Varsity goes in for plastic flower bouquets

LUDHIANA: Punjab Agricultural University seems to spare no opportunity to make farmers aware of the alarming levels of degradation of environment. For that matter, it even had ���Save Environment Save Punjab��� as its official slogan for the kisan mela that began on Thursday.
A close look and one could easily figure out that bouquets presented to various dignitaries therein were made of plastic, which is widely known to be non-biodegradable.
That the university, which is itself aware of the fact that plastic has many adverse effects on the soil, itself indulges in buying plastic that too when natural flowers could easily be procured from the market, is surprising indeed.
Even in the past, it has been observed that the university, that is looked upon by public for guidance in raising nurseries, gardens and crops, itself relies heavily on plastic plants.
It is known that plastic decays very slowly. For how long plastic bouquets would remain with dignitaries, wondered advocate Kuljeet Singh, who visited the mela. When these are worn out, they would cause more pollution, he added.
Interestingly, the university, through its farm magazines, sometimes guides people about raising plants and decorating their homes through landscaping, but it has itself perhaps never acted on these lines.
Plastic bouquets can never convey what a natural flower does. A single natural flower could have been enough instead of large phoney bouquets, said Harsukhman, a PAU student, who felt bad about it.
Another farmer Rajbir Singh from Amritsar said, ���What can farmers expect if the university itself cannot grow flowers for its own use? They are being taught to diversify from the traditional cropping pattern, but why can���t the university arrange for flowers from its vast research farms?���