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Ramandeep Singh Mann

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Nov 14 • 11 tweets • 3 min read

Little would this character know about the city of #Malerkotla, which is blessed by Guru Gobind Singh ji, the city which has not seen any instance of communal violence till date, the city which stands in continued communal harmony.

This is the story of Malerkotla !
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Malerkotla is the only Muslim majority city in Punjab with 68.5% residents being Muslim. To understand what made Malerkotla an oasis of peace even as Partition of 1947 violence progressed all around it, we need to delve into a centuries old story of compassion.

When Guru Gobind Singh ji was waging a “dharma yudh” to protect non-muslims from forced conversions by Aurangzeb, his youngest sons Sahebzada Zorawar Singh (age 9) and Sahebzada Fateh Singh(age 7), along with his mother Mata Gujri, were captured by the Nawab of Sirhind Wazir Khan

Nawab of Sirhind Wazir Khan ordered for the two children to be bricked behind a wall. Sher Mohammad Khan, the Nawab of Malerkotla, raised his objection, & walked out of the court saying that the execution of children was a heinous act and was against the tenets of the Quran.

Sher Mohammed Khan subsequently wrote a protest note to Emperor Aurangzeb. ‘I beg to lay a humble appeal before your majesty and hopes that the august person of the shadow of God…. be pleased to bestow his compassion and forgiveness on the young sons of Guru Gobind Singh' !

He wrote to Emperor Aurangzeb that, "It may be considered that the mode of inflicting the punishment and torture as contemplated by the Viceroy of Sirhind can, by no means, be considered compatible with the principles of supreme rule, equity and justice’.

Guru Gobind Singh thanked the Nawab of Malerkotla for his intervention, even though it had failed to prevent the death of 2 Sahibzadas The Guru blessed him with a Hukamnama & a Kirpan, also promised that the Muslim community in Malerkotla would never b harmed in the times to come

Guru blessed the house of the Nawab, declaring that its "roots shall remain forever green." Residents of Malerkotla believe this could be one of the reasons the town produces an abundance of vegetables throughout the year and is referred to as the “vegetable capital” of Punjab !

Major Balwant Singh, who was the minister of law and order in 1946, wrote that at the time of Partition, about one lakh Muslims from other areas of Punjab took shelter in Malerkotla. Not a single killing took place in the whole state. All of them were safely sent to Pakistan.

Though the resources of the town were stretched thin due to the large number of refugees; though crowded and unhygienic conditions led to the outbreak of disease; and though families began to suffer due to a paucity of food, every household contributed to provide for the refugees

The story of Malerkotla shows us how a simple act of compassion can span generations of peace, and how we can bring harmony to our country if each of us were to emulate the spirit of Malerkotla in our own small way.

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More from @ramanmann1974

Ramandeep Singh Mann

@ramanmann1974

Nov 14

U.S farmers complain #Thread

3 years ago, I sold a box of sweet potatoes for $17, Last year I got $15, & this year they’re paying $13

“Next year I can’t plant them,” he said.“It’s going to come to the point where there will be no local growers left &r produce will be imported".

Biden is trying to get rid of fossil fuels, and it’s killing us, our packaging costs doubled, fuel costs are through the roof, and we paid $1,000 a ton this year for fertilizer that was $500 a ton in 2021.

So we get hit twice,” he said. “It’s putting a lot of pressure on us.”

Another farmer says: We lost peach processing market to China, U.S fruit canneries have closed in recent years after China’s low labor costs sent prices for imported canned fruit plummeting; that’s why most farmers right now r pulling back, not making investments in new plantings

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Ramandeep Singh Mann

@ramanmann1974

Nov 13

Thread
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How, over the past 40 years, U.S food supply chain has become concentrated in hands of a few large multinationals, which serve as middlemen in everything from seed genetics to hog processing to supermarkets. Do we want such a business model in India; think hard, do we ?

~From 1975 to 2015, Market share of 4 largest beef packing firms increased from 25% to 85%.

~From 1988 to 2016, Market share of 4 largest soybean seed firms increased from 42% to 76%.

~From 1976 to 2015, Market share of 4 largest hog processing firms increased from 33% to 66% !

~From 1997 to 2018, Market share of 4 "top grocers" increased from 25% to 44%.

~~From 1988 to 2016, Market share of 4 largest corn seed firms increased from 59% to 85%.

~6 brands acct for half the global chocolate market, an asymmetrical market that favors only buyers & traders

Read 35 tweets

Ramandeep Singh Mann

@ramanmann1974

Nov 13

Remembering "Sher-E-Punjab" Maharaja Ranjit Singh on his birth anniversary, who united 11 #Sikh "misls" of & formed the #SikhEmpire, was the 1st Indian in a millennium to turn the tide of invasion back into the homelands of the traditional conquerors of 🇮🇳, the Pashtuns (Afghans)

At the height of his power, "Sher-E-Punjab" Maharaja Ranjit Singh domains extended from the Khyber Pass in the northwest to the Sutlej River in the east and from the Kashmir region at the northern limit of the Indian subcontinent southward to the Thar (Great Indian) Desert.

In July 1799 Maharaja Ranjit Singh seized Lahore, the capital of Punjab; Afghan king, Zamān Shah, confirmed him as governor of, but in 1801 he proclaimed himself maharaja of Punjab. He had coins struck in the name of Sikh Gurus, & administered in the name of Sikh commonwealth.

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Ramandeep Singh Mann

@ramanmann1974

Nov 11

Thread

#Punjab #Farmers were encouraged to shift away from #bajra #pulses #oilseeds #chana & enter #wheat-#paddy cycle by a assured price mechanism policy; why not assure MSP for #pulses to Punjab farmers, which can cut 16,627 crore imports, reduce paddy acreage & paddy #straw ?

An example to show, how the shift from pulses in Punjab happened.
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In 1960-61, #pulses acreage in #Punjab was 9.03 lakh hectares with production of 7.09 lakh ton, but; in 2018-19 Kharif, it dropped to 7500 hectares with a production of 6200 tons

The per kg cost of pulse import increased from Rs 16.88 in 2006-07 to Rs 42.80 in 2016-17 (rise of 10%/year). If India were to continue to import large quantities of pulses, the unit cost of such imports is to increase for sure. Why not encourage Punjab farmers to grow pulses ?

Read 14 tweets

Ramandeep Singh Mann

@ramanmann1974

Nov 10

Thread

#Stubble burning continues because of the short window between paddy harvesting & wheat sowing in #Punjab.

Now, there is a silver lining.

A new low-cost, environment-friendly & revolutionary method of paddy stubble management & wheat sowing has been introduced by PAU !

This method, propagated by Punjab Agri University will lessen the cost of stubble management & wheat sowing by three to four times as compared to the conventional method, experts said, adding that it can – if put into effect – halt the paddy straw burning in #Punjab like anything

‘Surface seeding' in which paddy harvesting & wheat sowing are done at the same time, an attachment is fitted with the harvester which broadcasts wheat seed & fertilizer at the time of paddy harvest, followed by a single operation of cutter-cum-spreader (3 - 4 inch above surface.

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