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| Saturday,
August 30, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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Experts mull on role of ITIs Chandigarh, August 29 Advising technical institutes to act as agents of change in keeping with the fast changing technological and economic environment world over, the chief guest, Mr Mohinder Singh Kaypee, Punjab Minister of Technical Education, said there was a great need for technical training and scientific manpower to bring India on a par with developed countries. He stressed the role of teachers in developing competent manpower in accordance with emerging needs of the country. He added that the need of the hour was to have technical teachers who were up-to-date with the latest in technology, its practice and use. For the purpose, he advised teachers from various states to make full utilisation of the infrastructure available in the TTTIs established by the Government of India. Welcoming the delegates to the workshop, Principal TTTI, Dr O.P. Bajpai, emphasised the problems being faced by the country in the field of technical education. Dr Bajpai hoped that the delegates would come up with recommendations for achieving excellence in technical education and producing high standards. Prof Susheel Mahajan, Chairperson of Information Technology, stressed the need for engaging youth in fruitful economic activity. She spoke on quantitative expansion of technical education for developing youth with employable skill. It was through industrialisation and exploitation of the potential of the service sector that the problem of unemployment could be tackled, he added. The Chairman of the Board of Governors, TTTI, Mr Yashpal Mahajan, apprised the participants of recent initiatives taken by the institute in the field of technical teacher education and training. More than 100 experts from state boards of technical education, directorates of technical education, engineering colleges, polytechnic of 15 states and union territories participated in the workshop. |
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Shabad recitation contest Chandigarh, August 29 In the individual category, Zeenia from Ajit Karam Singh International Public School won the first prize, followed by Jaskiran Singh from MJS Ramgarhia Public School and Ramaneet Kaur from Mata Sahib Kaur Public School. In the group category, Ajit Karam Singh International Public School, Sector 42, won the first prize. The second and third positions were bagged by New Public School and MJS Ramgarhia Public School, respectively. |
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AC creche
inaugurated Chandigarh, August 29 Mrs
Kaul, who was in the city along with her husband, Mr Vijayendra Nath
Kaul, spent sometime with kids and appreciated the facilities provided at the creche christened as ‘chahak’. Mr M Deena
Dayalan, Accountant-General ( A and E), Haryana, spoke on the facilities provided at the
creche. A cultural performance by employees and their wards drew a lot of applause. A patriotic songs, ghoomer and Kashmiri songs were also appreciated. Mr Ashwani Attri, Accountant General( Audit), Haryana, said Mrs Ajanta Dayalan, a former Accountant General ( A and E), Haryana, currently posted as Secretary, Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission was the brain child behind the creche Mr Ajaib Singh, Senior Deputy Accountant General (Administration) said of the 1500 employees in the office, 248 were women. The creche would enable the working women to discharge dual responsibility of both home and office with a greater ease. The creche had been provided with an air conditioner, a television, creative games . A kitchen with a refrigerator, a hot case and water heater have also been provided. The building of the creche was constructed by the Central PWD. |
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Workshop on emotional
intelligence Chandigarh, August 29 Earlier, while welcoming the faculty and the participants, Ms Tanisha Thiara, Deputy Resident Director, PHDCCI, Chandigarh, said the research conducted on the subject showed that people with high emotional intelligence are happier, healthier and more successful. Dr N. K. Chadha of the Department of Psychology, Delhi University, gave a psychological test to measure emotional quotient. |
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SCHOOL WORLD Kalhana of Kashmir is considered to be the first historian from India. He was born in the 12th century. His father Champaka was the dvarpala, the gatekeeper that is, the commander of the defences of the gate to Kashmir during the rule of King Harsha [1089 - 1101 CE]. There is little known about his education and intellectual training. This much, though is known that he had read the Harshacharita, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana extensively in order to copy their style for writing his history. What made Kalhana different from the many chroniclers and storytellers who had existed before him in India was his ability to be informative and accurate while at the same time keeping his readers from being bored with long and tedious descriptions in a long and tedious language. This could be expected from him since he also was a very good poet, just like so many other chroniclers of those times. Kalhan was clear that he had to write in an unbiased manner. A talented historian, he would say, ‘devoid of love or hatred relates the past anecdotes like an umpire’. Like a good historian he also explains in detail the sources that he has used to write his history as also the flaws in those sources. Eleven chronicles of the kings of Kashmir already existed, he informs us. They all had been put together in a simplified manner in a single book. As it would happen the originals, along with their details, were lost to memory and hence there was a need to write a fresh history of the Kings of Kashmir. For writing his history Kalhana used three books for basic information. Like a good historian he also looked for corroborative information from other sources, including edicts and inscriptions found in Kashmir. At the same time he also did not ignore important legends either because popular stories, though not always accurate, can still provide the historian important information about the past. One such that Kalhana used with great care is the story of the great lake called Satisara, the lake of Sati that existed in ancient times. Kalhana picks up the story of the Satisara from a previous text called the Nilamata Purana. Kalhana uses this story to describe the topography of Kashmir and changes in it over the years. The story is about a huge lake that originally stood in the place where present day Kashmir is. In this lake lived the demon Jalodbhava [one born in water]. Like all demons he too terrorised the people in the neighbourhood. Finally the people prayed to the gods who came and took positions on the surrounding mountaintops. Jalodbhava however refused to come out of the water. So Vishnu requested his brother Balbhadra to drain the lake. Balbhadra hit a mountain with his ploughshare and broke open a path for the water to drain out. As the lake dried, Jalodbhava could not hide any more and was killed by the gods. It is only recently that geologists have begun to date the deposits in this region to discover that due to the rise of the Pir Panjal range around 4 million years ago a vast lake had formed. Subsequently, as a result of the opening of a fault near Baramula, the lake drained out by the emergence of the river Jhelum about 85,000 years ago. Kalhana’s description of the geological history of Kashmir could not have been more accurate. The important point is that he had been able to reconstruct it through the judicious use of a popular legend much in the manner that historians even today use folktales and legends to glean information about an otherwise unrecorded past. M.Rajivlochan,
Department of History, Panjab University, Chandigarh.
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School World Helpline
The past decade has witnessed a sharp increase in the youth-related violence such as assault, homicide and suicide. Violence involving youth is becoming so commonplace that many of us shrug it off and nothing can be more dangerous than the trend that we get used to violence. One of the strongest influence on adolescents is media and several longitudinal studies demonstrate that exposure to violent entertainment is a causal factor in the promotion of a violent attitude and anti-social behaviour. Adolescents may be particularly vulnerable to the hidden themes of violence because their identities are malleable and evolving. Research shows that the notion of justifiable violence is extremely appealing to the youth. When violence is shown as “good” and the perpetrators are attractive persons, the likelihood of imitation increases among the youth. Moreover, there are only a few TV programs which actually condemn or punish the use of violence or depict that violence causes pain or has long-term consequences. As a result prolonged exposure to violence on TV desensitizes children and leads to the development of a callous attitude and behaviour towards violence. Violence is also a common feature in many homes, schools and on the streets. A child disciplined primarily by corporal punishment may know no other way to handle disagreement. There is also intergenerational transmission of violence. Children who are victims of harsh punitive methods of discipline grow up to physically hit not only their children but also their spouses. In general, children who witness severe or chronic domestic violence, especially if they know the victim and the perpetrator, are likely to experience emotional pain and psychological trauma which interferes with their social, emotional and cognitive development. The adolescent may respond by decline in academic performance and feelings of rage, shame, and betrayal. This may be manifested by rebelliousness, dropping out of school, becoming a member of a gang, and drug and alcohol abuse. They may also experience a loss of impulse control which is especially dangerous when there is easy access to lethal weapons. Family and community factors can significantly affect youth’s response to exposure to violence. A supportive family and a strong, extended social network can provide considerable support. Caregivers can teach and role model appropriate, coping strategies and competencies and non-violent methods of resolving conflict. Research indicates that adolescents who are at a low risk for involvement with violence use a wider variety of problem solving skills, have beliefs that support pro-social means of responding to disputes and act in a thoughtful coolheaded manner. Children at low risk also use humour to diffuse hostility and tension and use tactful skills to support their rights and dignity. All these skills can be taught and practiced by the youth when confronted by provocative situations. Although many adolescents do want to avoid conflict ridden situations, they are often thwarted by their peers who may use demeaning labels to incite a person to act violently, thereby starting a cycle of violence. Very often adolescents carry weapons as they feel a weapon may protect them. Evidence, however, indicates that possession of a weapon actually increases the risk of being both a victim and perpetrator of violence. Being a bystander also increases the risk of involvement in violence. In order to prevent the youth from becoming involved in violence, all concerned adults need to instill in them a stake in the future. A hope for bright future, opportunities for upward mobility may be the best method for prevention of violence. School and the community need to provide a safe environment in which our youth can learn, thrive and grow.
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New Release “Ganga Jal — The Holy Weapon” is Prakash Jha’s most ambitious attempt at taking on mainstream cinema on his own terms. It is touted as a socio-political thriller in trade circles. It is a dramatic journey of an individual into the collective consciousness. This one thickly envelopes the system that it seeks to govern. Ajay Devgan plays a young IPS officer. “Lagaan” fame Gracy Singh is the female lead. “Ganga Jal” has 87 characters, including Mohan Joshi, Mohan Agashe, Ayub Khan, Mukesh Tiwari, Akhilendra Mishra, Anup Soni, Dayashankar Pande, Yash Pal Sharma and Anita Kanwal. Shot widely in Satara and Wai in Maharashtra, the climax of “Ganga Jal” features more than 7,000 people. Prakash Jha the writer, editor, producer and director has involved an entire township in making the film. New York-based Wayne Sharpe, a professional sound designer has done the background score. The film’s production design and technique are highly innovative. Photography by Arvind K, art direction by Sukant Panigrahi and music by Sandesh Shandilya are other major credits of the film. — DP |
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Prakash Jha, known for his experimental films, is ready with his new venture “Ganga Jal — The Holy Weapon”. Made under the banner of Prakash Jha Productions and Manmohan Shetty’s new company Entertainment One, the film has Ajay Devgan and Gracy Singh in the lead roles. It opened on Friday at Jagat, Chandigarh and Suraj, Panchkula.