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Delhi Public School organises cultural fest
Chandigarh, January 11 The junior choir presented a welcome song. The senior choir sang the school anthem. A talk show on peace and harmony was the highlight of the day’s programme. It was followed by a dance, ‘Bharat humko jaan se pyara hai’. About 140 students were awarded merit certificates. The chief guest lauded the efforts of the school. The Principal, Ms Sunita Tanwar, said, “Let’s take pledge to help people in distress, to make the world a better place to live.
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Principal not involved in misuse of funds: PTA
Chandigarh, January 11 They said that the complainant, Mr V.B. Khanna, who submitted a representation to the Home Secretary last month, alleging misuse of funds, was peeved for not been taken as a member of the new executive after it was dissolved in September last year. In a representation submitted to the DPI (Schools), they appealed to the authorities not to take any action against the Principal. They said they were fully satisfied with the way the funds of the PTA were being utilised.
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Doscos averse to girls
joining school
Chandigarh, January 11 They seem almost unanimous on the issue, some even candidly admit that they fear the boys would be outdone by the girls in almost every field and in every respect if they are admitted, a risk they are unwilling to take. The regional representative of the old boys from Doon School, Gurpreet Singh of the 1975 batch, says,”I don’t think it is a good idea though I am not against girls studying at Doon per se. This issue cropped up some 15 years back as well and was shot down. While logistically speaking, the school has no space for girls or for their dorms and then, there’s nothing wrong with an all boys school. We are doing just fine”. There are a number of voices in support of his theory. A member of the executive of the old boys association, Ravibir Singh, a 1983 passout, adds, “The merits of a public school are that there are no distractions. Again, we have enough co-educational schools in India. So, Doon must be left alone. The present Headmaster, too, is not in favour of such a change”. Karandeep Suri, from the 1984 batch, maintains, “This talk of allowing girls into Doon has come as a surprise to me since Doon is unique because the girls are out. There is a lot more camaraderie and kinship among the boys that would end once the girls come in the picture. It would lead to a lot of under-cutting and over-playing and kinship would suffer”. Stating that Doon School was built on the pattern of Eton, Gurinderjit Singh, of 1980 batch, said the school would lose its charm if girls were to be admitted there. “Public schools are not meant to be co-educational. And, the boys are not losing out on anything in being all by themselves.” However, some senior students hold a different view. While Pushpinder Grewal of the 1961 batch thinks it is a “fantastic” idea to let girls study with the boys, Mr Sukhbir Grewal says the school’s traditions must change with the times. “We don’t want to be stuck with macho men all the time and spend the rest of our lives with men. Girls would make the school a better place to be in and would also make the boys more sensitive. The sooner such a change is introduced, the better it is for the school,” Mr Grewal opines. Mr Grewal, of 1950 batch, admits the move is “rather revolutionary and would mean a lot of school traditions would have to go. “However, today the entire emphasis is on studies and academic achievements rather than on all-round development. So, it is alright to open the gates of the school for girl students. I wish they were there when I was studying,” he added. Here too, however, there is a voice of dissent as 1949-batch Brig Jagjit Singh remarks, “Allowing the girls into the school would upset the ethos and character of the institution. We have made a name for ourselves and the old boys network is very strong. Our high traditions and strong bonding would all go for a toss if girls came into the picture”.
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Shortage of doctors
plagues PU centre
Chandigarh, January 11 Consequently, on holidays, the centre has no services in the name of emergency. Patients are forced to seek treatment in nearby nursing homes or wait for a working day. Also, the irregularity in supplies of medicines to the centre causes harassment to the patients. The Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr Pragya Kumar, said there was a shortage of doctors at the centre and they had sought more appointments in view of the increasing number of patients. At present, the centre has seven part-time specialists and two consultants who are available for only a couple of hours daily while the four doctors on the rolls of the university attend to emergencies and the OPD. All specialists, including ophthalmologists, gynaecologists, paediatricians and radiologists are part-timers. The CMO said she had requested the authorities to fill the posts of two superannuated doctors and sanction an additional full-time post at the centre. With regard to unavailability of medicines, she said sometimes the receipt of consignment got delayed.
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Pension scheme: PU staff to hold demonstration
Chandigarh, January 11 Announcing this at a press conference held at the ICSSR Complex, PU, here today, the Convenor of the Joint Action Committee (JAC), Dr Ronki Ram, and co-convenor, Mr Dharam Pal Sharma, said the various unions of teaching and non-teaching employees would observe 2005 as “Pension Year” and get the pension scheme implemented even if they had to Stating that over 4,000 employees are likely to participate in the protest, Mr sharma said the rally would be addressed by the local MP, Mr Pawan Kumar Bansal. The employees would begin their procession from the university and march down to the Matka Chowk, through Sector 15 and 17, where the rally would be organised. Dr Ronki Ram said that as a result of the joint protests organised on the campus last month, the JAC had been able to get amendments in the Pension Scheme of 1991 passed by the Syndicate and the Senate. “Now, we have to impress upon the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) to transfer Rs 10 crore every year for 10 years out of the university’s own income towards the corpus. The Vice-Chancellor has assured us that the day the MHRD sends its amount, he would implement the scheme from that very day,” Mr Sharma added. They also said that no cut-off date for pension had been fixed for the employees so to enable everybody to avail of the benefits of the scheme. “The scheme will be implemented from 2005. Any former employee interested in pension would be required to deposit the entire money he got from the university on retirement and the interest he received thereon. Once he does that, he would be eligible for pension,” they explained. The JAC also demanded that the pension scheme should be made a part of the university budget and that the university should assure the viability of the scheme. They held that the anomalies pointed out by the MHRD had been rectified. Blood donation camp As many as 113 units of blood were collected at a blood donation camp organised by the Students Organisation of Panjab University (SOPU) at the Student Centre, here today. The camp was organised in the memory of its former leader, Harveer singh, who was shot dead at a rally in Kharar last year. While a number of students donated blood, Mayor and PU Senator, Ms Anu Chatrath, Senators Keshav Malhotra, Ravinder Nath Sharma, Ajay Pal Gill, V.K. Mahajan and Kamlajeet Singh also donated blood.
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Annual function of school held
Zirakpur, January 11 Various cultural items, including dances, fancy dress, giddha and bhangra were presented. The function started with shabad and gayatri mantra. The students also presented taekwondo show on the occasion. An art, craft and science exhibition was also held. Mrs Veena Dada, OSD to the Punjab School Board, was the chief guest while Mr N.K. Sharma, president of the Zirakpur Nagar Panchayat, was guest of honour.
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Two-day remand for
scrap dealer
Panchkula, January 11 He was produced before the Judicial Magistrate, Mr Ajay Aggarwal. The state pleaded that they had to further investigate the case as stolen goods worth over Rs 10 lakh had been recovered from his premises in Industrial Area Phase II, following a raid conducted late last night. The police claimed to have recovered 100 stolen bicycles, 50 tricycles, dismantled scooters, electricity meters, hundreds of meters of aluminium electricity cable, telephone cable, road dividing grills, small channels of narrow gauge railway line etc. The Security Branch of the police and Sector 20 police had jointly conducted the raid here after they got information about the scrap dealer buying stolen goods yesterday. According to the police he had been buying stolen goods for the past two years. He reportedly kept the stolen vehicles in an iron box, and mechanically compressed these after dismantling the various parts. While aluminium parts, rubber parts, copper etc were sold separately, the iron body of vehicle was compressed as scrap and then sold. The other accused, Pankaj, who is son of Ram Kumar, is absconding. They said they had sent teams to nab him.
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More of Jassi less of Mona
Chandigarh, January 11 “I am beautiful from the heart but there would be my mental transformation. It would be followed by a change in looks. It is high time and I have decided to take the revenge from the Armaan sir as suggested by my fans. When asked about her future plans she said she did not believe in planning but would like to act in movies if she got challenging roles like the one in the movie ‘Aandhi’. At present her hands are full. Her fans would see her in more serials soon. Ask her about her favourites from the Bollywood, and she says Madhubala and Dev Anand without any hesitation. Expressing her grief over the loss of life in the tsunami tragedy, she said she would do a charity show to collect the funds for tsunami victims. Through a unique promotion programme millions of viewers across the nation advised Jassi on whether to forgive or punish Armaan for his deviousness? They sent their opinion via SMS, Internet and video messages. Lucky winners were treated to an exclusive tete-a-tete with Jassi via a video conference connecting 13 cities, including Chandigarh, organised by Reliance Web World in Mumbai. |
Double standards on teenagers’ basic instinct
As city-based psychologist Monika Sharma says, “We have double standards on the subject of sex. We do not talk about the real issue but try to push it under the carpet. First, there is a need to admit that sex drive is basic to the body. After a certain age, it becomes necessary that teenagers are educated about sex. Our traditions do not allow us to give freedom on sex. At the same time, the West implores us to be broad-minded. Caught between the two impulses our youths are confused”. Even parents are reluctant to guide their teenaged children on sex. Rahul, a plus two student of a private city school, described his parents’ attitude thus: “Though I have every comfort at home and I get whatever I need immediately, my parents never talk to me about sex. If something related to it is shown on the TV, we immediately change the channel and or start looking here and there. I have a lot of questions in my mind regarding sex but I cannot talk to my parents about it.” No wonder in the absence of sound knowledge, an increasing number of city teenagers are adopting not-so-healthy means to satisfy their curiosity about sex. Looking for porn stuff in cyber cafés and loading nude pictures on mobiles is quite common for city teenagers. Everybody, right from parents to schools and NGOs, seems to be sleeping over the issue. The District Education Officer, Ms Rajesh Chaudhary, when asked about the steps taken on sex education said, “No chapters on sex education have been added to the curriculum yet. The CBSE will decide that if a chapter on sex education should be added to the curriculum or not. But there are some lessons in the science text books which give students some information on the issue. Seminars are also being held in the schools from time to time”. Most schools, in the absence of board guidelines, are toothless on the issue. Mr Ram Kumar Sharma, principal of Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 16, said, “We organise a lecture on sex education twice a year. Experts on the subject are called. But we cannot appoint a teacher who can guide the youngsters in the matter on a full-time basis. If the subject is added to the syllabus, then we will do something”. During teens, the level of sexual craving is at its peak. So, lectures and workshops are not enough. Parents should take care that the sexual energies of their wards do not prove destructive for them. They should be taught in adolescence how to control their emotional feelings and handle the biological changes. If education is given at the right time, then they can become good citizens, says local psychologist, Ashupriya. Take the case of city resident, A.K. Paarthiv who sees her 17-year-old son talking endlessly on the phone with girls. “He buys a lot of gifts and spends considerable time on the net chatting. I know that there is more to it. I cannot keep a watch on his daily activities. Moreover I do not want that he should start viewing me as a policeman. But after the DPS case, I am thinking of making him more aware. Though I told him about AIDS, STD infections, I wish he would grow out of his teenage fantasies fast.”
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Morton’s prints bring irony in city’s space alive
Callum Morton’s artistic reconstruction of Chandigarh, as mounted on the walls of Government Museum and Art Gallery, Sector 10, is awe inspiring in many ways. Structured as a virtual universe that draws from the iconic structures that lace Chandigarh, the show evolves as a commentary on the modernist architecture of Le Corbusier and his utopian ways.
Digital prints of the Australian artist bring alive the irony inherent in city’s space, as it is compared on the one hand with a theme park gone wrong and on the other with the fantasy worlds as in Michael Crichton’s film “Westworld” which promise fulfillment of visitors’ desires but fails to do so. A departure from routine art shows that cast the world as it is Morton’s “Tomorrow Land” draws much from the realistic concerns that have long been voiced by architects and experts throughout the world. While the title of the show has been borrowed from “Tomorrow Land”, one of the sections in Disneyland, its content is based on Vikram Prakash’s critique on Le Corbusier’s works. Selected out of several Australian entries for this year’s Triennale India show, Morton’s “Tomorrow Land” suggests alternative uses for Chandigarh’s symbolic architecture. From Morton’s perspective thus, the Secretariat is a highly fortified building under threat from capitalist forces. The deserted landscape in many of the frames suggests a rapid degeneration of the city and its structures which are more relevant. In fact, based on Prakash’s accounts of Chandigarh, the artist constantly questions the architectural logic behind the city. Morton says, “The irony is that post-Partition India had to get a foreign architect to show it some sense of progress. Chandigarh, like Canberra, turned out to be one of those cities that control the growth of inhabitants very tightly. There is little scope for organic growth in such spaces. I have seen the city in the context of a theme park gone wrong. Crichton’s “Westworld” also deals with the concept of adventure parks in the future. Disneyland forms a significant backdrop for this show because Roy and Walt Disney were building it when Corbusier was building Chandigarh.” Through his digital images, Morton retransforms, virtually reinvents, Chandigarh. He puts its buildings to newer purposes and designs a brand new look for it. The work “Tomorrow Land” is hence symbolic of the artist’s hope in the city’s future. Curated by Stuart Koop, the exhibition which is this year’s Australian entry to the Triennale show opening in Delhi from January 14, is being supported by the Australian Government’s art funding and advisory body.
TNS
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Salil Bhatt enthrals audience
Blending the classical conservatism and the dynamic spirit of innovation, young maestro Salil Bhatt lit up the 95th monthly baithak of the Pracheen Kala Kendra today. As the maiden recital of much-hyped musical instrument ‘satvik veena’ commenced, the aficionados of classical music, including a group of foreigners, experienced some rare ecstatic moments to relish in the musical soiree.
It is the artiste who creates magic with his adroit mastery of the instrument and the profound knowledge of the musical art. So was Salil, the illustrious disciple-son of Grammy award winner Vishav Mohan Bhatt. He displayed his technical virtuosity and versatility in free flowing exposition of raga ‘Jog’ while performing on his newly innovated instrument ‘satvik veena’. He opened by delineating the raga form (swaroop) with a detailed ‘alaap’ in the lowermost scale (ati mandar saptak) which captured the essence of the melodious raga. The slow-paced alaap without the rhythmic accompaniment bared the intricacies of ‘jog’ with sonorous melody. Traversing the sliding bar and the perfect use of the prix, Salil moved on to the ‘madhyam’ and the Tenor scales displaying a varied combination of notes emanating nothing but melody. The instrument is structured to sustain the resonance of notes resulting into longer continuity. Salil covered an expanse of almost all three octaves with one stroke, the feature which scores over the limitations of original instruments like Hawain guitar and ‘Mohan veena’ of whose modified version the ‘satvik veena’ is claimed to be. Both the ‘Jod’ alaap and ‘Jhalla’ were equally captivating as Salil exposed the ‘Tantarkari ang’ with brilliance with electrifying speed which is his forte. This particular aspect won him applause continuously during his participation in the Real World Music Conference in Rome, a three-month long event organized by Peter Gabriel. Salil presented his self-composed compositions in slow (vilambit), medium (madhyam) and fast (drut) rhythmic patterns. He mesmerised the audience creating a melodic element from even the desultory ramblings of his sliding bar over the frets. He utilised the ‘meend’ work nicely to enhance the melodic content of the ‘swaras’ and his ‘jugalbandi’ with young maestro on tabla, Udai, who had mastered the art under Pandit Ravi Shankar, was the ultimate. Their being in sync to arrive together at the ‘sam’ while executing the ‘taans’ in ‘dogun’ and ‘chogun’ remained a classic feature of the memorable concert. Kendra director ML Koser honoured the artistes.
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Artistes’ depiction of nature’s fury
Man may have mastered the universe but he cannot master nature. To highlight this concept and to help the tsunami victims, the Naiti theatre group performed a street play at the open air theatre of Punjabi University.
The play — ‘Kudrat Da Tandav’ — has been produced by Gurcharan Singh and written by Bunty Waraich. The artistes tried to replicate the scene of tsunami disaster. Speaking on the occasion Gurcharan Singh said that the play was being staged to encourage youngsters to join the relief operations. The music produced by Mandeep Lucky was the main attraction of the play. Mr Balram Sharma informed that they would perform the play in different villages and colleges to collect funds as to help the tsunami-hit. He informed the collected amount will be sent to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund.
OC
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The shameful episode of DPS School, New Delhi, involving two students has exposed loopholes in our social set-up. Discussing sex is still taboo for youngsters and they are expected to stick to high moral standards. Little thought is given to understand their biological impulse and the resultant mental turmoil.