A NEW WORK SITUATION IN AGRICULTURE The first step for tobacco—valuable Just the day before yesterday, against the daily target of 122 hectares, around 240 hectares were planted with tobacco in the agricultural enterprises of the Elbasan district. Planting of this crop has so far been completed on more than 53 percent of the area. The fact that almost twice the planned amount is planted every day shows that this pace is being maintained for two reasons: first, preparation of the plots for planting was completed on time, and second, the good conditions created after the rains are being put to very good use by the cooperative members. All the agricultural enterprises have accelerated planting, but Gjoçaj, Karina, Rasa, Klosi and especially Shushica deserve special mention, having planted 75–80 percent of their area. In these enterprises, efforts are being made to complete the tasks on time. Completion of tobacco planting has been scheduled for the end of April in the lowland area and May 10 in the mountainous area. In addition to planting new seedlings, replacement of damaged seedlings and those that failed to take root has been completed in the plots planted during the dry days. This has made it possible to ensure the required number of plants across the entire area already planted. Meanwhile, a concern has arisen: in all areas of the district, the tobacco pest known as the flea has appeared earlier than in previous years in many of the newly planted fields. In addition to reducing quantity, this pest particularly lowers quality. Despite the measures taken so far to combat it, the lack of supplies of pesticides could cause concern in the days ahead. SHABAN XHEMALI, in the agriculture section of the Elbasan district

—Report from Berat— First, let us give a brief overview of the spring planting. Across the district, 42 percent of the area has so far been planted with wheat, 37 percent with corn, and 84 percent with beans. What about cotton? Not even 5 percent. By April 14, in the 8 agricultural enterprises in the district that grow this crop, only 26 hectares out of a total of 910 hectares had been planted. These are: Lapardhaja, 10 hectares; Goricani, 11 hectares; and Poshhnja, 5 hectares. The agricultural enterprises of Perondia, Starova, Kozara, Kutaliza and Syzez have not yet begun this work. The commitment of the managers and specialists of these enterprises is that this year (Continued on page 2)

— PERMET — These days, after the rains, the entire wheat area was given a dose of nitrate; meanwhile, planting of beans, potatoes and vegetables is in its final stages. More than 60 percent of the tobacco has been planted, and the necessary replacements are being made in the area planted before the rains. Forces and equipment are now focused on planting corn, which must be completed by the end of April. The Petran cooperative has planted more than 60 percent of its corn area. Here, the daily target is exceeded every day. More than 50 percent of the area has also been planted in the Këlcyrë cooperative, and work is progressing rapidly and with good quality. The agricultural cooperatives of Çarshovë, Sukë and Ballaban are in comparable conditions, but are not progressing at the same pace; they have planted around 45 percent of this crop. In the mountainous area, the agricultural cooperatives of Miçan, Ogreni t and Topojan have made good progress. What is Frashëri waiting for, when it has not even started, and what about Kreshova and Zhepova, which have planted only 3 and 5 hectares? There is no shortage of ready tractors. Ways have been found to repair breakdowns in the fields. Tractor drivers with high-level qualifications take part in the repairs carried out by the brigade, together with the workshop mechanics who have been distributed among the brigades. The tractor driver personally monitors the quality of the repair. The service arrangements and “kordi are bearing fruit during this period, which requires intensive work. The work of the SMT should be monitored more closely in the mountain cooperatives, because Bubejsi, Malasi and Zhevopa are being held back by it. PËRPARIM MUSTAFAJ

Construction of the Banja hydroelectric complex is being accelerated more and more each day. The lake created in the bed of the Devoll is also steadily increasing its capacity to hold water and is approaching the town of Gramsh. The creation of the lake will bring changes to this town involving the relocation of buildings, facilities and roads. Enver Kalo, head of the town-planning section, explains that the town’s industrial zone, together with the economic enterprises, will be located on the southern side of the town, on an area of more than 20 hectares, where the state will invest around 25 million lekë. The industrial zone will not simply be relocated, but transformed both technologically and in terms of its function and production capacity. To this end, the designers and town planners have carried out studies of several alternatives, in order to better meet the town’s future development needs as well. All this will be coordinated with the broad promenade along the lake shore, the new ring road and the reconstructed entrance to the town. In the future, this elevated part of Gramsh will also have its own residential area, with new housing blocks of more functional architecture; the town’s subsequent development will take place on the other side of the river and lake, in the present-day village of Trashovicë. In other words, Gramsh is to become a town that is almost tourist-oriented and modern. For now, everything we have described above exists only in our imagination, based on the impression given by the layout plan for the new town, because the work carried out so far clearly shows that progress is not being made with the necessary intensity and that the deadlines set in the 1986 decision of the Council of Ministers seem to have been ignored. For 1987–1989, 67 percent of the investments for restoring the situation following the creation of the lake were planned. The failure to meet the tasks set out in this decision is due to the implementing enterprises having accumulated considerable shortfalls over the three-year period. The NN of Gra- [text continues in the next column] The tasks arising from construction of the Banja hydroelectric complex. msh has fulfilled its task by 73 percent, the NN of the Banja hydroelectric power station by 46 percent, the municipal enterprise by 39 percent, the Tirana paving enterprise by 73 percent, and so on. On the other hand, the relevant ministries have not allocated the designated funds for each year. The Ministry of Agriculture has accumulated a deficit of 4.1 million lekë, the Ministry of Trade 550,000 lekë, the enterprises 703,000 lekë, the Municipal Economy enterprise, and the list could go on. And how is work proceeding on this year’s tasks? Once again, not well. Overall, the first quarter’s target has been met by 68 percent. With the exception of the NN-Rruga of Elbasan, the other enterprises report significant shortfalls. To present the situation as realistically as possible, let us turn again to the figures: work on the municipal system and high-voltage lines stands at zero percent, the NNM of the Metallurgical Combine at 36 percent, the Banja HPP at 58 percent, the NN of Gramsh at 57 percent, and so on. Of the 22 projects scheduled for this year, work has not yet begun on 8. These days, a joint meeting was held at the Executive Committee of the KP of the Gramsh District with representatives of the ministries to discuss these concerns. Deadlines were also set for the ministries to report as soon as possible on when several urgent problems would be resolved. Worse still, representatives of some ministries were not fully clear about some of this year’s tasks, let alone those for next year, which they do not seem to think about in advance. In Gramsh, there is a need to build a production yard where prefabricated components and concrete will be produced and other needs for completing construction work volumes will be met. It is the first project that should have been set up, but the design has still not been completed and it has not been included in the plan, even though there is a decision to do so. There are also delays in designing the town’s wastewater collector and beginning its construction, as well as in construction that will serve the new village of Çërrujë, the study of passenger transport across the lake, and other projects. The relevant ministries are responsible for all these projects. At the meeting mentioned above, one of the ministry comrades tried to shift the blame onto the comrades in Gramsh and forgot that the problems arising from the flooding do not concern this district alone. Nor did it seem right when a ministry official said, “we will help Gramsh.” This is not a matter of “help” or officials’ “generosity,” but of everyone doing their own job. And not from Tirana, but by coming to Gramsh, because the hydroelectric complex is being built here and the problems cannot be solved from offices. The good reputation earned by the builders of Banja in constructing the project should become a source of experience for the construction of new projects in the town of Gramsh as well. Let us mention, in this connection, the most recent experience gained in building the ferrochrome plant in Elbasan, which is nearing completion in record time and to a high standard. In conclusion, we would also like to add something relating to a concern shared by residents and leaders in the Gramsh district. Backwardness is overcome through good organization and a strong sense of responsibility, not through ill-considered and improvised solutions. The poor example set in the design and construction of the Elbasan–Gramsh highway, where bureaucratic thinking prevailed and which has now become a matter of accountability, must not be repeated. Everything that is built in Gramsh will serve both the present and the future; therefore, coordination and consultation with groups of workers and specialists are essential here. SEJDIN CEKANI

— VLORE — The recent rains have also created a new situation for all the agricultural enterprises in the Vlorë district. On this basis, work is proceeding at a rapid pace on several fronts of spring planting, but wheat is also receiving close attention. According to the stages of development, and through direct inspection of the planted plots, specialists have determined the order of the crop treatments, such as applying nitrogen fertilizer, deepening drainage furrows, and combating weeds, diseases and pests. The areas planted with wheat, says Fatos Meminaj, chairman of the Risilia cooperative, “needed an additional application of nitrate. With teams qualified in the hand application of nitrogen fertilizers, we managed, within 4 days— (Continued on page 2)

The Chairman of the Presidium of the People’s Assembly of the People’s Socialist Republic of Albania, Comrade Ramiz Alia, sent the following congratulatory telegram to the Queen of Denmark, Margrethe II: «On the occasion of Denmark’s national holiday, I have the pleasure of sending You warm greetings, together with sincere wishes for Your happiness and for the prosperity of the Danish people». (ATSH)

Health workers in the country’s districts have intensified their work to protect and strengthen the health and well-being of the population, especially mothers and children. Their attention has focused in particular on raising levels of professional qualification, scientific knowledge, preventive care and health services, while strengthening cooperation with government bodies, economic organizations and mass social organizations. As a result, last year, compared with 1986, the activity of children aged 0–5 fell by 10 percent, and that of the older age group by 20 percent compared with 1980. The districts of Gjirokastër, Sarandë and others have been distinguished for their better performance, with these indicators below the national average. The districts of Tropojë, Dibër and others should follow their example. During the first quarter of this year, too, the health and well-being of children has been better than in the previous year. Through greater efforts, health workers in the districts of Gramsh, Kolonjë, Kukës, Librazhd, Mat, Mirditë and Tiranë have already achieved better indicators. In implementing the tasks set by the 5th Session of the 11th Legislature of the People’s Assembly, health institutions in the districts are working to introduce modern methods for diagnosing and treating illnesses and to ensure suitable working conditions (Continued on page 3)

It is an ordinary street. A characteristically Shkodran street. Narrow, with houses lined up one after another, with white walls and neatly arranged courtyards. All in all, it may be about six hundred metres long. It lies somewhere on the outskirts of the «8 Nëntori» neighborhood. Like every person or family, like every neighborhood, village or town, this street, too, has its own life. It has its own rich biography. It has its joys, worries, and everyday events. We meet its past. It lives in the present. But it also looks toward the days ahead. You walk along it and immediately feel the pulse of life. You feel its movement, its vitality. And you feel swept along. It has taken hold of you completely. Heroism is present everywhere on this street, in a tangible way. When I put it this way, I do not have only the past in mind. It is written in letters of blood. It was written by hearts and comes to us through the years as a sacred message. Is not the street’s very name part of this message? Thirteen and ninety-two. Thirteen, which is also written in the street’s name. The first name commemorates the People’s Hero Perlat Rexhepi. He lived on this street for a long time. He was indeed from Vlora, but Shkodra, too, made him its son. At Banja e Vogël (the street’s name during the war and before it), the martyr-communist Esat Gjylij shed his blood. And not even two springs had yet passed. Abdulla Kastrati and Shyqri Bushati, Fetah Barbullushi, Shaban Huti and Xhemal Bushati were born and grew into men on this street. All five were killed in their prime by the Nazis of Prishtina. They were five brave men, four of them massacred. Flowers also blossomed from their blood. People still remember. Fadil Alush Dibra also lived on this street. Two brothers, two martyrs. The last of the thirteen martyrs is Qezim Cirilami. His sacred blood watered Austrian soil. After escaping from the concentration camp at Bregtenfurid, Vienna, he made contact with the Viennese communists and became a liaison between them and the internees. They were united by their purpose, united by the language of freedom. But one day... And it was on the eve of spring. No more than two years passed between the fall of the first martyr and that of the thirteenth. But this period is a great chapter of heroism. All the residents of the street committed themselves wholeheartedly to the War, to the Party. They spared nothing. Even today, the residents of Banja e Vogël call their street Banja e Kuqe. The years of socialism, the years of the Party’s era, brought light to the residents of «Esat Gjylili» Street, just as they did to the whole homeland. The flood of light brought people together in song and celebration. New times came. New heroes were born. The hero Selim Shabani and the Socialist Muc Koxha worked all their lives at NSHRAK. Even now, in retirement, you will still find them there. For that is where the skilled craftsman grew up. There, the hero of the great war grew up. On this street you also meet another Hero of Socialist Labour, Selim Shabani. Who does not know the hero of the grain giants? For years, his name has reached beyond the borders of Shkodra. Heroism in our country has taken on new dimensions. It has reached new heights. These are the heights of socialism. Only an emancipated society, a society like ours, can raise people to such heights of work. Socialism ennobles people. And Selim Shabani has one memory, the most beautiful of his life: meeting Enver Hoxha! The leader had the man of labor at his side, at the front. And he embraced all his comrades. He kissed all those who had turned heroism into an everyday act. Twenty-three houses, with about thirteen residents, were counted altogether on «Banja e Vogël» Street during the war years. If we leaf further through the chronicles of the time, we learn that among the families making it up, four were bricklayers’ families, three were drivers’ families, two were coachmen’s families, two were merchants’ families, and so on—we could continue with gardeners, tailors, carpenters and shoemakers. And the intelligentsia? Four low-ranking clerks and... two midwives?! It was a bleak, deeply rooted reality. We were the suffering of poverty, about which Migjeni had raised his voice long ago. Those times can now be found only in museum displays. Beside the houses, which bear memorial plaques—medals of heroism—on their white walls (Continued on page 2)

A moment of work on the beverage-bottling line at the oil-and-beverage factory, Shkodër. (Photo: L. Lika) A moment of work on the beverage-bottling line at the oil-and-beverage factory, Shkodër. (Photo: L. Lika)