CAMPUS
Rose from the ranks, she retires as Principal
Gaurav Choudhury

It may well qualify as the end of an era. After 33 years of dedicated service, 20 of them at the helm, noted Punjabi litterateur and educationist, Dr M K Gill retired as Principal of Mata Sundri College.

Her chart of the professional career is the benchmark for emulation, where she had risen from the ranks of a schoolteacher to that of the principal of a college of Delhi University. She has been known for hard work, determination, grit and sincerity.

Dr Gill has made pioneering contribution in the field of Sikh religion. Experts on Sikhism, consider her study of the biographical and historical importance of the Sikh Guru-consorts a significant contribution. Among several publications that Dr Gill has to her name are, “Bani Saar”, based on Gurbani and “Har Do Alam Taak”, an indepth biographical research on Guru Gobind Singh, stand out among the best in their respective fields.

Dr Gill is also a poet of repute, and has so far published four anthologies. Her poems strongly depicts the woman who after years of barbaric subjugation, stands up, reacts and asserts her rights, socially and morally, and fights for her self-identity, equality and liberty. On the eve of Dr Gill’s retirement from the service, a function was organised jointly by Punjabi Manch, Punjabi Lekhak Sabha and Punjabi Sahit Kala Sangam, as a mark of honour for the educationist. Among those who attended the function were: Former Union Home Minister Buta Singh, Principal of Guru Gobind Singh College, Dr Jaspal Singh, and noted Punjabi litterateurs Dr Jagbir Singh and Dr Manjit Singh.

Secretaryship course

The cut off date for admission to the intermediate course in Company Secretaryship, has been set for February 28, 2002. The students seeking registration for the Company Secretary main course will be eligible for examination in December 2002.

An official statement said that the prospectus and application form were available on cash payment of Rs 100 at the headquarters, Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) at 22,0 Institutional Area, Lodhi Road or from the ICSI-NIRC Build, Plot No 4, Prasad Nagar Institutional area. The prospectus can also be had by registered post, by sending a Demand Draft/ Postal Order of Rs 140 favouring: “The Institute of Company Secretaries of India” through any of the 59 offices of ICSI located at various places in the country.

Graduates in all disciplines except fine arts are eligible for the admission. The subjects for study in the Intermediate Course include, general and commercial laws, company accounts, cost and management accounting, tax laws and management information systems and corporate communications in Group I. The papers in Group II include company law, company secretarial practice, economic, labour and industrial laws and securities laws and regulation of financial markets in Group II. After qualifying the intermediate and final examinations, students are required to undergo management, practical and modular training to become qualified as company secretaries.

HCL- Amity

The leading information technology company, HCL Infosystems, has announced the implementation of wireless, Local Area Network solution for the Amity Business School, an arm of the Ritnand Balved Education Foundation (RBEF). It will enable the Amity Business School to go completely wireless, making it one of the first of its kind in the country.

The HCL is also engaged in other IT infrastructure projects with Amity in the areas of IT security, Intranet, messaging and other IT management services. Dr Ashok K Chauhan, Founder President of the 34 Amity institutions across the country, said, “Consistent with our promise to provide an unparalleled learning experience, we have stolen march over other education institutions, by becoming pioneers in the wireless communications on campus. By making a tie-up with the HCL Infosystems, we believe we have partnered with best in the industry. They have unmatched expertise in this area and are known for their innovative solutions.”

Mr George Paul, Vice-President, Operations, HCL Infosystems Limited, said, “HCL Infosystems has tremendous domain knowledge in the education segment. The wireless, LAN solution will facilitate learning and overall development of the students at Amity. We are pleased to be associated with this prestigious project.”

The 15-acre campus of the Amity Business School on the link road between Noida and Delhi, has been deployed all across with wireless Intranet and Internet connections. The students, faculty members and visitors to the Amity campus will no require a phone jack or data point to get connected to the Institute’s network. They will have the ability to use their laptops/ hand, held PDAs to communicate through e-mail, conduct library search, participate in an online discussion or surf the Internet from anywhere on the campus.

The technology adopted, is based on IEEEE 802.11 B, standard operating at 11mbps bandwidth using 2.4 Ghz direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS). The wireless access points are strategically positioned within the campus to ensure free roaming of laptops. These access points seamlessly integrate with the existing fibre-based wired network of the campus.

Young scientists

Intel India announced that four young scientists have been selected at the Intel Science Talen Discovery Fair 2002 (Intel STDF) national finals to represent India at the Intel International Science Engineering Fair in Kentucky, USA in May 2002.

Competing amongst 70 projects in total, the national winners of the Intel STDF 2002 fair, representing the best two individual and one team project at the Delhi national final include Vaibhav Gupta (project in Environmental Science) and Akshat Singhal (project in Computer Science) in the individual category and Anupama Bhadoria with Chetna Dudeja (project in Botany) in the team category.

Speaking at the event, the Principal Secretary in the Department of IT, Mr S Raghunathan, said that the “event represents an opportunity for budding Indian inventors to present their inventions and interact with other scientists, inventors, teachers, students.

The fair inspires out-student inventors to continue their spirit of invention and creation that will contribute to the betterment of our society in the future”.

The President of Hewlett-Packard India Limited, Mr Arun Thigarajan, said, “The future of our success here in India and throughout the world will significantly depend on how prepared our young generation are to face the challenges of the future”. 

Jamia students having a harrowing time
Rana A Siddiqui

Ever since the attack on Parliament made news last month, the Muslim students of the Jamia Millia Islamia, especially foreigners and those belonging to Jammu and Kashmir, are having sleepless nights.

“Earlier, I would mingle with my friends freely. But after the attack, they have kept me at a distance. They feel sceptic and frightened to greet me as if I was one of the assailants! More so because Jammu and Kashmir is labelled as the den of terrorists. Now, even my identification card is examined like an anthrax container,” says Umar Farooqh, a student of engineering from Jammu.

Salman, a BA final year student echoes the same view, “I went to Palika Bazar yesterday. Despite carrying my I-Card, I was frisked like anything while others were left to go without much fuss. The guards were even afraid to touch me in apprehension of my being a human bomb!”

Even the teacher fraternity is worried about the evident restlessness on the campus. “This Institution has set a very fine example of an intact religious harmony since its inception in 1925. The New York devastation and the attack on Parliament have changed the outlook of the general people towards it. As if we are harboring terrorists,” moans a reader.

The radical change has also angered many. “When the NY devastation happened, a few major newspapers even published that pamphlets in support if Osama Bin Laden were distributed in Jamia. Though nothing of this sort ever happened here. In fact, we did a condolence meeting for those died in this tragic incident. The media highlights the condolence meetings of other academic institutions but not ours. “Why?” asks Azad, a final year student from Manipur.

It’s true, the restlessness can be witnessed in the students’ eyes - regardless of community. Is it a deliberate attempt of disintegrating two communities, especially Hindus and Muslims? As Mahatma Gandhi had once said, “They (Hindus and Muslims) are two eyes of a beautiful bride called India. Of whose, if one eye is lost, the bride will look ugly.”

(Note: Names of the students have been changed on request)

School, college toppers honoured
Our Correspondent

Sonepat, January 9
All the students who stood first in BA, BSc, BCom and BEd final examinations held by Maharshi Dayanand and Kurukshetra universities and students who topped in 10 plus 2 and matriculation examinations conducted by the Board of School Education, Haryana last year were honoured at a function organised by the Atlas Cycles, the bicycle manufacturing company, here last evening. Mrs Anita Chaudhary, Commissioner of Rohtak Division gave away a bicycle and a certificate of appreciation to each of the students.