the available job opportunities," reveals Mr Chopra.

From the Schools
J.S. Malhotra

The annual sports day of C.J.S. Public School was organised on Tuesday. Students participated in shot put and long jump, while the school authorities organised a teachers' race and a musical chair contest for the faculty members.

Amandeep Jeer bagged the first position in shot put (girls), Kritica and Jaspreet Toor got second and third positions, respectively. In shot put (boys, class VII), Avtar won the gold, while Harpreet and Jatin bagged silver and bronze medals. In shot put (boys, class VIII), Rohit bagged the first position, while Gauravdeep stood second.

In the teachers' race competition, Ms Manmeet was the first to touch the finish line, while Ms Harpreet and Ms Parmajeet followed her with the second and the third best timings, respectively. Ms Mithu won the title in the musical chair competition.

Farewell party

The farewell party for class XII students of Apeejay School was held here on school premises. The students of class XI presented a cultural show for their seniors. Divya Vib was declared Miss Apeejay, while Maninder Bhutani was declared Master Apeejay of the year 2004-2005. Ms Ranjna Sood, Principal of the school, in her address, exhorted the students to uphold the motto — "Soaring high is my nature."

Prize distribution

The annual prize distribution function of Mama's Pride — a play way school run by Shree Balajee Educational Society was held at Red Cross Bhavan here on Sunday. The attraction of the function was a fancy dress competition, in which tiny tots dressed in colourful costumes depicted the 'methods' to preserve environment. Three-year-old Khushi Bhandari stole the show by reciting Gayatri Mantra in Sanskrit and English. Arushi sang the National Anthem during the function, which was held on the martyrdom day of Mahatma Gandhi.

'Fun with Math'

Eklavya School conducted a workshop - third of its kind — on the topic "Fun with Math" in the school premises on Saturday. Ms Dimpal Sharma and Ms A. Anita, educators, highlighted various interesting aspects of mathematics. They maintained that mathematics could be made interesting through "activities and teaching aids".

Educational trust

The MGN Educational Trust felicitated Mr Jarnail Singh Pasricha, who is the honorary secretary of the trust, for devoting 25 years of "selfless service" to serve the educational institutions run by the trust during a function held here. Vice-Chairman of the trust, Mr G.S. Narula, while terming Mr Pasricha as an able administrator, said that Mr Pasricha had improved and expanded the MGN Educational Trust with his instinctive managerial skills.