EDUCATION

CAMPUS
Sense of patriotism sweeps student community
Gaurav Choudhury

IF anything, the recent terrorist attack on Parliament has at least increased a sense of patriotism, especially among the student community. While the tension on the campus in the aftermath of the arrest of the a lecturer has now eased a bit, students are seen engaged in serious debates these days ranging from India’s diplomatic position to the statistical details of the country’s military strength.

As the chilly winds rip through the surface of the Capital, tea and coffee vendors are doing brisk business as students engage themselves in the task of advising the government on various issues affecting the country’s external front.

And like the political establishment, the views range between extreme ends of the spectrum. “I do not understand why India cannot ensure the Pakistan gets off our back. It’s like carrying an irritating monkey on our backs for several decades, and still we continue to allow them to attack our democratic institutions. This is ridiculous. Going for a military onslaught is the only alternative,” says one student while sipping a hot cup of tea on a misty forenoon on the campus.

A different strand of thought, however, co-exists as well. “Listen mate! We cannot afford a war at this point of time. A war with Pakistan will inflict a serious blow on our already-fragile economy. For another, the changed geo-political calculus will entail that the international community would not support the declaration of war by India. Whatever methods Pakistan uses to provoke us, we should display ultimate restraint,” says another student. The arguments, of course, are packed with statistical enumeration, historical details and other trivia.

Now and then, the discussion gets heated up, the common thread of patriotism ensures that the debated does not get diluted. And so long this happens, the country can rest assured that the future is not all that bleak.

SFI demands

The Students Federation of India (SFI) has said that it will send one million letters to the President of the country, Mr. K R Naryanan on January 9 this year demanding his intervention to advice the Prime Minister to remove the “communally blind Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Dr Murli Manohar Joshi”.

In a statement, the SFI said that the HRD Minister’s recent statement depicting left historians as terrorists only exposes his derailed mindset. Such a blatant communal mind cannot be allowed to continue as the Minister of HRD. “He is hell bent upon destroying the secular character of our education system, widely described as ‘Talibanisation’, which is anti-national and anti-constitutional”, the statement said.

“It is the national movement for independence that established India as a secular democratic nation by rejecting the RSS slogan to make India a Hindurashtra. Any effort to denigrate our secular character shall be considered as an anti-national act and no patriotic, progressive person can allow that to take place”, the students body said in a statement.

Debate competition

The National Council for Cooperative Training under the National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI), organised an inter-university national debate competition on “Challenges and Opportunities for Cooperatives in the Globalised Economic Environment” on December 27 and December 28 last week.

The deputy leader of opposition and former Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Mr. Shivraj Patil inaugurated the competition, while Vice Chancellor of Jami Hamdard University, Mr. Siraj Hussair presided over the function. The Chairman of APEDA, Mr. Anil Swaroop, delivered the keynote address.

Employment camp

The Rozgar Gyan Ganga organised a ‘Free Career cum Employment Assistance’ camp at Jagriti Enclave, Preet Vihar on December 30. The special features of the camp were Apna Rozgar Chuno (Select your career), Rozgar Prashnottari (Employment Quiz), Tatkal Rozgar Pao, ‘Rozgar Sarita’ and ‘Videshi Rozgar Sahayata Sewa’.

Gyan Darshan

January may see the inauguration of test transmissions for several Gyan Vani stations - the educative FM radio stations operated by the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU). Moreover, ‘Gyan Darshan’, the educational channel operated by IGNOU, will be completing its second year of operation this month. The university authorities are hopeful that the new satellite INSAT 2C will be launched during this month. The Gyan Darshan is likely to be shifted to this satellite and soon have a separate dish antenna for receiving the channel will be over. It will be available along with other Doordarshan channels. The launch of the satellite also throws open the possibility of Gyan Darshan becoming digital this year, thereby increasing the spectrum and choice of educational TV channels in the country.

DUSU demands

The Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) has placed a three-point demand before the Vice-Chancellor. In a letter to the VC, the DUSU said that Syed A R Geelani, lecturer in Arabic, Zakir Hussain College, should be immediately dismissed from service for his alleged involvement in the terrorist shoot-out in Parliament. Moreover, the students union demanded that the Geelani’s bank account in the college branch be immediately sealed. DUSU also demanded that the Jordanian student, who allegedly is a friend of Geelani, should be immediately removed from the Teacher’s Transit Camp.

26 DPS centres for poor tiny-tots
Abhay Jain

The people are highly motivated and a good response has been received from the villages where the Shiksha kendras have started functioning, concluded the director.

Six readers, but no lecturer for 12 yrs
Rana A Siddiqui

THE New Year has brought no hope for the Delhi University’s Department of Urdu, especially those vying for a lecturer’s post for more than a decade.

Surprisingly, for the last 12 years, the department has not appointed any lecturers! The reason? Some assume that it to be the ego clashes of different heads of departments at different times. Some say, the university simply wants to save money given to it and some say that the bone of contention is the UGC’s and university relationship. The UGC had asked the university not to appoint any lecturer in a specific session. Such ‘specific sessions’ have been passing for long but still, no notice from the UGC has arrived for the appointments.

The senior professors assume that the UGC wants that education be privatised, so it is not issuing any notice to escape the ‘burden’ of further distribution of money. Till now, at least five times, posts are advertised but each time its valid period of 18 months expires and posts are re-advertised.

Whatever the reason, but it is sad for the candidates. The last appointment was made in 1987. Five posts are still vacant since that time. Though in 1999-2000, Prof. Amir Arfi, the then HOD, tried for the same but in vain.

In his tenure, Vice-Chancellor Deepak Nayyar even called a panel for the selection of candidates, but minutes before the interviews, it was called off. As there rose a hue and cry over the panel, which, owing to a ‘technical error’ was not agreed over by all. Thus, the candidates called for the interview remained either unemployed for all these years or simply made their living by teaching in some school at a meager amount. Some of them are known to have big families to support, while a few are newly married. (Prof. Arfi, however, managed to appoint four deserving readers).

In DU’s Zakir Hussain College, one post was announced, but it was categorized as ‘reserved’. In the absence of any candidate, this post keeps vacant. Each session, it is re-announced. Thus, for the most deserving as well as the needy candidates, the post remains a mirage.

To be appointed as a lecturer, the candidate must be both a Net qualified and a Ph.D. If the candidate has completed his doctorate before 1993, he is exempted from Net. Yet, one Inteshar Alam, though, is neither exempted nor Net-qualified, is teaching as a guest lecturer in DU’s Satyawati College. Inteshar, who is learnt to be a candidate of Satyawati College’s chairman Deep Chand Bandhu, now a minister in Delhi Government, allegedly hurdles the ad hoc appointments for he does not fulfil the requirement for the post.

One Dr Akeel Ahmad also known to have tried a lot to attempt efforts for ad hoc appointments in this college, but allegedly Inteshar Alam, through his high connections never let it happen. Now the department has six readers, seven professors and no lecturers!