The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

CAMPUS
130 posts lying vacant in JNU
Smriti Kak

Of the 400 sanctioned posts in Jawaharlal Nehru University, close to 130 posts are lying vacant. “There are a number of posts that are lying vacant and despite constant reminders; the Ministry of Human Resource Development is yet to send a list of nominees to the President of India,” pointed out the president of JNU Teachers’ Association, Dr Ajai Patnaik.

He went on to add, “All the seven schools have a separate nominee. The tenure of these nominees is five years and the last set of nominees retired in October 2001. Since then we have been constantly reminding the HRD Ministry to release a list of nominees.”

With many posts lying vacant, there are a number of courses that are on the verge of closing down. “There is a specialised course called political sociology, which does not have a teacher and consequently the students cannot opt for it. Likewise, in many other departments there are a number of posts which are lying vacant because either the teachers have retired or they have been sent on deputation elsewhere,” Patnaik added.

The teachers are also complaining that the promotions of more than 20 teachers are also on hold as there are no nominees to conduct the interviews for the posts. With the vacancies yet to be filled up, the leave schedules have also been affected, “each department has a specific arrangement for teachers going on leave. Twenty per cent of the teachers can go on leave simultaneously, but in departments, which have just 10 or 15 teachers study leave cannot be availed.”

Meanwhile, with admission to various courses in the offing, the Students’ Union (JNUSU) has begun offering registration to students wishing to enrol for their annual schedule of holding free coaching classes for the economically weaker students, girls, students from outside the city and those who belong to the backward classes.

“The Union has been holding these classes for the last six years now and more than 3,000 students have benefited from them,” pointed out Sadar-e-Alam, a PHD student of the School of Languages.

Value education

Addressing the 104th Founder’s Day of the Hindu College, here today, NHRC Chairman, Justice A. S. Anand called for making the system socially relevant by promoting human and moral values. He said that degeneration in the present day lifestyle; demoralisation of public and private life and utter disregard for values was because of the fact that value education has not been given due place in educational institutions.

He said that the education system has buckled under the pressure of circumstances and contended itself to the role of merely awarding degrees and diplomas without paying adequate attention to the future of the students.

Justice Anand called for educational institutions, like the Hindu College, to provide a sound foundation for the society using bricks of integrity, cement of love, mortar of contentment, lime of compassion, water of purity and colour of truth as the raw materials. He told to the students that education has to be looked upon not only as means to a defined goal but as a self-elevating experience as it gives an opportunity to acquire a spirit of inquiry, of scientific endeavour, lessons of history, philosophical objectivity and sensitivity to issues larger than just earning a living.

Management corner: Managing uncertainty in business

The IME Centre for Corporate Interaction and Management Development (CCIMD), Ghaziabad, organised a National Seminar on ‘Managing Uncertainty in Business: The Strategic role of HR’, at the PFD House.

The Union Minister of Labour, Dr Sahib Singh Verma inaugurated the seminar. Addressing the gathering, Mr Verma said that he has been entrusted to ensure the passage of new reformed Labour Bill in the ensuring session of Parliament, which will be more effective to the larger workforce.

The daylong seminar was divided into four sessions, the first being, ‘Building HR Managers as Business Managers’. The second session on ‘Key competencies to Build Organisational Excellence’ was followed by ‘Employee Involvement as Strategic Business Partners’. The fourth session was ‘Building Quality Culture for Business Excellence’. TNS

Govind Sadan holds international seminar

Union Minister Murli Manohar Joshi at the seminar on 'Faith in Service of Humanity’.

Faith unites us, not divides us”, said the Union Minister of Human Resources Development, Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, speaking at the international seminar on ‘Faith in Service of Humanity’, organised by the Gobind Sadan Institute of Advanced studies in Comparative Religions.

The Minister went on to add, “The thinking that you and I are different is responsible for all ills of the modern world. When I fell that my religion is superior and yours is inferior, then wars start. You and I are manifestations of the same Creator, the same Ultimate Truth.”

Dr Joshi addressed to an international audience comprising, bureaucrats, scholars, diplomats and religious leaders. The three-day seminar saw participation from countries like the United States, Russia, Germany and Brazil.

Among those who attended the meet were President of the National Commission for Minorities, Mr Tarlochan Singh, Director, NCERT, Prof J. S. Rajput, Chairman of the Joint Eastern Europe Centre for Democratic Education and Governance, USA, Dr Joseph V Julian. TNS

Institute offers chip-level course in computers

Students being given hands-on training at A-SET in Paharganj.

Suppose your computer is not working. Normally, you call a software technician. After a thorough checking, the software engineer says that there is some fault in your computer not in networking. Then you call a hardware technician. After properly checking, he traces the fault and suggests you to change some parts of that computer. You have no other option but to do as he says.

Practically, these components of the computer could be repaired and it is cheaper than purchasing new parts. But this is not the cup of tea for any ordinary hardware technician. A hardware technician who has done the advance chip level course in computer can easily do this job. Unfortunately, even in city like Delhi, very few computer training institutes are offering this type of course. One such institute is Advanced School of Electronics and Technology (A-SET) at Paharganj.

According to the director of this institute, Mr Uday Kumar Vaish, hardware course is mainly divided into two parts, one is card level course and another is chip component level. There is no denying the fact that first one is superficial type and the second is very in-depth. Normally, most of the institutes are confined at card level course in hardware course. And nobody is touching to that level course. We are the first to break this tradition, Mr Vaish added.

Mr Vaish said that our 14-month course covers everything like computer assembling, repairing, and repairing different types of motherboards, hard disc repairing, etc. The students are taught through sketching circuit diagram of different parts of computer and motherboard. Their theoretical and practical training is focused on 50 different types of mother (main) boards and 500 odd faults.

The institute has also a placement cell. Previous track record shows that after the completion of this integrated and specialised course, every student get 3-4 job offers. Keeping in view, the convenience of out stationed student’s institute is also toying with the idea of giving hostel facilities in near future.

Nalini Ranjan