EDUCATION

European IT experts at PAU
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, March 26
Experts in the field of information technology from Europe have reached Punjab Agricultural University to teach students of the PG Diploma in Information Technology. The team comprising Prof John Dron from the University of Brighton, Frank Meinecke from the University of Technology, Aachen, and Ms Rajapillai from Brighton is here for one week and will teach the students about the techniques of web designing.

The visits of experts are covered under the British Council Project for strengthening the PG diploma information technology at PAU started under the Higher Education Links Scheme. The diploma was started under the EU-India Cross Cultural Innovation Network. According to Dr H.S. Sekhon, Dean, College of Agriculture Engineering, under the three-year project the faculty from PAU will be able to get training in the UK. The British Council will also meet the requirements of related software and books. A modern computer laboratory is also being established for the postgraduate students at PAU.

Under this network another project to improve dairy farming in the state has also been initiated. Dr Ranjit Singh, Coordinator of the project, said that efforts were being made to train the selected farmers in dairy farming and organic farming by the experts from Denmark and Italy.

Programme on floriculture
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, March 26
The Department of Extension Education, PAU, organised a specialised training programme for farmers on commercial floriculture in collaboration with the Department of Landscaping and Floriculture. Dr S.S. Gill, Additional Director Extension Education, Communication Centre, while inaugurating the course, advised the farmers that they should decide about the area under floriculture only after exploring the market and getting firm commitment about the sale of their flowers and flower seeds.

He also suggested that our farmers must grow the pulses, vegetables, fruits, oil seeds at their own farms for their family consumption. Similarly the ingredients of cattle feed like maize and barley should also be grown rather than purchasing the pre-mix cattle feed at high price. Dr J.S. Arora, Head, Department of Landscaping and Floriculture, said course has been organised with financial assistance from National Horticulture Board, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, and 20 selected farmers will undergo two-day training.

PAUTA submits memorandum
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, March 26
The Punjab Agricultural University Teachers Association (PAUTA) has submitted a memorandum to Dr R.S. Paroda, Secretary, Directorate of Agricultural Research and Education, and Director, General Indian Council of Agricultural Research, to remove anomalies in the pay fixation of teachers and implementation of Career Advancement Scheme. The memorandum said there was resentment among the teachers on the issue. It also said if action was not taken to review its dates, teachers might knock at the doors of justice. The teachers had asked Dr Paroda to take up the case with the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Agriculture for reviewing the dates of the CAS.

Students without roll numbers
Deepkamal Kaur

Ludhiana, March 26
The fate of scores of private candidates appearing in Class VIII examination to be conducted by the Punjab School Education Board hangs in balance as they were without their roll numbers just a day before the examination.

While the students had deposited a fee of Rs 230 in January and have their receipt numbers, the students are now being told to deposit a sum of Rs 2,000 with the board to get their roll numbers in time.

The worried students said that they told their academy owners to get the roll numbers for them. The owners pointed out that they had met the local board officers as well the officers at SAS Nagar. Mr Raj Mehra and Mr Sampuran Singh, both owners of Malwa Khalsa New Public School, Hazuribagh Colony, Bhattian Bet, said that all the 11 students of their school had deposited the fee in time with the board officers. He said that when the students did not receive the roll umbers till last week, he approached the local board officers.

While further narrating their harrowing experience, they said that the officers of the local board office at Punjabi Bhavan told them to write down the receipt numbers and the name of the students and get the information the next day. When the two again visited the office, they were told that the names of the students were missing in the cut list of private candidates issued by the board.

The next day they again visited the office to verify the names of the students in the list prepared by the officers and it was found that the names of their students were missing. The academy owners were told to rush to the board officer where they were asked to pay Rs 2,000 per student, which they refused since they had already paid the fee.

Similar is the problem of the students of a private academy at Barewal and Churpur. While the examination will be held tomorrow, the students will not be able to appear as they are still without their roll numbers and information regarding their centre of examination.

Exhibition gets good response
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, March 26
More than 500 students turned up for technical and vocational education exhibition organised by the IDP Education Australia Limited at a hotel here yesterday.

Nearly 12 Australian educational institutes participated in the exhibition and provided information regarding the various courses offered by them. Free counselling on student visa processing, Australian education system, work rights and criteria for education loan was being given to the students.

Talking about the project, Mr Henry A.S. Ledlie, director, IDP Education, said it was for the first time that the company was putting up exhibition in the city. He said the response was good as several undergraduate, graduate and even postgraduate students, who turned up at the exhibition, seemed serious about joining institutes for various technical and vocational courses.

Regarding the preference for various courses, he said business, information technology, health sciences, fashion technology, bio-technology, international law, engineering and agriculture were some of the major streams which the students were opting for.

He said the quality of education, infrastructural facilities, library facility and low tuition fee and cost of living vis-a-vis other developed countries were some of the main attractions for the students moving to Australia for higher studies.

Most of the students said they were opting for education in Australian because they wanted to migrate there. 

Workshop on modern teaching methods
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, March 26
A five-day seminar-cum-workshop on modern teaching methods and attitudes to cope up with the growing expectations of new generation students and their parents is being organised at BCM Arya Model Senior Secondary School, Shastri Nagar, from March 28 to April 1.

Giving this information, Ms Paramjit Kaur, Principal, said the workshop would be conducted by Ways and Means Inc, a human resource development institute, with trainers from Junior Chamber International Training Institute, Florida, USA. An extensive survey on 500 students and parents has already been conducted by the trainers.

COURTS

HC admits writ petition
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, March 26
A division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court comprising Mr Justice Jawahar Lal Gupta and Mr Justice N.K. Sud admitted a writ petition filed by Rakesh Kumar of Ludhiana seeking the quashing of the arrest of his father, Mr Roop Lal, a wine contractor of Ludhiana, by the Excise and Taxation Officer, Ludhiana-II, under the provisions of the Punjab Land Revenue Act.

The counsel appearing for the petitioner contended that the action of the respondents was illegal, discriminatory, mala fide with extraneous considerations. Infact, the action was taken just to grab money from the father of the petitioner and when he refused to give them, he was arrested. It was also pleaded that the present case was a fit case for getting an inquiry conducted by an independent agency, like the CBI, to inquire and arrest such officials, who have collected huge wealth disproportionate to their sources of income by illegal means.

The Deputy Advocate General, Punjab, appearing for the state, argued that since the father of the petitioner had been released, therefore, the writ petition was liable to be dismissed having become infructrous. In reply thereto, it was argued by the counsel for the petitioner by placing reliance on the judgements of the Supreme Court of India and the Punjab and Haryana High Court that the action of the arrest itself was bad and the petitioner was entitled for compensation.

After taking into consideration the judgements referred to and the arguements, the High Court admitted the writ petition for regular hearing.