PUNJAB

A study carried out by professors of Punjabi University, Patiala, has found that low remuneration has made handmade phulkari (a traditional art specific to the Patiala region) an economically unviable option for many young women who do not want to take it up as a means of livelihood. The research project report that was released on Monday highlighted that the artisans were not satisfied with their income and were worried about the diminishing demand of handmade phulkari in the local market.

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The research was sponsored by the Centre for Womens Development Studies, New Delhi. Professor Ritu Lehal, Director, Womens Studies Centre, who headed the research programme

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carried out primarily in villages of Patiala district said some artisans reported making eight rupees per flower and three hundred rupees from one Phulkari, which takes 12 to 15 days to complete.

The university faculty members studied the working and earnings of 120 artisans divided in two groups those from training centres and those artisans working since generations.

Forest dept starts mulberry plantation to promote sericulture in Punjab

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Owing to the poor availability of Resources and expertise in sericulture with the department, the forest department has launched a scheme to revive the sericulture with the beginning of

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mulberry plantation in Pathankot.

They will also provide other facilities like raising Infrastructure, silkworm pathology, and Marketing.

The villages identified for sericulture where mulberry plantation would be carried out were Durang Khad, Phangtoli, Bhadan, Samanu, Junghath, and Bhabhar.

Its power-play in Punjab. As the State is moving towards Assembly polls with little patience, political parties in Punjab are apparently seeking power out of power issues. Less than a month after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) promised free power supply to domestic consumers besides cancellation of contentious power pacts, Punjab Government, too, has come out with electrifying orders.

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The orders came a day after Punjab Congress newly-appointed team, led by state unit president Navjot Singh Sidhu, had urged a review of the PPAs with

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Independent Power Producers (IPPs), inked during Akali rule.

Notably, the Pspcl had signed 14 PPAs with Thermal or Hydro Plants and 122 Long Term PPAs with Solar or plants after 2007, to make the state power surplus with a generation capacity of around 13,800 MW (megawatt).

PSPCL was also forced to utilize full power from the Central Sector Generating Stations so that the crops of the farmers could be saved, Capt Amarinder noted, adding that the State was also compelled to enforce power regulatory measures from July 1 to

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11 on Large Supply (LS) Industry of to meet the rising demand of the farmers.

It may be mentioned that the Chief Minister had sought a legal opinion on renegotiating controversial PPAs.

Punjab Cabinet sub-panel orders social audit of panchayats

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A Cabinet sub-committee comprising Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema and Minister for NRI Affairs Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal directed the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats to conduct of all the panchayats by December 2023 and make the report public.

The Cabinet sub-committee gave these directions during a meeting with the Khet Mazdoor Union and asked the department to make videography mandatory at the time of bidding of panchayat land.

The ministers ordered to form a three-member committee under the Leadership of Joint Development Commissioner Amit Kumar to investigate matters related to bidding of panchayat land

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in Patiala and other districts for the Scheduled Castes (SCs). This committee has been asked to submit its report within 15 days.

The Cabinet sub-committee also instructed the ADCs (Development) to resolve the pending complaints related to the SCs at the earliest.

To create ecological balance, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday asked the Forests and Wildlife Preservation Department to revive the original flora and fauna keeping in view the States natural climate and habitat.

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Capt Amarinder, reviewing the functioning of Forests and Wildlife Preservation Department through video conferencing, emphasized the need to undertake massive plantation of traditional trees including ber, kikar, saal, shisham

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etc besides katha amb an indigenous variety of Mango commonly prevalent in Kandi region and southern Punjab, which have eventually dwindled due to passage of time as revival of its plantation would obviously offer a natural habitat to old species of wild animals and birds which have now gradually extinct over a period of time.

The Chief Minister also complimented the Department for undergoing plantation of Chandan and high yielding Bamboo (Bamabusa Balcooa), which gives double the yield of traditional bamboo. He asked the Additional Chief Secretary (Forests) Anirudh Tiwari to encourage plantation of more indigenous species and motivate the farmers for plantation of Poplar, which is not only water efficient but also quite remunerative due to its huge demand in the wood .

The Department has also been asked to fully explore the potential of ecotourism and concerted efforts should be made to develop Siswan and Harike as preferred ecotourism destinations in northern India.

Punjab Agricultural University museum to host AIMAs first-ever conference in South Asia

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For the first time in 60 years, the International Association ofAgricultural Museums(AIMA), France, will organise its conference in South Asia and has chosen

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the Museum of Social HISTORY of Rural Punjab ofPunjab Agricultural Universityas its venue. More than 100 international delegates will attend the event scheduled for October.AIMAcame into existence in Prague, Czech Republic (thenCzechoslovakia) in 1966. The event is organised every two years in different countries.
Upbeat over the development, PAU vice-chancellor Dr Satbir Singh Gosal credited the Punjab governments tourism website for giving aptspaceto the PAUs museum.

The event ‘First Congress of International Agricultural Museums (CIMA) will see participation of over 100 delegates from over 50 countries along with 200 students,

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researchers and experts from India. The officials said the conference will be inaugurated on World Food Day, October 16 by World Food Prize Winner Dr Gurdev Singh Khush.

Committee formed for exam reforms in higher education in Punjab

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Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh formed a committee of university vice chancellors (VCs) on Monday to work out examination reforms and review curriculums for scaling up the quality of higher Education in the state in line with the advances taking place across the world. The committee, under the chairmanship of the Dev University VC, will also look into the possibility of introducing new courses and digital education and submit its report within 60 days.

Underlining the need to keep up with the transformation taking place globally in education, Singh tasked the committee with drafting a

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plan to bring the state’s education system on par with the world.

Punjab NRIs Affairs Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal on Monday said that the State Government is bringing a new policy for Punjabi NRIs, which would be ready by February 28.

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The new policy would ensure effective resolutions of the complaints and issues related to Punjabi diaspora, said Dhaliwal, who held a meeting with the state DGP Gaurav Yadav, Principal Secretary NRI Affairs JM Balamurugan, ADGP NRI Affairs Praveen Kumar Sinha, Special Secretary Home Varinder Kumar, Special Secretary NRI Kamaljit Kaur Brar, and Special Secretary NRI Paramjit Singh.

The Minister said that the Punjab Governments initiative to hold NRI Milnis got a massive response, receiving 606 complaints. During these Milnis held at Jalandhar, SAS Nagar, Ludhiana, Moga and Amritsar, the Minister said that more than 40 percent complaints, that is 250,

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had been sorted out. Remaining complaints were also being addressed within minimal time, he added.

Punjab Govt okays vehicle scrappage policy

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The today gave a nod to the policy for scrapping of old vehicles, transport and non-transport vehicles. Those scrapping their old vehicles will get a rebate on the motor vehicle tax (MVT) from 15 to 25

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per cent.

Those scrapping old vehicles (transport and non-transport) will get a rebate on the motor vehicle tax from 15 to 25%

A total of 1.28 crore vehicles have been

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registered in the state to date and nearly one-third of them have been registered 12-15 years ago

The state policy is in line with the Vehicle Scrapping policy of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.