Gurdaspur Diary: Be an innovator, not an imitator

When winds of change blow some people build walls while others build windmills. Gurdaspur’s young entrepreneur Parminder Singh belongs to the second category. He used to huff and puff when he saw paddy stubble being set alight. After all, there must be some solution he used to think. And if there is one, why is it eluding us? If you are not a part of the solution, then you are a part of the problem. The youngster, who successfully runs a car repair facility on the Gurdaspur-Pathankot road, did not want to be a part of the problem. Hence, he started working on a startup — Agro Stubble Management Private Limited — which used stubble to manufacture heat resistant tiles. He was an instant success. He calculated that from one acre, nearly 3-3.5 tons of stubble is produced every year. And from this stubble he could manufacture thousands of tiles annually. These tiles can be used in offices, hospitals, malls, exhibitions and other commercial places. He converted a part of his garage into a mini workplace where experiments were conducted. Being a new startup, not much help was available from the market. Hence, he created his own pressing machine and some dyes. While he was on his project, some people suggested instead of going in for a startup, he should imitate an ongoing project. He denied. He says he wants to be an innovator, not an imitator. He got in touch with the Ludhiana-based PAU incubation centre. The agriculture authorities were indeed impressed by the manner in which he so passionately was developing his startup following which they promised him a Rs 5 lakh funding. Out of this, he has already received Rs 3 lakh. For him, innovation is progress made in the face of tradition. Reason enough why he faced many hurdles on the way but managed to clear each one of them in his own inimitable way. He is not afraid of failure. “Do not worry about failure, you have to get yourself right just once,” he quips. The revenue has yet to flow in but Parminder is not too eager to earn his profits. He insists he wants to be perfect before he starts his own factory which will cost him a cool Rs 2 crore. He is an ardent believer in the adage: chase the vision, not the money; the money will automatically start following you. The TV show Shark Tanks has already approached him. Later this month he will take part in the Global Bio-India Trade Fair to be held at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi which is a business summit for startups. Sometimes small towns throw up big time entities and personalities. Who knows, Parminder might be one of them. Gurdaspur wishes him all the best in his endeavours.

Death of village festivals

The recent announcement by the Punjab government banning dangerous stunts in village fairs has almost sounded their death-knell. Such festivities often take place in rural Punjab once paddy and wheat is harvested. The trigger for the government’s decision was the death of a middle aged farmer, Sukhmandeep Singh while he was doing one of his many pyrotechnics in his native village of Sarachur in Fatehgarh Churian block. Villagers want the government to rescind its decision. Villagers say “a village fair sans stunts is akin to an empty wine bottle.” The latest is that farmers of border villages have decided to meet their MLA to impress upon him the need to continue such festivities. As for now, it seems to be an impossible and improbable suggestion. —Ravi Dhaliwal