EDUCATION

Caste alliance to play decisive role in campus elections
Our Correspondent

Meerut, October 18
With the withdrawal of the names of two candidates for the post of president, the student union election of the Ch. Charan Singh University Campus is now heading towards a triangular fight.

Though the ABVP has been strengthen with the ‘coming together of Jatav-Gujar votes’, it still has to take into account the alliance between the Samajwadi Party and the Lok Dal.

Nineteen candidates are in the fray for the various posts of the student union of the Ch. Charan Singh University Campus, scheduled for October 20.

As caste consideration dominates the student’s union election of the Ch. Charan Singh University Campus, candidates are busy lobbying with the students of their respective caste. This became clear on Friday evening with the withdrawal of two candidates for the post of president.

Efforts were on for several days by various groups to firm up equations on the basis of caste. In effect, a triangular fight is on between Somendra Tomar backed by ABVP, Narendra Kumar backed by Samajwadi Party and Lok Dal and Sweta Mohan Sharma.

Reportedly, these panels are divided on caste line. Somendra Tomar enjoys the support the Jat lobby on the campus, while Sweta Mohan Sharma is being backed by the upper castes.

Those supporting the Jat lobby on the campus said that it has been the ‘tradition’ of the campus to have a Jat president, as the university is named after the famous Jat leader.

Of the 2,300 voters on electoral list, there are nearly 650 Jats, it was claimed. According to some observers, in the triangular fight between the Jats, Jatavs and Gujar and the other upper castes, the Muslim voters may play a decisive role in the student union election of Ch. Charan Singh University Campus. 

Ignou’s study centre at PGIMS
Our Correspondent

Rohtak, October 18
Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou), New Delhi, has opened a study centre at Pt. B. D. Sharma PGIMS. Training of doctors registered for Postgraduate Diploma in Maternal and Child Health at Ignou has been going on at the PGIMS here.

In a statement here today, Dr Dhruv Chaudhary, Public Relation Officer of the institute, said a batch of 20 doctors from Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh had been imparted theoretical and practical training by senior faculty members of the PGIMS, Rohtak. He said three round of training had already been completed at PGIMS.

Faculty members from Social and Preventive Medicine, Obstetric and Gynaecology and Paediatrics had been appointed as academic counsellors to impart skills to the trainee doctors.

Teaching material to faculty members and participants is provided by Ignou and participants are also imparted skills through distant learning techniques like teleconferencing, organised by Ignou from time to time. The present academic session would end in December 2003 and an examination would be conducted by Ignou at the end of the session.