President Pratibha Patil asked PSUs to explore possibilities of partnering with individual farmers to enhance farm productivity, especially in rain-fed areas. She was speaking at the first Public Sector Day celebrations, which marks the founding of the Standing Conference of Public Sector Enterprises (SCOPE), the umbrella organization of PSUs in 1973.

“I think they should accept it as a challenge and show that they would not lag behind in accepting this challenge,” President Patil said. She added that an individual farmer is basically a private entrepreneur and a combination of private entrepreneur and PSUs working together is bound to be a great venture. She said that though initially this should be treated as a social responsibility, later it could become a viable business model.

President Patil said, “A business does not function in a vacuum or in an isolated fashion. It draws upon natural resources and utilizes the human capital of a nation. It, therefore, owes a responsibility to undertake its operations in a manner that are least damaging to the environment and to seek to maximize benefits to society.”

She recalled that PSUs were set up with huge public funds to fulfill social responsibility. Now, it is up to them to excel in their fields and work towards the national goal of socio-economic development. “It should be their endeavor to maintain high level of standards so that these become best practices in the industry, setting benchmarks for other companies to emulate,” she said.

President Patil said that many PSUs have proved themselves as credible performers and presence of 25 Indian PSUs in 2009 Forbes list of 2000 companies demonstrates this.

President gave away SCOPE Meritorious Awards to top executives of PSUs for commendable performance in their specialized fields.

Demand for roses has increased by 25 percent from US and European countries due to Valentine’s Day celebrations. This demand has brought good cheer to Pune farmers as Pune is the biggest rose exporter in our country. Usually the city exports around 10 lakh rose stems and due to Valentine’s Day celebration the demand has gone up to 45 to 50 lakh rose stems. The prices have also increased by about 20 percent to 25 percent. The prices have also been increased by 20 percent to 25 percent. In the domestic market, the usual price is around Rs.100 for 20 roses but during Valentine’s Day it’s increased to Rs.125 for 20 roses.

Demand for roses is also driven by the fact that the supply from Ethiopia has decreased and is diverted to India. Mr. Shivaji Bhegade, Flower grower’s president, said that “the export for the Valentine’s Day has already begun and will continue till February 9. The rose exporters are currently getting Rs 13 to Rs 20 per stem for stem length ranging from 40 cm to 60 cm. The 40 cm stem length flower is getting 20 Euro cents while the 60 cm stem length flower is getting about 30 to 32 Euro cents.”

Though the demand is good from international markets, the only challenge foreseen is that erratic climatic conditions has affected the quality of the roses and the proportion of B grade flowers has increased from the usual 25 percent to 40 percent. This might affect small farmers who do not have high technology, as big corporate who export roses might refuse to take their roses for lack of quality.

National Doctor’s Day is a day for normal people to show appreciation and say thanks to all doctors who care for them. Doctors perform vital diagnosis and treatment.
Doctor’s Day is celebrated in India on July 1st every year. Doctor’s Day celebrations started in 1991 when the Government of India recognised July 1, the birth anniversary as well as the date of demise of famous physician, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy (BC Roy).

Doctor’s Day is celebrated in the US and other western countries on March 30 – the day when Dr. Crawford W. Long first used ether anaesthesia in surgery.