Jalandhar, February 22
In an era when women were meant to be confined to the four walls of her house, it was a small radical thought of not excluding them from the domain of education, which led to the foundation of Kanya Maha Vidyalaya (KMV) nearly 125 years ago.

The first-ever women institution of the northern India, KMV completed 125 years of its inception on February 20. KMV was founded in 1886 during the British rule in an orthodox and retrogressive society where women were the targets of restrictive practices. KMV, apart from providing a platform to educate women, has played a phenomenal role in the freedom struggle with its students taking part in various movements.

And undaunted by the financial constraints and virtual rebukes of a conservative society, the college remained a trailblazer and a front-runner in the field of women education. Today, after traversing a long period, the college is a learning platform for some 2,000-plus girls from across the region.

Talking to The Tribune, Principal of the college Dr Atima Sharma said the institution bore testimony to those turbulent times when education was forbidden for women.

“It was Lala Dev Raj, a crusader of women education from the Arya Samaj, who after being inspired by the teachings of Swami Dayanand came to the forefront with the noble mission of educating women. He established Bal Shiksha Vidyalaya with just six students and laid the foundation of this institution,” she added.

She said the college had the proud distinction of being an active participant in the freedom movement for “Puran Swaraj”. “The first Principal of the college, Acharya Lajjawati, was instrumental in instilling patriotism among the students. Not many people know that the custom of wearing khadi in the college was started during this period. The students at that time used to spun cotton and wear khadi,” she said, adding that following the same nationalistic spirit, khadi uniform was still worn on Mondays.

Sharing the contribution of its students in freedom movement, she added that Sushila Didi, one the of students of the college, went out of the way to assist revolutionary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in escaping the chasing British rulers. “During the British rule our students sang Vande Mataram and hoisted the national flag without fearing the atrocities of the Britishers,” the Principal maintained.

KMV students had also taken part in the significant 1929 session of the Congress at Lahore, where the resolution of “Puran Swaraj” was passed. “The group of students that presented the Tricolour to Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru on the occasion were from KMV,” she said.

It was owing to the glorious history of the college that the Ministry of Human Resource Development selected it for a special documentary. The series of this documentary, highlighting its history and present academic ambiance, was telecast on Doordarshan.

Spread over an area of 28 acres, the college is providing education in various disciplines, starting from humanities and arts to science, commerce, computer applications, postgraduate courses, diplomas and other add-on courses.

Another noticeable feature of the institution is its botanical gardens and the lush-green environment, which is home to more than a hundred peacocks.

The historic and ancient bell banyan tree on the middle of the hostel premises bears testimony to the age-old history of the college. The tree is thronged by peacocks 24X7 and hostel students also shoulder the responsibility of nurturing them.

Jalandhar, February 22
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has asked Agri Credit and Services Societies, Phillaur, and a few other insurance companies to reimburse a medical claim of Rs 2 lakh to a Phillaur-based resident while also paying Rs 1,000 as litigation expenses.

The complainant, Balbir Singh, said he was a member of the agricultural society in Kot Badal Khan village, Phillaur. He said he had got issued one family health insurance plan under the Bhai Ghanaiya Sehat Sewa Scheme by getting himself, his father Jarnail Singh, mother, wife and daughter insured for up to Rs 2 lakh.

The family members were provided photo ID-cards. As per the scheme, the family members were not required to make any payment in case the treatment was taken from the specified hospitals.

The complainant said he got his father treated from Orthonova Hospital, which was in the list. He said even as no direct payment was required to be made, he had to do so as the insurance companies refused to pay up. He said he had requested the companies several times to reimburse the medical expenses to the tune of Rs 2,00,667, but to no avail.

The insurer said since the age of Jarnail Singh was 103 years as per election ID-card, he was not entitled for the amount. They cited policy condition as per which the person of age more than 75 years could not be insured.

The complainant, however, produced documents as per which his father’s age was 66 years on the scheme ID-card, 61 years on election card, issued on January 1, 2006, and date of birth as May 4, 1945 in passport. This convinced the forum which ordered reimbursement of Rs 2 lakh and expenses of Rs 1000. “If the parties fail to comply with the order, then 9 per cent will be accrued on the award amount from the date of default up to the date of payment.”

Jalandhar, February 22
The St Soldier Group of Institutions organised “Sanjhan Pyaar Diyan”, a cultural show for charity, on their campus.

Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia, who was the chief guest, inaugurated the event.

Punjabi singer Labh Janjhua enthralled the audience with his melodious voice. Bollywood singers Mausere, Bhai Haneet and Arvind, comedians Rajbir Kaur, Rekha Kashyap and Jassi Kochar also performed. “Dance India Dance”-fame Volcano Dance Group added another attraction to the event.

Addressing the gathering, Chairman of the St Soldier group, Anil Chopra said they had been organising the charity show for the past three years. “Through this initiative we aim to do some good work for the cause of the deprived sections of the society. We have donated Rs 3.5 Lakh for the welfare of the inmates of Apahaj Ashram, Pingla Ghar, District Anti-leprosy Association and Rashtriya Andh Vidyalaya,” he added.

Jalandhar, February 22
Pahal, an NGO, celebrated International Mother Language Day in collaboration with Punjabi Literary Society and Department of Journalism and Mass Communication of the DAV College.

Dr Satish Sharma, principal of the college, said mother language was the pedigree of the nation, so it should be maintained and developed at any cost. He appreciated Doordarshan and all the visual and print media working for Punjabi promotion. Dr Sharma expressed his desire to organise seminars on the issue in the future.

Prof Lakhbir Singh, president of Pahal, said consumerist and commercial selfishness had affected the local languages badly. He referred to the 1652 local languages of India with special mention of 350 major languages. He added that it was dangerous to note that there are 196 local languages in India at the verge of extinction as per a survey of UNESCO, which also reported that it was the largest number in a single country worldwide.

Although mother language Punjabi is not in such a bad shape but it needs the intention of the local governments, educational departments, intellectuals and the Punjabi people worldwide, he said.

Prof Kamaldeep Singh, professor of Punjabi and general secretary of the staff council, said the universities need to review the compulsory language implementation policy to enhance the linguistic capacity of the younger generation.

Prof. Hari K. Singh, Prof Shipra Sharma and Prof Shikha Sharma of the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication also participated in the discussion. Over 100 students of journalism, Punjabi and other departments also attended the event.

Jalandhar, February 22
A half-marathon pledging to “Save girl child” was flagged off by Mayor Rakesh Rathore and Police Commissioner Gaurav Yadav from the Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on Sunday.

The half-marathon, which traversed through the major routes of the city, was organised by the PIMS and 92.7 Big FM and witnessed hundreds of people running for the cause of preventing female foeticide. As young as 10-year-olds and as senior as 62-year-old Surjit Singh exhibited their zeal for the cause.

Prizes were given by Local Bodies Minister Manoranjan Kalia, who supported the cause and asked people to come forward to fight against the evil of female foeticide.

Star attraction of the event was Punjabi singers Sarabjit Cheema and Kulwinder Kally, who also came to support the cause. Cheema sang his popular song “Na mari naa mari ni maa”, through which he epitomised the evil of female foeticide in Punjab.

Besides doctors, nursing and technical staff of the institute, Medical Superintendent, PIMS, Dr S.K. Bansal, and Vice-Principal, PIMS, Dr Rajeev Arora, also participated in the event.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Bansal said, “It is great to get the support of the city for this noble cause. With the depleting gender ratio, we all must work towards the healthcare and education of the girl child.”

In the men’s category, Angrez Singh bagged the first position followed by Karanvir Singh, Jalandhar, and Rahul Mankotia from Himachal Pradesh.

Whereas in the women’s category, Kulwinder Kaur from Hoshiarpur stood first, Amandeep Kaur, Hoshiarpur, second and Manpreet Kaur, Jalandhar, third.

Jalandhar, February 22
Punjabis aspiring to legally settle in Canada can now avail themselves of certain fast-track provincial nominee programmes (PNPs) to fulfil their dreams even if they do not figure in the priority occupation list of the country.

Col B.S. Sandhu, CMD. World Wide Immigration Consultancy Services, said the programmes for Saskatchewan and Manitoba were the most popular and compatible for Indians among the PNPs. He was flanked by Curtis Panke, Director, Global Placement Services,

and Ondrej Hradec from companies.cz.

As per the official figures from Statistics Canada Labor Force Survey, the rate of unemployment in Saskatchewan was 5.5 per cent, which was lower than national average rate of 7.6 per cent. Additionally, the private sector was witnessing robust growth, with as many as 11,000 new jobs being created, he pointed out.

Even in Manitoba, the rate of unemployment was 5 per cent and 4,100 new jobs were created in just January. Sectors like manufacturing, transportation, warehousing, agriculture and support services business witnessed favourable growth making Manitoba a preferred destination, he reasoned.

The WWICS and its associate company, Global Placement Services, had tied up with leading companies in the province of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. “With help of these tie-ups, the aspirants would be extended real-time job offers. By the way of these offers, aspirants would have a job as soon as they land in Canada, added Panke.

Apart from this, the Czech Republic also invited Indian investors by simply getting a company registered, the processing time for which was just two months. Highlighting the registration of a company under the Czech programme, Ondrej said minimum net worth needed is Rs 6,00,000 for an individual and after registration of company one could apply for long-term visa.

All professionals, businesspersons and farmers with good communication skills in English could relocate to the republic and citizenship was available after five years of obtaining permanent residency. “Our economy is growing at a higher rate than the EU average and is a desirable place for investments and business activities,” he added.

Jalandhar, Februray 22
Smitten by the spirit of Basant (spring), enamoured Hindustani musicians have dedicated poetic compositions to the season, all through the country, through varied periods and at various places.

Jalandhar saw some of the colours of spring in Hindustani classical music at the “Vasant Utsav” organised by the Harivallabh Sangeet Samiti at Sehgal Memorial Hall here on Saturday.

The audience was steeped deep into the euphoria of the season when Benaras Gharana maestro Pt Bholanath Mishra brought the myriad colours of Raag Basant for music lovers.

He sung rare bandishes (as he himself pointed out) and ragas in a performance, the sort that music scholars pine for (not to mention the event was being held under the aegis of the Harivallabh Sangeet and Research Academy).

Mishra performed the bandishes, “Man anand bhayo ab mera, phulwa sab phool rahe ban mein, phagwa brij ko dekhan chalo ri, saras rang phool rahe” and others.

The different renditions were in Shudh Basant, Raag Basant (Sadarang bandish), Raag Basant Bahar, Bansanti Malhaar, Gopika Basant, Raag Bahar and Raag Malkauns Jaunpuri.

Mishra was accompanied by artistes Jaidev (tabla) and Pt Bharat Bhushan Goswami (sarangi) and the trio were delightfully in sync with each other.

Mishra’s forceful tans were well-rehearsed and stirring and his buildup to them was soft and lingering. His singing had all the glory of the Benaras Gharana.

The sarangi, in turn, was deft and shined along with the vocals, almost matching them, but subtly.

The tabla gifted rhythm and spring’s bounciness to the performance. The sams were exhilarating and had the heads of the audience shaking.

Earlier in the afternoon, the event began with the shabad gayan of Prof Kirpal Singh.

Kirpal Singh’s aged, quivering voice built up the Gurbani kirtan mood, bound in Basant strains. There were ample moments when his voice faltered, but its very age also contributed to the solemnity of the recital.

His little conversation with the audience on Raag Basant, Raagmalaa, and other anecdotes and Gurbani bits during the recital was insightful and almost sounded like a sermon.

Kirpal Singh sang two shabads, both in Raag Basant. He was accompanied by his son Pushpal Singh on the vocals, Joga Singh on the tabla, Santokh Singh Namdhari on the taar shehnai.

After Kirpal Singh, Rishabh Seen, grandson of Ustad Lachman Singh Seen and son of Manu Seen, presented Raag Hansdhwani.

Although at times there were irregular transitions during his performance, the finesse of his gayaki ang was addictive.

Rishabh’s bright recital was accompanied by Neeraj Shandilya on the tabla.

Phagwara, February 22
A newly-wed woman, Sarabjit Kaur, allegedly mixed poison in the meal and some intoxicant in milk and served them to her husband and father-in-law, who felt unconscious after having them, at nearby Rawalpindi village last night.

Malkiat Singh (62) and his son Nirmal Singh (24) were admitted to the Civil Hospital, where their condition was stated to be out of danger now, said Senior Medical Officer Dr Rajiv Gupta.

Nirmal Singh, a carpenter in Punjab Bone Mills, Chiherru, after regaining consciousness in the hospital today, said he was married to Sarabjit, daughter of Gurbachan Singh of Bijnor village, near Chabbewal, in Hoshiarpur district, on January 30 this year, but during their married life of not even a month she never treated them well.

Nirmal said his wife went to her parents’ house on Feburary 20 and returned yesterday, but her attitude remained the same towards them. She served them dinner, which he felt was bitter in taste and he and his father felt giddiness. After then she served them milk, which must be mixed with an intoxicant, and they both felt unconscious after taking it.

Nirmal said his wife decamped her in-laws’ house along with a gold set, two chains, three rings, two pairs of earrings and other valuables. She took out the battery and sim card of his mobile phone and threw it on the floor. A case been registered. — OC