Bathinda, October 19
A one-day training camp on 'Plant-protection management of kinnow' was organised by the department of horticulture, at the Forest Department premises here recently.

Twenty kinnow growers from the region took part in the camp. A team consisting of Jagjit Singh, department of horticulture, Abohar, Parduman Singh, department of entomology, Fazilka, Bachittar Singh, professor in horticulture (extension) from PAU, Ludhiana, addressed the farmers.

Jagjit Singh, in his introductory remarks, spoke about the problem of citrus psylla and footroot in kinnow.

He said although kinnow growers knew the control measures, yet they were unable to control these problems because they missed the critical stages of treatment.

He said farmers sprayed chemicals too late to control psylla. He said insecticides were not very effective in the adult stage of psylla. Moreover, it already causes damage by that time.

He cautioned kinnow growers to visit their fields regularly at the time of new growth and observe the population build up and act at the correct stage.

He also commented upon the control of footrot and fruitdrop, two other serious problems of kinnow cultivation.

Parduman Singh, department of entomology, agriculture department, Fazilka, stressed upon the need for regulated or minimum use of synthetic pyrethroids to avoid fly complex.

He discussed special problems like excessive bearing in some orchards leading to decline, root damage due to deep tillage, package for disease-free nursery production of kinnow and insect problems typical to the region.

He also spoke about the fruit-drop and its causes (pathological, physiological and nutritional) and suggested control measures.

Bachittar Singh elaborated on the control measures for leaf minor in nursery, citrus psylla, whitefly complex and other pests affecting the kinnow crop.

He also answered the questions of fruit growers on mite and thrip infestation and attack of fruit-sucking moth and white/black fly.

He discussed the effect of diseases on kinnow production. He explained to farmers ways to distinguish between phyophthora gummosis (footrot) and diplodia attack.

Kinnow grower discussed the two diseases and shared their views with experts. Bachittar Singh also explained the symptoms and control of anthracnose, stem-end rot and scab disease in kinnow production.

Kinnow growers appreciated the approach of the scientists in visiting them in small groups to educate them on production problems.

Abohar, October 19
At a party workers’ meeting held here today, local legislator Sunil Jakhar observed that the Congress lost last five Lok Sabha elections from Ferozepur constituency due to the internal fighting that prevailed among the aspirants for the party ticket.

The All India Congress Committee (AICC) observer and vice-president of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee, Nitin Rao, was present on the occasion.

Jakhar said that he, too, unsuccessfully contested from the constituency in 1996 and the reasons were the same.

However, he won later in Vidhan Sabha elections twice, as the workers stood
united behind him.

The circumstances which led to the party’s defeat during the five Lok Sabha elections still prevailed, he regretted.

Jakhar said that people were by and large annoyed with the performance of the SAD-BJP alliance government in Punjab.

He felt that the voters would definitely like to vote out the alliance candidates provided joint efforts were made by Captain Amarinder Singh, Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and Mohinder Singh Kaypee to sort out petty differences among the aspirants for party tickets.

However, Rajinder Rinwa, former chairman of Zila Parishad and brother of former Fazilka MLA Mohinder Rinwa, assured Rao that workers would stand by the party candidate this time.

Rao, who had won the Vidhan Sabha elections thrice from Nagpur constituency, said towering political personalities like Balram Jakhar and Gurdial Singh Dhillon had won as Congress candidates from Ferozepur constituency with huge margins but the party lost the five elections later.

He added that the feelings of the party workers would be conveyed to AICC chief Sonia Gandhi.

Rao was of the view that with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh contesting Lok
Sabha elections from Amritsar constituency, the Congress would make a clean
sweep in Punjab.

PPCC vice-president and former minister Sajjan Kumar Jakhar was also present
at the meeting.

Others who spoke at the meeting included B.L. Nagpal and Balbir Singh Danewalia, presidents of the city and rural Congress committees, respectively, Manohar Lal Nagpal, former president of the municipal council, and Brahm Parkash Bhusari, president of the Yuva Beopar Mandal.

Abohar, October 19
With positive signals from the AICC headquarters, some of the Congress ticket aspirants launched their election campaign on Sunday in rural areas.

As per the information available, with the political circles in the District Sriganganagar Congress Committee, president Prithipal Singh Randhawa may be the most prospective Congress candidate from Karanpur, Daulat Ram Nayak from Raisinghnagar, Kuldeep Indora from Anoopgarh, Jagdish Sharma from Sadulshehar and Gangjal Meel from Suratgarh.

Meel, a close relative of the former Punjab BJP chief Brij Lal Rinwa, had recently joined Congress bidding adieu to the saffron party, blaming it for discrimination against the Jat community. 

In Hanumangarh, the sitting legislator Vinod Kumar Chaudhary has already shot
off his campaign.

It is now learnt that Vinod Gothwal and Sanjiv Beniwal have also received positive signals for the congress ticket from Peelibanga and Bhadra constituencies.

The election campaign in Hanumangarh was launched from the side of BJP by Ram Partap who had unsuccessfully contested against Vinod Kumar last time by claiming defections from the Congress and Indian National Lok Dal.

The INLD high command sent Padam Jain, district president, to Hanumangarh from Sirsa to hold discussions with the office-bearers to check further defections.

Later, during meetings addressed by Vinod Kumar in some villages, BJP workers announced defection to the Congress Prominent among the members of Brar family.

It appeared almost certain that Ram Partap and Vinod Kumar would lock horns again.

Fazilka, October 19
Religious preachers of all shades in India should come forward and exhort the priests to make it a pre-condition for solemnising marriages that the couple would not indulge in female foeticide.

This was stated by Arun Kumar Pranveer, a gynaecologist with the Rockland Hospital, New Delhi.

He was the key speaker at a seminar on female feoticide organised by the Social Welfare Society here.

Arun said that according to an estimate, 70,000 female foeticides were committed in India every year.

He called upon society leaders to take effective measures, like excommunicating, to contain the social evil effectively.

Anita Arora, principal of Jyoti B.Ed College, while addressing the seminar said it was high time society fought the evil, which had already acquired serious dimensions.

The society’s president Raj Kishore Kalra said the skewed sex-ratio would lead to rise in crimes against women.

He felt that all those involved in female foeticide should be booked for murder.

On the occasion, social worker and educationist Krishana Sharma and Renuka recited poems on the social evil.

Renu Dhuria, Navdeep Jasuja, Simmi Jasuja, Ram Krishan Gupta, Gurmeet Singh, K.K. Grover, Shashi Kant and Ravinder Luthra in their address called upon the society to wage a war against female foeticide.

Barnala, October 19
The Booksellers Association, Barnala, has demanded from the Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) that a government depot should be set up in the district.

President of the association Satish Sindhwani said that a delegation of the association met PSEB chairman Dalbeer Singh at his office and apprised him of the problems being faced by the booksellers in the absence of a government depot at the district headquarter.

He added that there were 100 booksellers in the district and they had to go to Sangrur to obtain a copy of the result gazette for classes X and XII.

They had to visit the place again if examination forms were to be submitted, the president of the association said.

Sindhwani rued that they had to make repeated rounds at Sangrur if the books went out of stock.

Dalbeer is stated to have replied that the board would establish a government depot here provided the district administration allotted land for the depot on lease.

Barnala, October 19
The Punjab Chandigarh Pattarkar Parishad has strongly criticised the burning of some copies of a leading Hindi daily from Chandigarh.

Jagsir Sandhu, district president of the CPP, said the burning of the newspapers was a shameful act.

Every one had a right to express his views. This action is clearly an attack on the freedom of the press, he said.

The Hindi daily had carried the news regarding the construction of an overbridge on SD College railway crossing.

Those protesting the overbridge burnt the copies of the newspapers. Sandhu demanded that the administration nab the accused.

Bathinda, October 19
The state government employees expecting implementation of the Pay Commission report by Diwali need to wait for the festival gift by another couple of months.

Finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal has said it would most probably be implemented by January, adding that the employees should not worry for they would get the arrears for the period from January 2006.

The minister was talking to TNS on the sidelines of the inauguraal function of a private institute here today.

Sounding optimistic about the financial position of the state, the finance minister said, "I am quite happy with the financial position of the state, which is improving and is better than the national level."

There was buoyancy in the collection of VAT (value added tax), which was up by 40 per cent from the previous year.

Similarly, stamps and registration fees saw a rise of 25 per cent this year, he added.

The minister further said the collection of taxes on new vehicles, excise (liquor) and lotteries were also shooting upward.

"The department has been able to bring down the revenue deficit by 25 per cent. Fiscal deficit of the state is also in adherence with the provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act, 2003," he said.

Manpreet said the state was treading the development path in the areas of power, roads, canals, university, airport and alike.

"Fundamentals are strong and I am hopeful that if things go on like this for another three to four years, the state's finances would present a better picture," he added.

However, when he was asked about the subsidies, he requested that the issue be put aside for now as it has already been discussed a lot and was 'weather-beaten'.

Talking about the olive green uniform he aspires to don, Manpreet said he was joining the Territorial Army (TA) for two reasons.

First, he wanted to inspire, motivate and sensitise the Punjabi boys to come forward for the service of the nation, just as they used to be identified for their craze for the defence services a few years back.

Secondly, he aims at sending across a message to the rich who refrain from sending their sons to the border.

Manpreet said that during his visit to the Indian Military Academy (IMA) at Dehradun recently, he was moved to know that there were just five to six boys from Punjab undergoing training there.

"Most importantly, none of the cadets had a politician as a parent. I want to set an example," he said.

Since he is from an affluent background, Manpreet hopes that his decision may help in giving a U-turn to people's thinking which is now inclined towards the more paying jobs in the private sector. "My joining would be a symbolic step," he said.

When asked if he would be contesting the parliamentary elections from Bathinda constituency, Manpreet said, "I really don't have any plans in this regard yet."

Bathinda, October 19
Sandeep Singh and Ajay KumarYadav of the Army School, Bathinda Military Station, brought laurels to the city by winning the first and third positions, respectively, in .22 rifle firing events (25 metres) of the Thal Sainik camp held in New Delhi.

The national-level NCC camp was held from September 22 to October 3. The students represented the Group HQ, NCC Battalion, Patiala.

Meanwhile, the school secured the overall trophy at the annual training camp held at Rampura Phul from September 26 to October 5.

A total of 13 schools under 20 Punjab Battalion, NCC, Bathinda, took part in camp.

In the boys category, cadets Satyam Satsangi and Lovepreet Singh won the drill and song events while J. Stephen secured the second position in the firing event.

In the girls category, Vandana Siwach and Sanjana Chauhan picked up the top
slots in firing and cross-country while Anshul Mishra won the second position in
the drill event.

Abohar, October 19
“Service at your doorstep” has currently been quite a popular slogan for the commercial product promoters.

However, Gurtej Singh Ghurijana, the SAD (B) legislator representing the Balluana Assembly segment, has adopted it for distributing cheques under the pension and shagun schemes of the state government.

Instead of organising expensive functions, Ghuriana prefers to visit the beneficiaries to hand over the cheques to them.

He visited 35 houses and huts of the real beneficiaries in Dhaani Bashesharnath, Kular, Bahadarkhera, Dharangwala, Kandhwala Amarkot, Chanankhera, Kala Tibba, Rajpura, Bahawalbassi, Himmatpura, Pattisadiq, Burjmuhar, Dhaani Des Raj and Ruhrianwali villages on Saturday.

He regretted he could not attend marriage of some girls due to preoccupations.

The legislator said the Congress had been making a hue and cry over these schemes and dropped them during the last days of power.

But Parkash Singh Badal not only restored it after taking over as Chief Minister but also enhanced the amount keeping in view the increasing expanses on marriages.

By visiting the houses of the real beneficiaries, he succeeded in reviving personal contact with the electorate besides ensuring transparency and accuracy in utilisation of the cheques, he added.

Abohar, October 19
DAV College here will host one-day state-level seminar on “Exploring Historical Perspective on Pluralistic Society and Polity in Punjab” besides organising an exhibition “Aryavratiya Continuities” on October 25.

Principal B.B. Sharma informed today that revenue minister Ajit Singh Kohar will be the chief guest. D.S. Dhillon, chairman of the Punjab School Education Board will deliver the keynote address.

Joginder Singh, head of Namdhari chair in GND university, will be guest of honour.

The organisers of the seminar, being sponsored by the Indian Council of Social Sciences Research, said they want to bring the scholars on Punjab studies from various disciplines like social sciences, ethnography and literature to do justice to it.

The seminar will cover investigating early Punjab in societal and political dimensions besides Sufi mysticism and Bhakti waves, establishment of Khalsa and its influence on north-west region, Sood said.

Abohar, October 19
The girls wing in the NCC has been formed in DAV College and 2nd Independent Punjab NCC Company.

As the students in the science faculty remain overburdened with heavy volume
of books, besides spending hours in the laboratories, the girls desired to join NCC
for many years.

B.B. Sharma, who took over as the next principal of the institution, being from the same faculty, emphasised on creating a girls wing.

Sharma also announced free of cost education for whosoever brings colour to the institution in NCC, academic, sports and cultural activities.

Ten more girls have joined the NCC. The B certificate holders were amazed over using weapons for the first time besides enjoying horse riding.

Captain Iqbal Singh Godara, Captain Sarabjit Singh and Lt PC Padhey informed that Pankaj Kumar and Ranjit Singh had recently attended the Thal Sena training camp and won medals in the tug of war as well.