Amritsar, October 13
Making spurious khoya and synthetic milk is perhaps not that tough for those indulging in adulteration in the city as people perceive. During the festival season, when the demand for milk and milk products increases, sweetmeat makers resort to making spurious items as the recipe for this is easily available.

Urea, refined oil and sugar are the three basic ingredients required for making synthetic milk. Insiders in the business reveal that urea is added to impart white colour to the solution, while sugar is added to give it sweetness. Refined oil helps in adding fat to it. An insider said, “Even if a customer skims the milk and tries to get butter, refined oil would start floating above the solution which can easily be perceived as butter.” Some people also use phenyl instead of urea which is basically used as a fertiliser for crops.

Apart from synthetic milk, spurious khoya too is sold in the city right under the nose of the district administration. Spurious khoya is prepared using substandard milk powder which is mixed with the milk to thicken it and which looks like khoya.

“After boiling milk for one and a half hour when the water content in it starts separating form fats, milk powder is added. The khoya prepared with this technique gives the look of pure khoya but makes a mump in throat when it is eaten. The makers add milk powder to increase the quantity and save time,” informed an insider.

Recently, a powder named ghachak has arrived in the market. The powder, which is readily available, is kneaded with refined oil to make spurious khoya. Another shopkeeper confided, “While using this technique, there is no need to heat the milk. Spurious khoya can be prepared within five minutes.” The shopkeeper quipped that making synthetic milk and khoya is easier than rearing a cow.

In the biggest khoya market, near the Lohgarh area, khoya is available at Rs 120 per kilogram. However, working the input costs for per kg khoya, experts in the field reveal that one litre of good quality milk on prolonged boiling for three hours gives 200 to 225 gm of khoya. “That way at least four and a half litres of milk is needed to make one kg of quality khoya. As the cost of milk is Rs 35 per litre, it requires at least Rs 157 to buy only milk. “Including the cost of fuel used in three hours of boiling and the cost of manual labour, the cost of pure khoya should be at least Rs 200 per kg,” said the expert. He added that a few people are even mixing powdered white stones to increase the quantity of khoya.

Amritsar, October 13
Even as the festival season is underway, the Health Department is yet to come out of its slumber. It has failed to start any major campaign to check the problem of adulteration and selling of spurious khoya used in the preparation of sweetmeats.

How serious the Department is in checking adulteration could be gauged from the fact that till now it has taken just 15 samples of milk, products and sweetmeats in two raids during this festive season. It is considered a peak season as far as the import of spurious khoya milk products from other states is concerned. The import increases manifold during the season.

In the previous years, the Department had raided a number of sweetmeat shops and dairies, especially during the festive season.

The Department held meetings with sweetshop owners and milkman associations, asking them to refrain from adulteration and selling of spurious khoya and other milk products.

This year they are yet to take any concrete steps in this direction, alleged the sources in the Department. It failed to hold any meeting with the associations, corroborated Charanjit Singh, president of Milk Halwai Association.

However, on their part the health officials point out that the situation has arisen due to the delay in the notification by the government, following the implementation of the Food Safety and Standard Act 2011 in place of the earlier Prevention of Food Adulteration Act.

A health official, while pointing this out, said that in the absence of the notification of the act, the officials responsible for taking sample were not authorised to do the same. Even the laboratories could not take the samples for testing, he said.

“The notification regarding the new act was issued by the government towards the end of September, which was the main cause of delay in the sampling.

Now the Health Department would chalk out plan and start a campaign to check the adulteration iof various milk products and sweets,” he said.

It is evident to mention here that the Police Department recently seized 150 quintals of spurious ghee and oil in a raid in Gujjarpura locality, testifying the fact that the illegal trade is continuing unabated.

Dr Avtar Singh Jrewal, the Civil Surgeon, said that no stone would be left unturned in order to curb this menace of adulteration and selling of spurious sweets and milk products. 

Amritsar, October 13
A major mishap was averted today when the New Delhi-bound Jet Airways flight suffered a bird hit. The flight was to hold back due to the bird hit. The incident took place when the plane was about to take-off from the Guru Ram Dass international Airport strip this morning. The bird hit partially damaged the engine. The flight was to be cancelled later on and the passengers were boarded to another flight. The incident took place today morning at about 10.00AM.

As many as 96 passengers were in the flight. They have a narrow escape as the bird hit the left engine of the Jet Airways plane. The plane was brought back to terminal building and passengers were off loaded. Confirming the incident, Sunil Dutt, Director Guru Ram Dass International Airport said “The bird hit the plane when it was speeding off the runway. It was about to take-off when from nowhere a bird hit the left wing partially damaging the engine in the incident.” A team of the engineers has arrived and was repairing the engine, he added. The passengers were again sent on another flight at 01.45 in the afternoon. When asked about the steps being taken by the airport authorities to tackle this problem and prevent such incidents from occuring in future, he said they had urged the state government to remove the butcheries besides pruning the trees around the airport.

“We have a local-level committee to address various problems being faced by the airport which holds regular meetings. We have also demanded equipments for making the area around the airport bird free,” he revealed. 

Amritsar, October 13
With ongoing teachers’ agitation taking a toll on studies, the newly appointed head of the Commerce and Business Management (CBM) Department has decided to postponed the dates of Minor-II tests, already scheduled to begin from October 17, 18 and 19.

Now this test would be held on October 20, 21 and 24. On the other hand, the teachers continued to hold a dharna outside the Vice Chancellor’s office and observed “no-teaching hours” between 11 am and 1 pm. Nevertheless, confirming the development, Dr Vikram Chadha, who assumed additional charge as Head of the CBM Department after removal of Dr Balwinder Singh, last Friday, said, “Though, I was reluctant to postpone the dates because the university is observing a ‘credit-based evaluation’ system which has got specific rules and regulations for the whole session of the course. Any tampering with the dates of the examination would mean that its whole structure would get disturbed. Yet, taking a considerate view of the students’ demand due to the disturbed conditions prevailing in the campus because of the ongoing agitation, I, in consultation with Dean, Academic Affairs, have mutually agreed to postpone the dates of Minor II tests”, he said.

The university has introduced a credit-based evaluation system wherein the question papers are set strictly according to the quantum of syllabus covered. There happen to be three tests- Minor 1, Minor II of 20 marks each and a quiz/assignment worth 10 marks. The Minor-1 test is conducted after nine weeks, Minor II after 15 weeks. This has to be followed by a Major test, to be conducted from December 1 to 10.

Amritsar, October 13
The Post Graduate Department of History, DAV College, Amritsar, organised a one-day UGC sponsored national seminar on ‘Promotion of Ethics & Human Values’ here today. Dr Swatanter Kumar, Vice Chancellor, Gurukul Kangri, Haridwar, and Prof (Dr) Amar Farrukhi from the History Department of Delhi University, also a member of Indian Council of Historical Research, were the key speakers on the occasion.

Principal Dr K N Kaul welcomed the chief guests and other dignitaries who came to participate in the seminar. Elaborating the importance of ethics and human values in the life of a human being, he said the seminar will boost teaching fraternity in bringing up the youth to play a positive role, while adopting certain set of ethics and human values in their own lives.

Dr Seema Arora, Coordinator from PG Department of History, presented the introductory speech. The seminar was inaugurated by Dr Swatanter who spoke on the development of ethics and human values. He spoke on how ethics and moral values complements each other and can play vital role in shaping today’s youth. He particularly mentioned that in the present scenario role of a teacher is very important.

Dr Amar Farrukhi of Delhi University presented the valedictory speech. He said, “The deterioration of ethics and moral values would not let the society grow and proceed, but we as teachers have to adopt these vital elements in our own lives and work together to shape the future of the nation.”

Dr PK Shukla, Former Secretary of ICHR and Dr Sukhwant Singh from the Guru Nanak Dev University presented their research papers inviting thought provoking questions on current issues. Dr Seema presented the vote of thanks.

Principals of other local institutions and personalities from various NGOs also participated in the seminar. 

Amritsar, October 13
The heavy industry cell of the BJP held an interactive meet with the local industrialists to discuss their problems. The meeting was attended by Local Bodies Minister Tikshan Sud, BJP’s national general secretary JP Nadda, MP Navjot Singh Sidhu and Rajnish Goenka of the BJP’s heavy industry cell.

During the meet, local industrialists highlighted their various problems such as power crisis, shortage of labour and problems faced by industrialists in filing VAT. Addressing the gathering of industrialists, Sud said that problems as reported by the local industrialists would be conveyed to the Chief Minister. “The state government is keen to promote the industry in the state.

The problems of industry would be solved on priority basis,” said the minister. The industrialists rued that the tax holiday announced for the neighbouring states like Himachal Pradesh to woo the industry has hit the businesses in Punjab. Sidhu said that heavy industry has provided employment to lakhs of people in country. Sidhu said, “During the past few years a transition of labour from agriculture to industry has been seen. The country needs more of the heavy industry to absorb the labour shift.” 

Amritsar, October 13
Satish Chander Mahajan is waging a lone battle against the local Punjab Urban Development Authority (PUDA) and the government for more than a decade for possession of the flat allotted to him during an auction in 2001.

He is running from pillar to post in order to take possession of the flat, which is currently under the occupation of Bodh Raj Hastir, Chairman of All India Terrorist Victims Association.

Hastir is claiming that the flat was given to him on the recommendation of the then government under the rehabilitation policy of terrorist victims.

Now, the question is how the PUDA auctioned the flat which was already given to a terrorist victim?

Telling his tale of woes, Mahajan, who is a bank official, said he had bought the flat during an auction conducted by the PUDA. The authority at that time promised him the flat within 30 days but that never happened. “Me and my family have been living in a rented house for more than one decade now, while the PUDA has turned a blind eye to our plight,” he alleged. “If the flat was already given and was under the possession of another person then how come PUDA auctioned the flat?” he questioned.

Sawinder Pal Singh, Estate Officer, PUDA, said the department has asked the police to take possession of the land. “PUDA had not allotted any flat to Hastir and he was illegally occupying the flat. Further, we can not comment on what basis or policy the government allowed Hastir to occupy the flat. At present, the matter is in the court and it would not be appropriate to comment on the matter. It’s up to the court to decide on this issue,” he said.

Hastir said a list issued by the PUDA in January 2001 named 335 beneficiaries who were given flats under the rehabilitation policy. The list clearly bore his name at serial number 43. It was also mentioned in the list that the possession of the flat was given to him, he added.