Chandigarh, Monday, December 14, 1998
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Chandigarh, Monday, December 14, 1998 |
Benchmark performance |
| CAREER QUERIES by Pervin Malhotra |
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Ahluwalia
drafting perspective plan Holding coveted positions has become a habit with Dr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia who recently was chosen to head the Punjab School Education Board, better known for its maladroit clumsiness than academic excellence. He has been assigned the task in spite of being five years into his retirement. He justifies, “Academically, I’m on a very sound footing. Originally, a PCS officer nominated to the IAS I have ample administrative experience. I have headed various departments and was at one time Secretary, PSEB. An author and a poet of over three dozen books, I was the natural choice. All these things gave me an edge over other aspirants and got me the appointment.’’ The backing of the Akali Dal was a major force which clinched the post for him. He reluctantly admits to the fact but is quick to add, “No political party would want a man of opposing ideas at a sensitive post.’’ He elaborates that only like minded men who can comprehend the policies of the government and present them in the right light are needed.``Whatever I do here is a direct reflection on the government. Therefore, they don’t appoint people on the other side of the line’’, he explains. The most striking problem faced by the Board, he says, is that the syllabi has lost its relevance. The entire concept of school education needs to undergo a change to keep up with the changing times, he says. All-round development of the student and preparing him for the next century needs to be undertaken. A very meagre budget has been allotted for this. Surprisingly, subject experts could themselves do with some updating—they are still way behind, he exclaims. To deal with these problems, he says: “I am drafting a perspective plan for the first 25 years of the next century. I will submit this to the state government for adoption and thereby ensure that students passing out do not lack on any front.’’ Another area of concern is the wastage of the scarce financial resources at the office of the Board. He says, ``My experience as an administrator will help me streamline the wasteful expenditure and help divert funds where these are most needed and bring efficiency in the working. Proper management and efficiency can give us substantial savings.’’ Truancy and corruption are rampant in the Board. The fake certificate scandal raises its head year after year. “I have immediately set up a monitoring cell under me to keep a check on fraudulent practices.” He has also started holding meetings with heads of the various wings and intends to meet the workers of each wing every fortnight. He has further initiated decentralised functioning to bring about efficiency and ensure accountability. This is aimed at bringing about a sense of involvement. He proudly proclaims he knows how to use the levers of the administration, manipulate moves and which strings to pull. Though the tercentenary celebrations will keep him occupied for the next six months out of the one-and-a-half-year term he has been given, he says he will manage the board work with dexterity for he has mastered the art of time management. During his term he plans
to bring about efficiency via incentives to his
subordinates and involvement of staff at the lowest
level. |
Benchmark
performance THERE has been a growing tendency amongst management institutes in the country to lay a great emphasis on students’ job placements. Students too, judge the institutes from their placement record. Placements are important but that’s not the only purpose for which a business school exists. To stay competitive, develop a good brand image and provide quality education programmes business school needs to benchmark is performance on several key performance indicators, periodically. Benchmarking could be against internal standards or external benchmarks at regional or national level. The benchmarking criteria needs to be carefully selected with due weightage to a number of critical factors which affect the overall performance of the institute, such as: * Faculty — Right number as well as good quality are extremely important. The student teacher ratio in the country varies from around 1:5 in some of the top institutes to 1:40 or even higher in case of others. Besides numbers, there has to be a right mix, with faculty members having sufficient research as well as hand on experience from industrial environment. Faculty needs to be encouraged to take up consulting assignments in the corporate sector during vacations or otherwise if the adjustments with teaching time are possible. * Infrastructure — Availability of sufficient land, building, classrooms, auditoriums and utilities need to be evaluated. Library resources are key to disseminate right information. Library budgets vary between couple of lakhs to over a crore in the country. With information technology tools becoming indispensable for management students, student to computer ratio or computer hours available per student also become important factor for benchmarking. * Learning methods — Learning and facilitation methods need to be updated periodically. Wide variety of interactive tools are available to make the learning process more effective. Learning tools would include adequate course material, case studies, business simulation packages and material for management development exercises. * Faculty training — The teachers need to be taught regularly. The institute should evolve a system of identifying the training needs of the faculty members and then meeting these needs through inhouse programmes or sponsoring faculty members for external workshops and management development programmes. Internal standards need to be set up in this regard. * Placement activities
— Right placements hold the key to the success of
the institute and do add to it’s competitiveness in
the market. |
| car |
Q. I have secured 49% aggregate in Class XII. Could you please tell me if I have to appear in a qualifying exam in order to enrol for a course in Company Secretaryship. Ritu Chhabra, Panchkula Ans There is no qualifying exam for admission to the Foundation Course of Company Secretaryship. All those who have cleared 10+2 (irrespective of the percentage of marks) can seek admission for the eight-month course by applying to the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) along with a course fee: Rs. 950/-. Admission to the course continues throughout the year. In order to become a Company Secretary, you must clear the Foundation, Intermediate and Final Examinations conducted by the ICSI. For further information, you may contact:
Q. I have completed graduation in BSc (Applied Electronics). Can you please tell me whether I can do M. Tech from any of the IITs? Pooja Kumar, Ludhiana Ans In order to seek admission to an M. Tech or any other postgraduate course in the IITs, you must first of all qualify the graduate aptitude test in engineering (GATE). This test is conducted on all-India basis jointly by the Indian Institutes of Technology and the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, and is a statutory requirement for admission to postgraduate courses in all engineering colleges in the country. With a BSc in Applied Electronics, you are not eligible to appear for GATE. Only those with a BE/BTech or MSc in relevant branches of engineering/science and those with professional qualifications such as the Associate Membership of the Institution of Engineers (AMIE), Aeronautical Society of India, or the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers. Q. After Class XII, I am keen on taking up a course at the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. Could you please give me NID’s address and also some information about the courses offered at this institute. Priyank Jaiswal, Shimla Ans The National Institute of Design (NID), an autonomous institution set up by the Ministry of Industry, is the country’s premier institution for imparting state-of-the-art education and training in design. It offers two types of programmes: School Leavers’ Professional Education Programme and Advanced Entry Programmes. While the former is open to students with a pass in Class XII, the latter is meant for graduates in specific fields. The four-year Programme for School Leavers offers diploma courses in the following areas of specialisation:
Although eligibility for these diploma courses is a pass in Class XII, competence in maths, science, social studies, drawing, technical and related subjects is considered an advantage. Admission to these courses is through an entrance test. The upper age limit is 22 years (relaxable by 3 years for SC/ST). For further information, you may contact:
Q. I have just completed my graduation and am very keen on joining an international airline as an air hostess. Could you please give me some insight into the selection criteria. Geetika Juneja, Chandigarh Ans Contrary to belief, you don’t have to be a beauty queen or model to apply for the job. To qualify for the job of an air hostess, you must be unmarried and below the age of 25 at least 157.5 cm in height (so that you can access work areas in the cabin and operate the emergency mechanism with ease), with proportionate weight and normal vision (most airlines permit myopia up to -2.5, provided it can be corrected with contact lenses worn regularly for at least three months prior to selection). Most airlines prefer graduates or diploma-holders in hotel management, catering or tourism and insist on stamina and physical fitness, a clear blemish-free complexion (in the dry, low-pressure cabin environment, even normal make-up may cause an allergic rash) and a pleasing personality. While proficiency in English and Hindi are essential, familiarity with an additional Indian language (considering the predominance of Singhs, Patels, Iyers and Basus in a typical passenger list) and working knowledge of a foreign language is desirable. Knowledge of nursing/first aid and overall general awareness is an asset. Most airlines advertise for vacancies specifying the desired educational qualifications, extra-curricular activities and physical criteria. Of late, many of them have begun to engage the services of a recruitment agency to process the large number of applications received. After scrutinising your original application, they’ll send you their standard application form. Keep a good full-length colour photograph (preferably in a saree with your hair neatly groomed) in addition to a passport-size colour photograph ready. The selection procedure consists of an objective-type written test in English, GK and simple arithmetic (you may also be asked to write a couple of paragraphs on why you think you are suitable for the job) followed by group discussion (to assess whether or not you are a team-player and sensitive to your colleagues). The whole procedure may be video-recorded, so make sure you convey the right impression from the time you enter. Short-listed candidates are then called for a detailed interview. Be poised, natural and confident (easier said than done when facing a hawk-eyed panel of experts). Remember, they are looking for a considerate and cheerful “people’s person” capable of sustained hard work. If you’ve managed
to sail through, then you will be asked to proceed for a
medical test which shouldn’t be a problem if you are
healthy and active. However, a word of caution would be
in order here: many Indian girls fail the medical tests
on one particular count — a low haemoglobin level
(particularly so in the case of vegetarians). While this
may not bother you on the ground, in the rarefied
confines of an aircraft, it can affect your oxygen intake
and tire you easily. So check your blood count at least
six weeks before selection and if it’s lower than
12, ask your doctor to prescribe an appropriate dietary
supplement. Last but not the least, make sure you have
your passport in place. |
| camp |
University
Chairs sans funds AMRITSAR: The much-awaited meeting of the Syndicate will be held on December 15 after a long gap. The meeting was delayed due to the failure of the state government to nominate three Syndics and Senate members. The forthcoming meeting of the Syndicate would deal with certain important issues, including filling of vacant posts. The meeting of the Syndicate would constitute a three-member committee headed by Dr H.S. Soch, Vice-Chancellor, which would “rationalise” the posts. Other members of the committee are Director, Public Instructions (DPI), and Secretary, Education. The GNDUTA has threatened to launch an agitation if the ban is not lifted by the end of this year. There are apprehensions on the filling of the vacant posts on the basis of the report of the sub-committee to be constituted by the Syndicate. Sources point out that the meeting of the sub-committee headed by Dr J.S. Puar, Vice-Chancellor, Punjabi University, Patiala, constituted for this purpose had ended without reaching at any conclusion on December 9. The construction of Maharaja Ranjit Singh Bhawan has not started so far. The foundation stone of the bhawan was laid by the then Prime Minister, Mr Inder Kumar Gujral, more than a year ago. However, the university authorities say that tenders have been floated for the same. The bhawan on completion would house research departments and those concering information technolgy. The working of the Chairs established after the names of Dr B.R. Ambedkar, Sant Kabir, Bhagat Namdev and Bhagat Ravi Dass has been adversly affected as heads of these Chairs have been directed by the Vice-Chancellor not to spend money on anything other than routine work till further orders. As a result, research work has virtually come to a standstill. Education Minister Manjit Singh Calcutta has publicly criticised the working of the heads of these Chairs. Interestingly, the Department of Higher Education which Mr Calcutta heads has not been regularly releasing grants to the Chairs. These grants were used for holding seminars. According to sources, except Dr B.R. Ambedkar Chair, no other Chair has been allowed to spend a paisa on research work. *** The School of Punjabi Studies has decided to celebrate the birth anniversary of Bhai Vir Singh, pioneer of modern Punjabi literature, every year at the university campus. According to Dr S.P. Singh, Head, Department of Punjabi, eminent scholars would deliberate on the works of the great modern Punjabi poet. It is pertinent to mention here that on behalf of Guru Nanak Dev University, the School of Punjabi Studies have been giving awards to budding writers. *** The university has decided to give timely information on job avenues to students. The university organised an exhibition-cum-conference in collaboration with the Department of Employment and Sainik Welfare, Punjab. The first such exhibition-cum-conference was organised by the newly created placement unit under the UGC scheme. *** The Guru Nanak Dev University Teachers Association has resented the “dilly-dallying” attitude of the state government in releasing Rs 50 lakh as grant for construction of the Regional Centre at Jalandhar, despite a number of representations. The then Chief Minister, Mrs Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, had laid down the foundation stone of the centre and had committed to release Rs 50 lakh for the same. Dr R.K. Bedi, president of the associationsaid that construction of the centre was on the top priority of the GNDUTA. Dr Bedi said the centre
had been running in three rented buildings. The state
government had also failed to fulfill its commitment for
opening a centre at Gurdaspur. The residents of the
border district had been demanding the same for the past
many years. |
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I could sleep on a clothes-line When people are
exhausted and tired out, they sometimes say, “I
could sleep on a clothes-line.” They are lucky they
don’t have to. In the last century in big cities
like London, poor people had to do just that. Landlords
of inns used to charge people two pence a night to sleep
sitting up on a bench, leaning against a line stretched
tight in front of them. It was known as the
‘two-penny rope’. Callous landlords would often
wake their guests in the morning simply by cutting the
rope. |
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