The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

EDUCATION

A presentation of united India
Shivani Bhakoo
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana December 6
'State-Meant'---a series of presentations on various states--was organised by JD Institute of Fashion Technology here today. The students of fashion designing presented a holistic concept in their presentations by giving audio-visual demonstrations and presenting the cuisine and culture of their respective states. Students dressed up in typical Punjabi attire, traditional Kashmiri phirans, long Assamese kurtas gave the feeling of a mixed, united India.

Director of the institute Pragati Taneja said:“The presentations are based on several days of research and hard work by the students to gain as much insight possible into the state’s history and culture. With the growing number of Indian tourists vacationing at foreign destinations, it was indispensable and inevitable to make this generation aware of the paradise that varied states of India offered”.

Students were divided into groups to cover six states---Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, West Bengal, Assam and Gujarat. The students of group I---Himachal Pradesh, Poonam Gupta, Shivani and Raman Rekha---spoke about the state, its important cities, the culture and tradition at length. Via visual aids they depicted various forms of paintings done in Himachal Pradesh, dances like Kinnauri, Chamba, Sirmaur and Kulu dance. They informed that Himachal was famous for its metal work, embroideries, leather craft, wooden carvings etc. The students had displayed famous Kulu shawls, phirans, wooden boxes with carved Kulu juttis. The students also served Himachal’s favourite cuisine.

Students of group II---Jammu & Kashmir, Puneet, Arpana and Ankit---presented a slice of J&K with their elaborate set-up. Kashmiri vases, suits, lamps, its flora-n-fauna, wooden paintings, shawls, bed-covers and rich silver/white-metal jewelry dominated the scene.

Group III---Punjab---consisted of Vishal, Manpreet Kaur, Pallavi Sadana, who covered various genres of Punjab. The students covered various topics like Punjabi festivals, rural sports, staple diet of Punjabis, occupation, importance of farming in the state, its products, the people and demographics. Keeping in mind, the rich and colorful heritage of the sate, the students collected brass and copper utensils to depict rural Punjab.

Group IV---West Bengal---had Priyanka, Promila, Archana and Gagan doing the rounds of research. They picked up the city of Kolkata in particular to depict the main characteristics of the state. The students talked about the traditional and modern Kolkata. People’s eating habits, their dressing-up, jewellry, main area of profession were all discussed in the presentation. The young designers had put forward an array of sarees with Tilla work, Mukaish, Gota and Zardozi.

Assam state comprised of Hemant and Hardeep Kaur. They discussed the tribals of Assam and their dances like Nougkrem. The traditional dresses of Assam like Mii, Asomya, Jhumpag were also displayed. This group served the visitors with Assamese tea.

Relevance of Sanskrit discussed
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, December 6
A UGC-sponsored national seminar on Sanskrit and astrology was organised by DRV DAV Centenary College, Phillaur. The chief guest, Dr S.P. Singh, former Vice-Chancellor, Guru Nanak Dev University, and the guest of honour, Mr Varinder Kumar Ghai, inaugurated the first session.

Principal Subhash Chander lauded the efforts made by various scholars who had brought the wisdom of the Vedas within the reach of the common man. Dr Brij Behari Chaubey, former Director, Sadhu Ashram, Hoshiarpur, deliberated on the “Relevance of Vedas in modern life.”

Dr Rajeshwar Mishra, Reader, Department of Sanskrit, Kurukshetra University, Dr Jagdamba Gaur and Dr Sudesh Atri were the eminent speakers.

In the second session, the keynote address was presented by Dr Mohan, President, All-India Jyotish Sangthan, New Delhi. Dr R.C. Sharma, Head Department of Sanskrit, Arya College, Ludhiana, presented a paper on astrology.

Dr S.P. Singh tried to show the affinity shared by Sanskrit, Hindi and Punjabi. He observed that Punjabi culture and language had its base in the Vedas only.

Mr Varinder Ghai announced a donation of Rs 1 lakh to the college for the completion of its conference hall.

Principal Dhani Ram, Regional Director (Schools), Amritsar Zone, was the chief guest for the final session. Mr Manjit Singh Gulati, Ms Suman Sharma, Mr Ravi Sharma and Mr Baljeet Singh Lalli were some of the distinguished guests.

As many as 60 delegates attended the seminar which was co-ordinated by Ms Narinder Saini, Head of the Hindi Department, and Prof Anjana Kharbanda.

The keynote address was presented by Acharya Amit from Shani Dev Temple, Phillaur. Dr Shiv Dhar Chaubey from Sadhu Ashram, Hoshiarpur, Dr Pankaj Mala, Department of Music, Panjab University, Chandigarh, Dr Yash Pal from Nakodar, Dr L.P. Upadhayay from DAV College, Jalandhar, Dr Meera from Dev Samaj College, Chandigarh, Dr Lakhbir from Dev Samaj College, Chandigarh, Dr Sanjeev Sood from Dayanand Ayurvedic College, Jalandhar, deliberated on the relevant topics selected for the seminar.

Mr Dhani Ram enlightened the audience about human values. He urged teachers to make efforts to keep Sanskrit alive.

From Schools
Sapling plantation marks NSS camp
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, December 6
A one-day NSS camp was organised at Government Senior Secondary School, Katani Kalan, here yesterday. The camp was organised under the supervision of programme officer, Mr Kulpreet Singh.

The volunteers undertook sapling plantation and maintenance of school lawns. Mr Kulpreet Singh briefed them about the importance of such camps.

The Principal of the school, Mr Rajinder Singh, spoke against the prevailing socio-economic structure and urged the volunteers to work towards eradication of social evils. Staff members of the school were also present on the occasion.

NCC cadets felicitated

Ten NCC cadets from Government Senior Secondary School, Bharat Nagar, Ludhiana, three from the Government College for Women, Ludhiana, participated in the national integration camp held at Patudi, Haryana, from November 19 to 30.

During a function held at Government Senior Secondary School, Bharat Nagar, here on Wednesday, Col S.S. Deol, Commanding Officer, felicitated the candidates who brought laurels to the 3 Punjab Battalion NCC Ludhiana unit. He presented merit certificates to all participants and trophies to Hemlata Chauhan (first in poem and essay writing contest), Lakshmi (first in 400 m race), Pawandeep (second in 200 m race).

During the camp at Patudi, Senior Under Officer Simranjit Kaur and Under Officer Hardeep Kaur of the Government College for Women were selected to participate in the NCC Day celebrations to be held in Delhi.