Amritsar, September 1
A state-level workshop on geographical indications and enhancing productivity and quality of basmati through integrated crop management was organised by the APEDA/BEDF in association with Markfed.

More than 300 progressive farmers from all over the state participated in the day-long seminar in which senior consultants to Markfed made presentations on the latest technology for successful cultivation of basmati.

Speaking on the occasion Dr P.S. Minhas, Director of Research, Punjab Agricultiral University (PAU), Ludhiana, exhorted the farmers to cultivate the recommended varieties, make judicious use of water and practise integrated use of fertilisers. He also advised them to follow plant protection measures to have more productivity and better quality and cautioned them about the over dose of pesticides which led to environment pollution.

Lauding the role of Markfed for encouraging the farmers to go in for diversification of crops by growing less water-guzzling crops like basmati, Minhas said there was need to save water as the groundwater level was receding every year.

He assured the farmers that they would not face any problem in marketing their produce as it was in great demand not in the country but also in the international market. He encouraged them to follow the latest technologies evolved by the PAU and other agro agencies like Markfed to reduce the cost of production.

A.K. Gupta, Director, BEDF, said that the basmati growing states like Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir were at advantage as geographical indications such as day length, day and night temperatures and soil conditions were favourable for basmati to reap commercial gain.

Earlier, M.B.S. Sandhu, Chief Manager, Markfed, while informing about the initiatives taken by Markfed on contract farming of basmati rice, said the programme which was started in 2006 with taking 16,343 acres with contract farmers had now gone up to 50,000 acres.

He said their target was to get 75,000 acres on contract farming by 2010-11. He said the PUSA 1121 variety had been made successful with the farmers by giving them the popular technologies, thus increasing the income of the farmers.

Sandhu said this programme had helped farmers to produce quality grain and provide assurance of predetermined price and quality parameters and Markfed has played a key role in marketing of the produce.

Amritsar, September 1
The Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) has sought a report from the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar on the amount disbursed as pension among terrorist-affected families.

The commission who had taken a suo motu notice of the on the report “Terrorism victims not paid pension for 5 months” published in The Tribune on May 24 directed the DC to present the report on or before October 12, the next date of hearing.

It is pertinent to mention here that the families of victims of terrorism were facing hardships as the administration had failed to pay them pension for five months, although the Deputy Commissioner’s offices are said to have received the amount for distributing it among them.

The DC in his report submitted to the commission during its hearing on August 27 admitted that the district administration received Rs 2.88 crore from the government for distribution pension among the kin of terrorist victims.

Justice R.S. Mongia, Chairperson of the commission, in its order asked the DC of Amritsar to submit his report if the pension had been disbursed among the terrorist-affected families or not and the detail thereof be submitted to the commission on or before the date fixed.

Dr B.R. Hastir, Chairman, All-India Terrorist Victims Association, said the pensioners in Gurdaspur, Batala and Pathankot were facing the same problem, as they had not received pension for seven or eight months now. He urged the government to look into the matter and release the money as soon as possible.

Amritsar, September 1
The beauty of a bride is not complete without Kalire (vital accessory for an Indian bride to dress up) and its sheen. But the main purpose of the accessory is to save the bride from mishap.

This traditional ornament is now being produced in the new style to help increase the beauty of brides on the marriage day. The tradition of wearing Kaliras by brides during the marriage ceremony is very old.

Earlier, people used to cut coconuts in half and used thread to join them with the parmal variety of rice. Four straight chains were attached or tied with these to make a kalira. People gifted this home-made accessory to their daughters to wish them a happy married life.

It was believed that the number of kalire taken by the bride to her new house showed her love for her parents and other maternal relations. It was also believed that gifting of kalire to a bride would not only bring good luck to the girl but also her kin back home.

However, this tradition of making kalire at home can now almost be called an extinct custom due to the paucity of time. In the newer, fast-paced, state of affairs, women now purchase the kalira with latest design and style from the market. Even in the market, the permal has been replaced by artificial diamonds, beats and golden lace.

Parmajeet Singh, a kalira seller told The Tribune that the product was now available in various designs and shades and the girls preferred to match kaliras with their wedding dress to enhance their beauty.

He said even though relatives gift kaliras to her at the time of the wedding, she she prefers to wear only that set which matches her bridal dress.

He said he had kalire in various designs and styles starting from Rs 500 and goes up to Rs 1,000. However, he added that he could also make a special kalira, made of semi-Australian diamonds, available, which costs about Rs 10,000.

He also informed that half coconuts have now been replaced by plastic balls which help in enhancing the outward beauty of a kalira. 

Amritsar, September 1
Joining hands with the district administration for enhancing green cover in the city, students of Delhi Public School undertook a door-to-door campaign and distributed saplings in the areas of New Amritsar, Partap Nagar, Partap Avenue and Golden Avenue.

They also held an awareness campaign about the species of trees, the best place to plant them and their aftercare besides the effect of these trees on environment. They motivated house owners to plant more trees in their immediate environment and ensure their proper development.

Saplings of amaltas, neem, gulmohar, besides others, were presented to colony dwellers who pledged to students that they would plant trees and look after them for life.

Sangeeta Singh, Principal of the school, said Deputy Commissioner Kahan Singh Pannu had written letters to the Principals of various schools urging them to encourage students to work towards greening their environment and restore the dwindling tree cover in the city as a first step, to be followed by ensuring the survival of saplings for the next three years as a sustainable commitment to the cause of environmental preservation and restoration. Therefore, the school decided to join hands with the district administration in its noble cause for saving the environment.

Meanwhile, Spring Dale Senior School also decided to distribute 10,000 saplings to the parents on the parent-teacher meeting in different phases in order to make collaborative efforts in safeguarding the environment.

Rajiv Sharma, Principal of the school, said parents would be requested not only to plant the saplings, but also to take care for their survival.

Amritsar, September 1
In an early morning operation, the officers and staff of the municipal corporation, backed by police, demolished a newly-constructed hotel owned by an NRI on Batala Road.

Baldev Singh, a resident of Wolver Hampton in England, alleged that the corporation authorities today demolished the front façade of his hotel without issuing any notice.

He alleged that the entire project was cleared by the corporation and he had the approved plan from the corporation besides he had deposited Rs 9.36 lakh, a compoundable fee for the project.

He said he had invested around Rs 3 to 4 crore from his earnings from UK and was keen to set up a hotel in the holy city.

However, Municipal Corporation Commissioner, DPS Kharbanda, said the hotel was built in complete violation of the municipal byelaws and added that he had not left any parking space, has constructed the hotel without leaving any house line and right on the road.

He pointed out that the owner of the plot, on which the hotel had been constructed, had complained to the Deputy Commissioner KS Pannu that Baldev Singh had allegedly encroached on one-fourth of the plot as he had only sold him three fourth of the total plot area.

The commissioner said proper notice was served on him but he continued to violate the civic byelaws and the civic body was forced to take action after taking proper permissions from the administration. 

Amritsar, September 1
The National Institute of Information Technology (NIIT) will organise a test for the poor and needy students for its 19th Bhavishya Jyoti Scholarships on September 13 at its centres.

The scholarships will benefit those poor students who despite having attained brilliant scores shy away from IT courses due to high input costs of learning in this specialised field.

G. Raghavan, President, Global Learning Solutions, NIIT, giving details of the scholarship programme, said it had benefited thousands of students in India as also in some select countries. He said, “Bhavishya Jyoti Scholarship was launched 18 years back in 1991. It has benefited over 3.2 lakh students over the years.”

The scholarship include merit-based fee waiver of up to Rs 34,000 on NIIT’s IT training programmes, including GNIIT, NIIT Engineers and NIIT Globalnet+. He said the scholarship would encourage and support talented students in enhancing their chances of placement.

The winners would also get to pursue Global Vendor Certification-backed programme and get the benefit of collaborative learning.

The criteria for application for scholarship is Class XII score and personal interview. For other select career programmes, scholarships would be based on performance in the competitive written test, personal interview and Class XII score.

In addition to that, students who had completed their Class XII or equivalent or those currently pursuing graduation or graduates in any stream or even the polytechnic diploma holders were also eligible for the scholarship.

Since its launch, scholarships worth Rs 465 million had been awarded. Last year more than 1 lakh students appeared for the scholarship test and were awarded scholarships worth Rs 126 million.

Amritsar, September 1
In an initiative to spark the youth in the country to “lead India”, the DAV Students Leadership Programme Association this year held a number of competitions under the banner of a “Shine India” campaign on the DAV Public School campus.

Students from various schools in Punjab participated in the competitions, ranging from “lead India” (forming mock political parties and agenda) to face painting, poster making and the share market trends competitions “Bull and Bear”.

Hilarious political satires “Ki faraq panda hai” and “Chacha Bush, Bhatija Obama nal Zardari di lila”, a comic take-off on the situation of aid to Pakistan by the USA using fake Punjabi dubbing in the form of street plays enacted by students left the audience spellbound.

DAV School, Secyot 15, Chandigarh, stood first, while host DAV Public School, Amritsar, and Springdales Senior School took the second and third positions, respectively. SSP Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh, who was the chief guest on the closing session, gave away prizes to the winners.

In the face-painting contest, DAV School, Chandigarh, with the best motif was adjudged the winner, while DAV Public School, Amritsar, and DAV International School, Amritsar, came second and third, respectively.

In the poster making, Springdale Senior School, Amritsar, won the contest, while DAV School, Chandigarh, and Guru Harkishan Public School, Amritsar, took the second and third positions.

In another interesting competition “Bull and Bear” student teams were required to answer questions in a business quiz, including names of CEOs of top companies. DAV School, Chandigarh, stood first while Manav Public School, Amritsar, came second and Shri Guru Harkishan Public School third.

Amritsar, September 1
The much-awaited nod to establish cornea transplantation centre at Dr Daljit Singh Eye Hospital is expected from the state government soon. Renowned eye specialist Dr Daljit Singh said a team of experts had already inspected the hospital and seen the facilities available for setting up the centre for the benefit of the people of the border belt.

Dr Daljit Singh said the centre would be set up under the guidelines of the Human Organ Transplantation Act and would meet all requirements. He said earlier the hospital had sought the permission to establish an eye bank, but due to the condition of the Central Government that an eye bank could not be established in a city with less than one crore population, it was not done. He said all government medical colleges in the state had an approved eye bank.

The ophthalmologist said a group of eye specialists had launched a campaign in the city urging people to donate eyes and at present they had about 9,000 registered members who were willing to donate their eyes.

He said a regional eye centre was being established at Dr Ram Lal Eye Hospital which was a part of the government medical college. It would soon require latest equipment from the Central Government to upgrade its present infrastructure.

Khehra said there was a large number of border area village where the bus service had been crippled and even bus timings for long routes like Delhi, Chandigarh, Anandpur Sahib, etc. had been closed for the past so many years. — OC

Amritsar, September 1
The grand gala finale of the third “Mr Singh International” competition, which was launched with great fanfare three years ago by Akal Purkh Ke Fauj to honour “sabat-surat” Sikhs interested in modelling, would be held here on November 21.

Revealing this, Jaswinder Singh Advocate, member, Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, and director, Turban Pride Movement, said the pre-final of the competition would be organised on October 25 at Raipur (Chhatisgarh). The zonal contest would be held in Nagpur (Maharashtra), Sambalpur (Orissa), Faridabad (Haryana) and Bathinda (Punjab), he added.

He said plans had been chalked out to conduct the auditions in 54 major cities of the country for the much-awaited competition that had become a favourite among the Sikh youth aspiring for modelling and glamorous world.

Jaswinder Singh, spokesman of Akal Purakh Ki Fauj, said, besides major cities of Punjab, Jammu, Srinagar, Ambala, Karnal, Shimla, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Ganganagar, Delhi, Mumbai, Kanpur, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Bhopal, etc., had been shortlisted for audition.

The youths qualifying in these competitions would find a place in the zonal competitions and those qualifying in zonal competitions would find place in the pre-final. The top 25 Sikh youths would qualify for the finals at Amritsar on November 21.

Amritsar, September 1
There is no doubt that absolutely nothing could really shake our generation off the love for denims. Many tried to offer substitutes, however intelligent or crazed, the jeans-smitten crowd of the 21st century.

But hold on, there has just recently been a new kid on the block which attempts to be seriously challenging the jeans’ claim for the number one slot.

Child of Afghanistan, the harem recently made inroads into the country, through visiting “gori” tourists who casually sauntered across streets wearing this comfort delight. Generally the Afghan women wore this loose pair of pants with kurtis. In India it is a girls’ thing, though pretty much a unisex affair in Afghanistan.

It can be called a loose trouser, tight at the ankles and a perfect fit at the waist (perfect for all waist lines, which is half the reason for its popularity). The comfort factor rules high in the harem (it bears likeness with the Indian salwar) and sport it with a bustier instead of a kurti on top and you get the much-needed oomph factor.

Even though the foreigners use short kurtis with harems, back home it is a hit with long kurtis and dupattas.

Amit Kumar, a fashion designer, while talking to The Tribune, said people of all ages demand the harem since they think it is the best for a trim look and it’s comfort allows it to be worn in the summers. He said harem is the only dress which can be used as party wear as well as casual wear.

The harem is usually in the hosiery cloth, but can be made with crape, silk or satin too. Amit said designed and embroidered harems sometimes with buttons on the waist also made for attractive attire.

Amritsar, September 1
The Amritsar Vikas Manch (AVM) has appreciated the decision of the Punjab government to develop the existing Mohali-Ropar-Nawanshahr-Phagwara road into an expressway and dropping of the Mohali-Phagwara expressway.

Reacting to a news item pertaining to the ambitious Mohali-Phagwara expressway, which appeared in these columns, AVM patron Mohan Singh said in a press release here yesterday that both the decisions reflected far-sightedness and asserted that the NGO had been suggesting the same to the government.

He requested the Badal government to resume the stopped work on the Dhilwan-Jalandhar section of the Amritsar-Jalandhar express lane.

According to him, if the six-lane Jalandhar-Amritsar project was extended up to the Attari-Wagah joint check-post, it would provide vital infrastructure to the city.