The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

EDUCATION

FROM COLLEGES
948 get degrees at GCG-11 convocation
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11
The Government College for Girls, Sector 11, organised its annual convocation, in which as many as 923 graduates and 25 postgraduate students were awarded degrees.

The UT Deputy Commissioner, Mr M Ramsekhar, was the chief guest on the occasion. In his address, he exhorted students to be sincere. He remarked that today women have to play an active role not only in reinforcing family values but also in nation building.

Honours degree in arts and commerce was conferred on 222 students, while 76 students were given awards for academic excellence. The college roll of honour was conferred on 24 students. Medals were given to six students fort heir performance in academics.

Seminar on Punjab economy

A seminar on ‘Punjab economy—retrospect and prospects’ was organised by the SGGSC College, Sector 26, here today. Presiding over the seminar, former Economic Adviser, FAO, UN, Dr Kharak Singh, remarked that the government was indifferent towards farmers and that subsidies on agriculture in India were the lowest in the world.

Stating that Punjabi farmers were dynamic and progressive, he added that if the government supported them, they could bring about significant changes. He suggested reduction or shifting core areas from wheat crop to other crops like vegetables, fruits and oilseeds.

In his keynote address, Prof H S Shergill from Panjab University, emphasised that that subsidy on agriculture should not reduced. Delving on food security vis-a-vis globalisation, he said that India must attain self sufficiency and not remain dependent on other countries. He added that high production costs and inefficiency had to be reduced.

Two technical sessions, where eminent speakers presented papers and gave lectures on related topics were also organised.

Students told about entrepreneurship
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, March 11
As many as 200 students of various trades of Industrial Training Institute, Sector 28, here participated in an ‘entrepreneurial awareness programme’ organised by the Regional Centre for Entrepreneurship Development (RCED) at the institute today.

Objective of the programme was to familiarise the students of the ITI with schemes and incentives available through various government departments, banks and financial institutions for setting up small business or industrial ventures.

While inaugurating the workshop, Mr Shivdev Singh, Principal of the institute, highlighted the need of such programmes and urged the students to take benefit of the interaction with officers from different government departments and banks who participated in the workshop.

Mr Paramjit Singh, Principal Consultant, RCED, urged the students to opt for entrepreneurship, rather than running after jobs. He claimed that nearly 20,000 youths had benefited from different types of training programmes organised by the RCED under various government-sponsored schemes.

While addressing the students, Dr R.K Gupta from Punjab National Bank focused on the different types of projects that the students could opt for after completion of their studies. He also promised all help and guidance for establishing their projects.

Mr S.R Dass, Chief Coordinator, PCRA, New Delhi, highlighted the activities undertaken by PCRA for various target groups to create awareness regarding conservation of petroleum products. Mr A.S Bajwa, Regional Coordinator, invited the students to join hands with the PCRA in their national campaign for oil conservation. A quiz competition was also held at the occasion.

Software for engg aspirants
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11
A Sector 20 resident, Devinder Singh, has come up with a computer software kit to provide a “sharp edge” to students keen on embarking on an engineering career. Referred to as Smart Testing environment, the software kit is used to perform tests online. Students can take tests on the topic and level of difficulty of their own choosing and at the time they want. They can judge their performance themselves as the computer would evaluate their score, highlight mistakes and give the correct solution.

Every students gets a permanent ID after filling in individual particulars as well as photographs. Whenever a student wishes to take a test, he is required to feed in the time of his continence and the level and topic. Tests can be repeated. If, for some reason the copmuter terminal malfunctions of stops working, the test can be resumed later from the same point.

Homoeo college course gets extension
Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 11
A committee set up by Panjab University has recommended that the Homoeopathic College and Hospital, Chandigarh should be granted extension in provisional affiliation for running the Bachelor of Homoeopathic System of Medicine (BHMS) Professional Course.

The committee has also recommended that the intake of students for the 2003-04 session be fixed at 50. Though the college was set up in 1974, it was affiliated to Panjab University for the BHMS course only last year and was granted provisional affiliation by the university for one year when the first batch of students was admitted. It was earlier running the course under the aegis of the Council for Homoeopathic System of Medicine, Punjab.

The six-member committee, set up by the Vice Chancellor of Panjab University, had visited the college about three weeks ago and had inspected various facilities available for teaching besides interacting with faculty members and students.

The committee report states that in view of the fact that the college has all requisites for running BHMS courses and has also fulfilled all the conditions and suggestions made by the earlier committee in its inspection report, extension in affiliation be granted to the college.

The committee has also suggested that the college management should implement new pay scales and allowances as recommended by the Central government for the faculty members and pay scales for non-teaching staff should be adopted as per university rules.

In addition, the college management should also introduce faculty improvement programmes and encourage teachers to improve their academic qualifications, the committee has suggested. For this, it has been recommended by the committee that the teachers should be sponsored by the college management and they be paid full salary for the period of their absence while they were undertaking further studies.

Following an earlier inspection carried out last year, the committee had made several recommendations which included procurement of additional apparatus to improve laboratory facilities and expansion of the college library with latest editions on medical subjects to be added.

Bringing about academic excellence by inviting guest faculty to lecture students on contemporary medical development and encouraging faculty members to attend seminars on homoeopathy as well as interact with noted homoeopathy doctors was also suggested.

SCHOOL WORLD
How & Why
Simple machines

Cork-screw

The downward force applied on the arms of the cork-screw pulls up the screw embedded in the cork, thereby opening the bottle.

Can opener

The squeezing of the long handles of a can opener makes it easier for the blade to cut into the lid, while the top lever creates a strong force that rotates the blade to cut the lid.

A simple machine is a device that reduces the effort to do work. Machines come in all shapes as wellas sizes.

A can-opener, a screw-driver, a crowbar, a stapler and a car jack are examples of some very simple and commonly used machines. Even a plain rod can be used as a machine.

Machines greatly multiply the effort that we apply to carry out a mechanical task and this enables us to do many things that cannot be done by using our muscular strength alone.

For example, raising the side of a car with the help of a car-jack requires considerably less effort than would be required to raise it by using our arms alone.

Here, the car-jack is the machine, while the car is referred to as the load to be moved.

The amount of effort saved by using a machine to carry out a task is known as the machine’s mechanical advantage.

The greater the mechanical advantage of the machine, the lesser will be the physical effort needed to move the desired load.

COURTS

DISTRICT COURTS
Court reserves order on Bhattal’s plea
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, March 11
A local court today adjourned its order for tomorrow on an application moved by Mrs Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Punjab Agriculture Minister, for not allowing private counsel to appear on behalf of the complainant, Mr Balwant Singh Dhillon, in a case registered against her pertaining to alleged corruption and embezzlement of Rs 20 lakh.

Earlier, on March 8, the UT Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mr Balbir Singh, had heard arguments of both sides on a plea moved by Mrs Bhattal. Counsel for the complainant had cited a number of judgements of the apex court before the Judge, claiming that the private counsel had the right to participate in the proceedings as the case involved embezzlement of public money. Therefore, by and large in public interest, private counsel could be allowed to appear on behalf of the complainant.

On the other hand, counsel for Mrs Bhattal strongly opposed the plea to allow private counsel on behalf of the complainant and also cited a number of judgements to support his claim.

Claiming that the complainant had no right to engage private counsel in a case, counsel for Mrs Bhattal had argued that since the state had taken cognisance of the matter, the complainant’s counsel had no right to address the court. Strongly opposing the complainant’s plea, counsel for Mrs Bhattal further argued that the private counsel had no right to participate in the court proceedings or even file reply in the case.

Earlier, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau had filed a challan against Mrs Bhattal in the court of UT District and Sessions Judge H.S Bhalla. Later, Mr Bhalla marked the case in the court of UT Additional and Sessions Judge Balbir Singh. The FIR in this case was registered against Mrs Bhattal on May 22 last year at the bureau’s office in Ferozpore Range.

Bail granted

Varinder, arrested by the UT police for allegedly desecrating an idol of a goddess, ransacking a temple at Dhanas and setting a car on fire, was granted bail by a local court. He was granted bail on a surety of Rs 50,000.

4 file papers for DBA posts
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, March 11
Four candidates today filed nomination paper for the post of president, vice president, secretary and treasurer of the District Bar Association. Those who filed nominations are: Mr Sajal Koser for the post of president, Mr Vijay Kumar Sharma for the post of vice-president, Satish Bhardwaj for the post of secretary, Harpreet Singh Hundal.

The Executive Committee of the DBA has decided to hold election of the body on April 4, informed the DBA president, Mr N.K. Nanda.

CULTURE

Salil, Aarthi perform at Baithak
Our correspondent

Chandigarh, March 11
Two presentations — Mohan Veena by Salil V. Bhatt and bharatnatyam by Aarthi Shankar, were performed at Pracheen Kala Kendra, Sector 35, here, this evening. The occasion was 74th monthly Baithak programme of the Kendra.

Starting the programme with raag madhubanti in drut and ati drut taal on the Mohan Veena, Salil showed his command over the instrument. The intensity of aalap, jor aalap in teen taal made his compostion alluring. Salil later moved on to a few compositions by his father Vishnu Mohan in vilambit taal. He was accompanied by Sandeep Das on the tabla.

The music, was followed by bharatnatyam presentation by Aarthi Shankar, a budding dancer from Delhi.

Aarthi started with pushpanjali and moved on the love tale of Radha Krishna. She concluded the recital with tilana.

Meanwhile, making an effort to bridge the gap between cultural focal points of two different regions, the Pracheen Kala Kendra, today provided an opportunity to city-based mediapersons to interact with Dr Debabratta Samantsinhar, an authority on this subject who provided an enlightening and illustrative background of the dance form.

Dr Samantsinhar, founder of the Udayan Cultural Akademi and assistant secretary of the Orissa Sangeet Natak Akademi, while talking to mediapersons on the kendra complex in Sector 35, traced the history of Odissi dance when the then Gajapati Anantaverman Chodagangadev appointed dancing girls called ‘Mahari’ for the ritual services of the deity at the Lord Jagannath temple.