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| Sunday,
October 1, 2000, Chandigarh, India |
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‘PU neglecting reservation policy’ CHANDIGARH,
Sept 30 — In the process of selecting teaching and non-teaching employees of Panjab University, the basic reservation policy of the Government of India is being over looked on one pretext or the other resulting in poor representation of these categories. Even though the Constitution of India makes 15 per cent reservation for the Scheduled Castes and seven and a half per cent for the Scheduled Tribes mandatory in admission, appointment and promotion in all Government offices and institutions, in PU the figure is abominably low — as low as 0.5 per cent. Out of the almost 900 lecturers, Readers and Professors, only five belong to the reserved category. (see table). The University Grants Commission has laid down basic guidelines for the university to facilitate the implementation of the reservation policy but the university has no set procedure for making appointment in these categories. “In so far as the implementation of the reservation policy is concerned, it seems that the university has been rather negligent. In its history of more than a hundred years, not a single post in the reserved category has been advertised. Moreover, there is no comprehensive list of the appointments being made in the University, or who belongs to which category,” says Dr M. Rajivlochan of the Department of History, member of the Standing Committee for SC/ST in the University and a Dalit Movement activist. As per the norms laid down by the University Grants Commission (UGC), Panjab University’s special cell for the SC/ST was formed more than a decade back along with a Standing Committee to oversee the effective implementation of the policies and programmes for SC/ST. This standing committee was reconstituted in July 1998 to suggest follow-up measures for achieving the objectives and targets in respect to these reserved categories. “The earlier committee was disbanded as it had become virtually defunct and all it did in the last ten years was to keep asking the UGC for clearer guidelines about the way the reservation policy was to be implemented in the university,” says Mr Kehar Singh Syndic and Fellow, Panjab University. The UGC wrote back saying that it had sent the requisite guidelines many-a-time and sent the 1998 guidelines again. Among the other instructions which the UGC gave to the university, it also directed that a SC/ST member be included while constituting the selection committee for recruitment of a member belonging to the SC/ST category. In the Syndicate and Senate meetings of March 1999, the guidelines sent by the UGC in February 1998 were approved. But these approvals also failed to make a difference as the appointments to some new posts held later proved. In response to the advertisements for new appointments dated 3/98 and 4/98, for the 6 posts in the Department of Physical Education, not a single one out of the 18 SC/ST candidates who applied was selected. Similarly, out of the 4 posts advertised in The Department of Education, one was reserved for SC/ST’s and a candidate who was considered qualified and eligible was not selected. The Deputy Registrar in charge of the SC/ST Cell, Mr H.C. Malhotra says that the University has been writing to the UGC to clarify some of the rules but there has been no reply. Hence, there is a problem in implementing these. Also the number of those belonging to SC/ST are much more in the university but many have not openly admitted to it. “It really does not matter if these people have admitted that they belong to SC/ST. The fact is that if they have been selected in the open category then they are not representing their community. The community has to be represented as per the regulations laid down by the Government of India and the Constitution,” says Dr M Rajivlochan. Mr Kehar Singh says, “The university authorities during the tenure of the last Vice-Chancellor had been ignoring the effective implementation of the reservation policy. The new VC is here and we have high hopes from him. We are grateful that he has already assured us of his support. What is required is a proper roster of all the appointments and promotions being made in the university. That will reduce ambiguity and it can be clearly laid down which post is reserved.” |
10-day NSS camp concludes today CHANDIGARH, Sept 30 — The ten day NSS camp being held in the Dev Samaj College for Women, Sector 45-B, will end with a valedictory function tomorrow. About 100 volunteers were trained in various short term courses such as tie and dye, batik painting, candle making and first aid and home nursing. Adult education programme, health awareness, environment protection, child care, safe motherhood, care of elderly people, immunisation and care of patients suffering from communicable diseases and legal literacy for women were the projects undertaken by the NSS volunteers. The volunteers worked for the improvement of the college campus and at the same time they stressed the cleanliness activities and the inculcation of hygiene awareness among the residents of the Burail village. Many community leaders , social workers , members of Panchayat and Mahila Mandal were also involved in the drive, informed an NSS volunteer. Special lectures were delivered to the volunteers highlighting the role of women in society by Mr Gulshan Sharma, Director, ITFT, Ms Shiela Didi, a woman activist, Prof Raj Mohini Sethi , Chairperson of the Department of Sociology, PU, and Ms Sneh Mahajan , Principal MCM College.Dr C.L. Narang, coordinator PU, NSS and Mr Deepak Malhotra , Principal D.A.C College, Sector 35 B, also delivered lectures on social issues.
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166 students participate in painting contest PANCHKULA,
Sept 30 — As many as 166 students, including those from the Saket Hospital and the Deaf and Dumb Centre in Raipur Rani besides 14 schools of the city, participated in an on-the-spot painting competition organised by the District Child Welfare Council, here today. The students were divided into three groups of green, white and blue. While the green group comprised of students aged five to eight years, students in the white group were aged between nine and 12 years, and those in the blue group were in the age group of 13 to 16 years. In the green group, the first and third positions were bagged by Rini Tomash and Kamakshi Singh, respectively, of Little Flower School and the second prize went to Pallavi of Astha Model School. Amit Sharma of Moti Ram Public School came first, Smita Kalwania of Chaman Lal DAV School came second and Neeraj of Florence Public School came third among the participants of the white group. In the blue group, Atul Mittal of Satluj Public School stood first, Madhu of Haryana Model School was declared second and Amar Kumar of Government School, Sector 19, came third. In a separate group, where competitions were held for the handicapped children, Kiran Kumari and Sunil Kumar from Saket were declared first and second, respectively, and Kush from Raipur Rani came third in the five to 10 years category. In 11 to 18 years, Anil Kumar of Saket was first while the other two positions went to Mukesh Kumar and Lakhwinder Singh of Raipur Rani. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr S.K. Monga, said not only books but art was a alternative way to acquire knowledge. He said that the Artists’ Association in the city was formed to provide a single platform to all social welfare organisations working to promote local talent. |
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Dasehra celebrations
in school PANCHKULA, Sept 30 — A cultural programme marked the Dasehra celebrations at Hansraj Public school, Sector 6, where students of the junior wing put up an entertaining show. The show comprised bhajans, dances and skits. However, the best performance came in the form of the enactment of scenes from Ramayana staged by students of Class V. The yagyashala at the premises was converted into a kutia. Students of Class II depicted the battle scene where good triumphs over evil. Abhishek Kapil played Rama and fought Ravna to come out winner in the battle. From here, the scene shifted to Ayodhya where Lord Rama arrived in style. “Payo ji maine Ram Rattan Dhan Payo” and “Ramji ki Ayee Savari” were some of the songs that marked the occasion before the 30 feet high effigy of Ravna went up in flames. Students of Doon Public School, Sector 21, participated in a fancy dress competition to mark the beginning of the festival season. The theme of the programme was “Seasons”. The manager of the school, Mr AS Anand, said activities like these were organised to ensure personality development of children.
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Heated discussions mark Syndicate meeting CHANDIGARH, Sept 30 — The fee charged from students for the “special self financing” courses in Panjab University came in for criticism during the Syndicate meeting here today. It was pointed out that teachers were being paid marginally while students were charged as heavy as Rs 18,000 for the course. It was also pointed out that the payments to teachers were being made out of the amalgamated fund. Prof Charanjit Chawla argued that there were hardly any colleges which employed full-time faculty for the self-financing courses. “If the teachers were paid out of the amalgamated fund, where did the fee collections go? colleges needed to clarify”, Professor Chawla added. “Teachers needed to be employed on full time basis. In several cases there were only a guest faculty which affected the ‘genuine’ chances of bright youngsters”, he said. “The issue needed a thorough study. Governments crying for money cannot take excuse by showing back to the academics which was a social act and held reins of the future”, a member added. Members also raised the issue of the university not allowing a ‘special chance’ to the B.Ed, LLB, BCA, BBA and B.Lib students which was cleared by the university house in 1999. Mr Satish Kumar, Mr Paramjit Pammi, Prof Raghuvir Singh and Prof Charanjit Chawla spoke on the issue demanding immediate action. Prof Ram Prakash and Ms Sneh Mahajan pointed out that several seats were still lying vacant as some candidates had left the course mid-way to join various other institutions. Prof K.N.Pathak, the Vice-Chancellor, said that appropriate authorities should be consulted. Ms Sneh Mahajan, Prof R.D. Anand and Prof I.M. Govil showed their displeasure at the ‘unfaithful recording of the senate and syndicate proceedings’. Interestingly a member said “the English used was wrong at places”. Sources said that the issue of construction department generated much heat in the debate. The VC proposed probe into the issue. Prof Ram Prakash, Dr Deepak Manmohan, Mr Kehar Singh, Professor Chawla and Professor Anand said there was hanky-panky business in function which needed a careful study. Mr Ashok Bhandari, Joint Controller of Examination, was handed over the charge of the Controller with financial and administrative powers. Only the paper setting aspect remains out of his domain. There was reportedly a mention of the issue of payment of salaries to workers who had been shown the doors by the university. Prof Anand said personal responsibility should be fixed. Another issue of debate was a communication of the UGC to the university saying that a UGC member should be included in the appointment panel of a professor. The issue was passed. Prof Chawla recorded his note of dissent. Mr R.K. Singh was appointed the Chief Security Officer. Mr Satish Kumar and Professor Govil opposed the move. Professor Pathak said that this was a one time exception to have a superannuated person. Serving security personnel were not very keen to quit their services. Appointments as usual evoked interest of fellows. There were objections with regard to payments to Mr Rakesh Singh Bedi, RSIC. He was given an extension at the regional centre, Muktsar, for this session. The Syndicate decided to have a fresh appointment for the coming session. Decision on appointment of Ms Manjit Paintal as Director, Regional Resource Centre, was deferred. Case of disallowing 118 candidates of the correspondence courses to undertake examination on grounds of using fake certificates, was deferred. There was a loud noise when the allowing of change in date of birth of one candidate out of nine applicants was objected to. Mr Chatrath supported the case while Professor Ram Prakash objected to it. The issue was deferred. The university Syndicate meetings for this year are scheduled for October 28, November 18 and December 9. The Senate is scheduled for December 17. The convocation will be held on December 27, sources said. |
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Teachers trained for
cultural education CHANDIGARH, Sept 30 — The 24-day orientation course for the secondary and senior secondary school teachers ended today at Indira Holiday Home with a hope to create awareness among the school children about the rich cultural heritage of India. 143 teachers from eight northern states participated in the orientation programme which started from September 7. The programme was organised by the Centre for Cultural Resources and Training, New Delhi, in collaboration with North Zone Cultural Centre, Patiala. The main aim of the orientation course was to introduce art and culture in the day-to-day class work. The teachers were trained to make students aware about the Indian art and culture through means of education. Handicrafts were also taught to the teachers like tie and dye, pottery, paper mache and book binding, informed Deputy Director, Mr G.C. Joshi. Indian classical dances were also made familiar to the teachers by well known artists. The teachers were provided a kit comprising of a projector, slides, publications to be used in the classrooms while teaching the students, informed Ms Vandana Chauhan, Field Officer, CCRT. “We have learnt a lot in this course and it was a new experience altogether. By introducing art and culture in education the students will because aware about their cultural heritage and remain close to their roots. This is how the western impact can be reduced on today’s generation,” said Ms Loveleen, Teacher, Government Model School, Sector 33 D. Mr Surinder Kaul, Director General of CCRT and Mr R.D. Jindal, Director of Northern Cultural Centre presided over the function. |
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Sainik School
in Aero Quiz semi-finals CHANDIGARH,
Sept 30 — Sainik School, Kunjpura and St Theresa’s School, Karnal have been selected for the semifinals of the Aero Quiz - 2000 during the preliminary rounds held at Ambala today. The semifinals will be held in Chandigarh on October 13 and the finals are scheduled to be held on October 14. Schools from Ambala, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Panipat, Sonipat and Kaithal participated in the quiz today. A total of 12 teams will be selected for the semifinals. Four teams have already been selected during the preliminaries held at Jalandhar and Faridabad earlier this month. Three more rounds are scheduled to be held at Panchkula, Patiala and Chandigarh on October 3, 4 and 9, respectively. |
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Group song competition CHANDIGARH It was based on patriotic songs and the main aim was to generate the spirit of patriotism among the young generation. The winning teams will further participate in a state-level competition which is being organised on October 14 at Mandi Gobindgarh. The all-India-level competition will be held at Hyderabad on November 25 and 26 where teams winning in states will participate, informed Mr Madan Gupta Sapatu, a senior executive of parishad. The winners in the junior category in the order of merit were Stepping Stone School, Sector 38; Government Model High School, Sector 36;Government High School, Sector 24. The winners of the senior category in the order of merit were Moti Ram Arya Senior Secondary School, Sector 27-A; I.S. Dev Samaj Senior Secondary
School, Sector 21 C;Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Sector 23 A. |
Naushad to give
away Rafi Awards CHANDIGARH, September 30 — Popular music director and Dada Saheb Phalke Award winner Janab Naushad Ali will be the Chief Guest of Rafi Nite and Rafi Awards function to be organised by Yaadgar-E-Rafi Society on November 12, 2000 at Tagore Theatre, Chandigarh . The organising secretary of the society, Mr B.D. Sharma who met Naushad in Bombay, said the music director had confirmed his visit to the City Beautiful Chandigarh. He will give away the awards and two runners-up trophies to the first three winners in the male and female categories. The Rafi Awards winners were selected from among 250 contestants over a three-part contest held between June-July, 2000 in both categories. The programme will be based on songs composed by the music maestro Naushad and sung by Mohd Rafi and his female contemporaries. Near about 32 male and female singers will sing melodious songs in the function. Last year these awards were given by the popular music director O.P. Nayyar. |
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