Chandigarh, April 5
Students seeking physical education as elective subjects in undergraduate course in Government College, Sector 11, will have to face disappointment this time. The subject will no longer be available to them in this coming session in the college despite the fact it was quite popular in the college.

Rather the college is all set to promote a four-year professional course in Bachelor of physical education (BP Ed). BP Ed course was introduced in the college last year. 50 seats are available for the course and its charges are at Rs 15,000 per annum.

Those students who can’t afford this course and wants to enjoy sports activities will definitely seek the avenues of other colleges.

Pahlad Aggarwal, Principal, Government College, Sector 11, clarifying his position said, “I think the BP Ed course is a better opportunity to the students. We are drawing very good response to the course while there was very poor response to physical education as an elective subject. We have four faculties and will have guest faculty also for this course. Ours is the only college which is offering this course. We are using the infrastructure of physical education and more is required.”

He opined that those students who want to take up physical education subject can seek admission elsewhere.

But the figures given by an official of the college shows that the physical education subject was in great demand among students. In BA part I 97 students have taken it as an elective, in BA part II 74 students are pursuing it and in B A III 68 students have opted it in the 2004-05 session. These numbers are far more than various other subjects like philosophy, psychology and is as in demand as Economics.

D.S. Mangat, DPI, colleges, admitted that the Physical education subject will no longer be available from this coming session in the college. But he claimed that the authorities were offering better option
in the shape of BP Ed course which he said will create more employment avenues also.

Chandigarh, April 5
Special prayer meetings marked the opening day of the new academic session at Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School and st John’s High school, Sector 26, and st Stephen’s School, Sector 45, here today.

Held in memory of the Pope who passed away on April 2, the special meetings remembered the “champion of justice and peace and spoke authoritatively in defence of human life and dignity”.

At Sacred Heart School, the special assembly saw lighting of candles, speeches and prayers for Pope John Paul II. While the students spoke about the life of the Pope, the Principal, Sister Sebastina, highlighted the works of the Pope which left an indelible impression on society and those he met.

One-minute silence was also observed during the hour-long special assembly. Sister Sebastina is leaving for Rome tomorrow to participate in the funeral of the Pope. Later, the beginning of the new session was marked by the lighting of the lamp by the Principal.

St John’s High school, Sector 26, too, saw a special prayer service for the Pope. Doing away with the designated special school assembly which usually marks the opening day of the new academic session, the authorities, instead, held a prayer meet marked by hymns.

The Brother Superior of the school, Br. Kyle, shared his experiences of interactions he had had with the Pope. The Principal of the school, Ms Puspinder Cheema, too, spoke about her observations of the Pope based upon a visit to the Vatican when the founder of the Christian Brothers of St. John’s, Brother Edmund Rice, was beatified. Speeches were made by visiting Brothers. The students and staff lit candles in the memory of the Pope.

At St Stephen’s School, the special assembly saw not only speeches about the Pope as also his life and achievements but deliberations on who would be the Pope’s successor. The principal, Mr Harold Carver, also participated. The school authorities had organised a special Mass on April 3 to commemorate the Pope’s death.

Meanwhile, the new academic session in convent schools which had remained closed yesterday as a mark of respect to the pope, took off today.

Mohali, April 5
The Punjab Government has announced a grant of Rs 5 crore for the Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) here. This is the largest grant to be set aside for any educational institute in the state, the announcement was made as part of the recent budget speech of the Punjab Finance Minister.

Over 300 students are involved in various fashion and textile-designing courses in the institute and the first priority for the institute Director is to have a building for students. “Right now we are functioning from an industrial plot and for the past many years, we have been demanding money to construct our own building,” pointed out Mrs Vijay Sharma, Director of the institute.

The institute, being run by the Department of Industries and Commerce, Punjab, has over 2 acres in Mohali, most of which is lying vacant. “A part of this land is occupied by the institute’s hostel for girls. But the rest of the land will be utilised to construct a building,” she added.

The institute, established in 1995, has groomed students into fashion designing. “Even this year, the outgoing batches have jobs in hand even before their results are declared,” said Mrs Sharma.

The institute offers 40 seats each in fashion design, garment manufacturing technology and knitwear design and technology. While the fashion-designing course is a 3-year graduate diploma programme after +2 while garment manufacturing technology and knitwear design and technology are 2-year postgraduate diploma programmes. 

Mohali, April 5
Members of the Khalsa College Amritsar management and its Old Students Association placed a time capsule in the foundation of the under-construction building of the Khalsa College Centenary Bhawan in Sector 53 here today.

The time capsule, a glass jar weighing 45 kg contains valuable historical information and documents of Khalsa College Amritsar, India and the world. Even recent events like the Iraq war have been included in the time capsule.

The glass jar that contains these documents has been specially designed and manufactured by an agency in New Delhi and is expected to last for several hundred years. The jar has been fabricated and sealed to prevent it from deterioration. Such time capsules are placed under historical sites which serve as beacons to history for future generations.

Led by the honorary secretary of the managing committee, Mr Rajinder Mohan Singh, the building secretary of the managing committee Mr Nirmal Singh and former principal of the college Mr Gurbax Singh Shergill, members of the old students association of the college, including Mr Amarjit Singh, Mr B.S. Sarao, Dr M.S. Ghumman and Mr Kulwant Singh Dhillon, placed the time capsule in the building's foundation.

The foundation stone of the bhawan was laid on December 25, 2004 by Mr Sukhbir Singh Badal, Member Parliament.

The work on the foundation of the five-storey building is underway and the first phase of construction is expected to be completed within the next three months.

Chandigarh, April 5
Nearly 100 lecturers and masters of senior secondary schools, Punjab, under the aegis of the Government School Lecturers Union Punjab sat on dharna at Matka Chowk in support of their demands today. They burned the duplicate copies of their degrees of BA, B.Com, BE and M.Com to protest against the Punjab Government and education department. They alleged that they have appointed matriculation diploma holders and certificate holders as principals in the senior secondary schools.

Mr Harpreet Inder Singh, head, Senior Secondary School, Chamkaur Sahib addressing the gathering said, “There are people who are more capable than these vocation masters but they are being deprived of the opportunities.

The education minister has said in the presence of education officers and the union members that matriculation diploma holders are not eligible for the post of principal. But he has failed to carry out the decision”.

He also said that if this practice will keep on prevailing then we will intensify our agitation.

Chandigarh, April 5
Acting on an application by two members of the District Bar Association(DBA) seeking basic amenities on the District Courts complex, a local court today issued notice to the Chandigarh Administration for April 20.

In their application, Mr Arvind Thakur and Mr Neelam Singh, both human rights activists, had contended that in the absence of basic amenities the lawyers, litigants and the court staff were a harassed lot.

In the absence of a dispensary, the visitors and lawyers could not be provided any medical aid in emergencies. Since the complex had no proper canteen facilities, the food was cooked in unhygienic conditions posing a serious health hazard. Besides, there was no suitable place for the setting up of the photostat machines and telephone facilities.

The lift in the old block remained out-of-order frequently due to which old and infirm litigants faced inconvenience. 

LEISURE

A dose of serious theatre
S.D. Sharma

Photo montage “Pilgrimage” is quite a departure from norm. Put up by Manpreet Singh, a photojournalist with roots in Chandigarh, it offers absorbing insights into the religious faces of India.

Far from the anathema of fundamentalism, the frames of Manpreet inspire awe and affection at the same time. No wonder the gallery of Alliance Francaise in Sector 36 wears a rather serene look these days.

The best part of the 37-work strong show which opened in the city yesterday, is its direct, conversational approach. The frames pass off as rich, provocative tell tale pictures. Here Manpreet’s background in journalism comes handy, and though there are no conscious attempts to trap facts, they creep in nevertheless. This makes the pictures rich in expression and detail, much like a piece of news which has the power to transform an objective reader to the spot of occurrence.

The photographs are located in the religious milieu of India. Set in the holiest of cities - from Varanasi, Sarnath, Amritsar and Hardwar to Dharamsala, Ladakh, Bodhgaya and Madurai - they take you places until you touch the core of India. Here mythology lives not only in scriptures by also in the faces of people who swear by them.

Manpreet captures this, and much more. Most of all he captures the chaste “spiritual” expressions on the faces of men and women, who have little to do with “bigotry” but everything to do with peace. Only their ways of getting peace are varied.

The show will be on till April 14. TNS

Painting is much more than defining colours on canvas. It says much more. It is perhaps one of the beautiful medium to give vent to your feelings and thoughts.

Many times a painting can depict your whole persona. Surpreet Kaur in her works has tried her best to shape her thoughts. Her emotions, her heartfelt impressions, and her way of thinking shines in an exhibition titled ‘reflections’.

The reflections include paintings, graphics and computer designed works. She is exhibiting her work at Government Museum and art Gallery, Sector 10 from today. The exhibition was inaugurated by DPI, colleges, D S Mangat and he appreciated her efforts.

“The Reflections are an effort to reflect the impressions that are buried deep in our unconsciousness levels of mind. Colours have lent a new meaning to my thoughts. It is my first step to the never-ending journey in the realm of my creativity”, said Surpreet Kaur.

The ‘Ravages’ and ‘destruction’ paintings depict the tsunami effect. The agony and the helplessness of human beings painted in all hues adequately brings out the painter’s angst

Her other paintings has captured various facets of the society. The ‘Moods’ has depicted the various emotions of human beings.

The graphics are made of wood cut engravings. In these ‘Meditation’ and ‘Eternity’ have a lot to tell us about the higher world. In computer designing ‘ Om’ has revealed the ultimate value.

The exhibition will continue till April 10. OC