Horticulture
A field with Strong roots
Ambika Sharma

Horticultural crops play a crucial role in India’s economy by improving the income of the rural people and it is the most viable option for small and marginal farmers. Cultivation of these crops is labour-intensive and hence generates large-scale employment.

Horticulture is fast emerging as a priority area — both for the scientists as well as the agrarian community in the region, especially in hill states like Himachal Pradesh. With a number of hydroelectric projects, the need for scientific management of their catchment treatment plans that necessitate large-scale plantations, has also assumed significance. In order to help offset the environmental degradation caused by these projects, there is a growing demand for employing professionals with a forestry background. Floriculture, agro-based industries (including those which use medicinal plants to produce ayurvedic products), consultancy services for the farming community, and post-harvest management are some of the areas where horticulturists can find ready employment.

The Dr Y.S.Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, located at Nauni, 13 km from Solan, Himachal Pradesh, is the only university in the country credited exclusively with teaching, research and extension in this field. Set up as Himachal Agriculture College in 1962, when it was affiliated to Panjab University, it later became the campus of Agriculture Pradesh University in 1970. Later, it went on to become the Horticulture Complex of HP Krishi Vishwavidyalaya in 1978 and was finally granted the status of a university in 1985. The university of Horticulture and Forestry has two constituent colleges for forestry and horticulture, having six and eight departments, respectively. In addition, there are five Regional Research Stations and 12 research sub-stations situated in different zones of the state and four Krishi Vigyan Kendras at Chamba, Rohro, Sharbo and Kandhaghat. The college of horticulture is well-equipped and modern laboratories for teaching, research and extension are available.

Courses

Y.S Parmar University offers four-year undergraduate course in horticulture to the students who have completed Plus II in English, physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, agriculture with a minimum of 50 per cent marks.

It also offers a five-year undergraduate programme for the students of HP Board of School Education under the vocational stream. However, minimum marks requirement for foreign students seeking admission to the course is 60 per cent .

Along with these, students can also go in for MSc and Ph D courses. These courses are being offered by Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana and Haryana Agriculture University, Hisar.

The courses for horticulture graduates include biotechnology, entomology and apiculture, floriculture and landscaping, fruit breeding and genetic resources, mycology and plant pathology, pomology, post-harvest technology and vegetable crops. Each requires at least 60 per cent marks at the graduate level.

Getting in

Admissions to various graduate and postgraduate courses are made through an entrance test. In Solan university as many as 85 per cent seats are reserved for the domiciles of Himachal Pradesh in all courses.

Job prospects

* A horticulture graduate and postgraduate can find ready employment in state government departments as Horticulture Extension Officer and Horticulture Development Officer.

* Banks, which lend loans to the agrarian community , also employ their services to make crop assessments.

* Graduates in this field can start self-employment ventures like mushroom farming, seed and nursery production.

* Many national and international firms dealing in pesticide and insecticide and quality seed manufacture also utilise their services.

* Several fruit processing firms employ horticulture graduates for handling post harvesting operations like cold chains.

Pay packages

While a government job can fetch Rs 2 lakh to Rs 2.40 lakh per annum, the fruit processing firms offer packages starting from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 3.50 lakh. The salary range goes on increasing with experience and a degree in MBA agriculture is an added asset. Own ventures are also very lucrative as a mushroom farm can fetch a fixed income of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh per annum.

The Power of two
Charandeep Singh

We are living in a supersonic era where time is the most essential commodity. It is more so relevant in the case of students, because for students time is their “opportunity cost”. And students are quick to capitalise this and make use of their “opportunity cost” to the maximum. Imagine a scenario where a young engineering graduate after four years of strenuous study is having not one but two engineering degrees and that, too, one from a foreign university. Or take it further, after five years of study an engineering graduate lands up with three degrees. Two bachelors of engineering and one master’s of engineering degree, and all that achieved within a span of five years. Opting for dual degrees and saving time which is the “opportunity cost” of the students is the latest trend in the educational institutions. “After all it is the seriousness with which the students engage in their educational pursuits that matters”, observes Dr. Sanjay Modi, Senior Dean, Lovely Professional University (LPU), Jalandhar.

The concept

“Twinning depends on the agreement, or to be more specific on the MoU signed between the two institutions. The model can be either 2+2 meaning two years of study in India and two years abroad or it can be 3+1, three years of study in India and one year abroad. Two institutions sign an MoU and educationists from both institutions ‘map the curriculum’ to avoid overlapping”, explains Brig. J S Grewal, Vice-Chancellor, Chitkara University. With such twinning arrangements getting popular with students and parents, several institutes are offering a platter full of western institutes to students for completing the “foreign” part of their degree. “Students get a lot of exposure through these. After all we are now living in a globalised economy and if a student gets international exposure by joining a course here only, it is a bonus”, shares Dr D.P Goyal, Chairman, PGPIM, MDI, Gurgaon. The most important benefit that a student gets is that he gets exposed to an entirely new genre of pedagogy. Our system is more tilted towards the basics, but the education system in the West is more analytical. They lay stress on problem finding and deducting solutions rather than cramming up the concepts. The teaching style is more assignment based and case-study oriented. “One of the major benefits that I derived from a “twinning degree” was that my market value in the job market increased manifold. Many Indian degrees are not honoured in America. But with my route, not only was my Indian degree accepted there, but I also received many lucrative job offers from American firms”, says Amandeep Singh who finished the second part of his tech degree from an American university.

‘Dual’ degrees are of special interest to students who want to take up research, as it helps them earn a tag of super-specialists. This arrangement of getting dual degrees helps a student in his postgraduate studies as well. “In England, the master of engineering is a one-year programme. Normally, many Indian degrees are not recognised by the English institutions. But by following the twinning path a student is able to complete his masters also in a year, which otherwise would have taken two years in India. So, in the net bargain a student is able to save one precious year”, says Grewal.

This trend, however, is not limited to engineering only. Management studies, hotel management, bio-technology and architecture are some of the other courses where students can opt for completing one portion of their course from a foreign university. “Our programme, PGPIM, is recognised by ESCP of France. So in a two-year programme students spend one year over here at MDI campus and the last year in France. They are awarded a degree in management from both the institutions. Students with this degree are eligible for campus placement in France as well as in India”, says Goyal.

Interest vs market value

“We measure the width first than go in for depth later” is a common belief in the western world. What it entails is that the education system there exposes a student firstly to various disciplines, and then allows him to choose his field of specialisation. But unfortunately, in India we don’t give our students even a little chance to explore their interest, we just compartmentalise them after matriculation and as result we find people making wrong career choices and not deriving job satisfaction. “In order to overcome this problem, we have devised a special pattern. We offer students two baskets of courses apart from his domain subjects. The two baskets are ‘Social Science Elective’ and ‘General Elective’. For example a student of BBA will have to undergo five of his domain subjects in his semester plus he would be required to choose two subjects, one from each of the baskets. The subjects could be like world history, basics of fashion design, art appreciation, political science, sports and so on and so forth. So by the time student graduates he’ll have a fair idea of what he intends to pursue at the postgraduate level. He would know quite clearly where his interests lie”, says Modi while mentioning the credit courses being run by the LPU.

Students too are very experimental these days and want to try out different things. It is not uncommon now to find engineers studying foreign language or theatre and dramatics, or students of computer applications studying world heritage. In professional courses some of the subjects are ‘credit courses’ laid down in the curricula and some are ‘audit courses’ which are in addition to those in curricula. So in audit courses students can always choose the courses from other disciplines of his interest. A lot of students actually learn animation and film editing and some choose a course in PR while pursing their B Tech degree. “Actually our institute more attuned towards professional courses so we offer our students certain certifications. Like with n-vidia we have created a graphic card lab on our campus plus some other online certifications as well”, informs Brig. Grewal. After all this learning what do the employers think of students having double degrees or having done courses in two different streams? “Our take is very simple. These days the gestation period is small and the learning curve is also not very long. We want resources who can deliver from day one. So the students with double degrees definitely fit the bill as with their in depth knowledge and good grasp over the subject, they are able to influence the end customer very well. Moreover, exposure to different streams is an added advantage because all the clients are not alike”, observes M.S Venkatesh, President (HR), Educomp.

Career Hotline
Pervin Malhotra
The writer is a noted career expert and director, Career Guidance India (CARING). Please send in your queries with your full name, complete address and academic qualifications to: The Editor, Jobs and Careers, The Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh-160030, or at careers @tribunemail.com 

Make room for calculated risks

Q. My husband and many of our family members are from IITs and IIMs. However, our son, who is academically very bright, says he would rather go to a local engineering college so that he can continue to learn martial arts on the side. While all his friends are preparing for their entrance exams for IIT and AIIMS, he spends hours building his body. We are very disturbed.

— R.P Wattal

A. There is absolutely no denying that the IITs are superb world-class institutions but frankly, I think the college sweepstakes are somewhat overrated. As a society, we've imbued college education and degrees with more symbolic meaning than they deserve.

Urban India is a status-conscious society. Everyone is obsessed with rank and reputation (brand name). The competition is not just among students; it's equally among parents, who are grading each other on how well they've raised their kids. Everyone wants to have their sons and daughters flaunt "the best" academic pedigree. We have become so status-driven, that anything other than the "accepted" options in education and later careers, makes us uncomfortable.

But what's best for your neighbour or nephew may not necessarily be the ideal choice for your son. The goal is to find the best fit between what he wishes to do and the opportunities available at a particular college.

Sometimes we must allow our children to take 'calculated' risks - particularly if they have weighed the pros and cons. You can never discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.

If studying in a good local engineering college allows him to continue practicing martial arts, and if he's able to balance the two, what's wrong with that? I'm sure you'll be proud of your budding Jackie Chan, when he brings in the laurels!

Spice up your job

Q. After completing my M.Com, I am now doing CWA. I have three years of experience in accounts. My problem is that I am really bored with the clerical work in the accounts department which requires no creativity whatsoever. I would like to do something new and creative etc. Please tell me how I should proceed. I am hardworking but totally confused and because of this I can't even concentrate on my studies.

— Puneet Sharma

A. I can understand your dilemma - and sympathise with you. But it's equally important to remember that a major portion of almost any job is of routine nature - and unless one understands and accepts this, any job could become a boring one.

Three years of experience in the accounting firm would have provided you considerable exposure to various types of audits and book-keeping activities at the grass-root level. What you must try and assess is whether this experience will, in the near future, make you eligible for moving on to executive responsibility in commercial and administrative functions from the clerical tasks you are presently engaged in. If this is not likely in the firm you are with, it may be time to actively look for a change. But before you do that, please try and work out a clear-cut statement of your career goals for the next 5-10 years, factoring in both the CWA and what you mean by "creative" work, so that you have clear criteria in mind when looking for a new job.

Several options in finance, including audit, taxation and financial consulting, are possible.

In the meanwhile, why not ask to be moved to the plant/factory to get a hang of works accounting, cost and budgetary control, product pricing, variance analysis etc to round of your experience?

It may sound somewhat glib, but even the most mundane jobs can be handled creatively by looking at them differently and in the context of the larger picture.

Farm economy

Q. Can you please tell me something about the work of an agricultural economist? What are the prospects for a career in this field?

— Urmila Joshi

A. Achieving food security has been the overriding goal of our agricultural policy. To achieve this goal, we need not only agricultural scientists but also agricultural economists who can apply the principles of economics to ensure greater productivity in agriculture. The growth in this sector being a result of greater liberalisation and investment, the demand for agricultural economists is on the rise.

Besides land appraisal, crop grading, marketing and sales, an agricultural economist is involved with farm management, co-operative management, farm utilities, custom services, wholesale and retail marketing of agricultural products, priority setting for research, invest decisions, assessment of returns on investment i.e. all those activities that ensure that agricultural productivity grows at the planned rate of growth.

Job prospects in this field are promising. There are openings in cooperatives, banking and insurance sector, private firms in the agricultural sector, foreign embassies, NGOs and other donor agencies, Ministry of Agriculture, Indian Economic Service as also in the field of research and teaching.

Scope for systems engineers

Q. What is the minimum eligibility criterion for the MCSE course? Please tell me about the fee structure and institutes. And job prospects of the course.

— Abhinav Rastogi

A. You have not mentioned your current academic status, but you can do MCSE/MCSD along with your graduation although the general profile of those attempting the exam is people with three or four years of experience in the industry who are trying to improve their prospects.

Moreover, you also have several choices. For instance, you could look at a certification in networking like MCSE (Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer) - globally recognised for LAN design, implementation, administration, trouble-shooting, creating web servers, etc. The Windows platform enjoys a customer-base running into millions. The full certification involves clearing seven papers. After you clear the first paper, you will get the MCP (Microsoft Certified Professional) card.

Clearing four papers will give you decent enough knowledge of LAN networking to start working in the technical support area. The passing marks are 80-90% per exam.

Alongside, you can continue preparing for the remaining papers or acquiring a CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Administrator) certification.

While MCSE certification is fine for handling 500-1000 client/seat establishments, broadband, Internet and Intranet environments are better served by Cisco-certified experts. So if you are looking for better value-addition, CCNA will give you expertise in ISP (Internet Software Protocol), ASP (Application Software Protocol), WAN (Wide Area Networking), etc.

It will also teach you how to design, build, and maintain global computer networks from a single location. This involves clearing exams at four levels: 1) Associate Level 2) Professional Level 3) Expert Level 4) Specialist Level.

Make sure you register for the course at a Microsoft Authorised Training Centre. You can also contact institutes like NIIT, Asset, Informatics or Karrox, which are Certified Technical Education Centres (CTEC). The intake is typically restricted to 15-20 students per session. The passing mark is about 90%. The cost ranges between Rs.20, 000-30, 000. 

Recruitment details

Q. I want to become a Health & Malaria Inspector in the Railways. What are the requirements and how can I go about it?

— Bhushan Kumar

A. The Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs), of the respective Zonal Railways/ Production Units under the Ministry of Railways recruit Health & Malaria Inspectors Gr. III. The Age limit is 33 years.

The eligibility is a BSc (Chemistry) plus 1-year Health/Sanitary Inspector course. Candidates usually undergo 6-months of training upon joining.

Selection is on the basis of a written/online exam

To know more about the vacancies, eligibility and selection procedure for this and all the other different jobs in the Indian Railways, please refer to the Employment News, wherein vacancies in different zones are advertised through the respective notifications. This information is also available on the websites of the respective RRBs (there are 19 of them).

Be job ready for banking sector
Fazle Ghufran

As per a study conducted recently by management research institutes banking and finance are all set to revolutionise the existing economic scenario in India. As far as hiring trends go banking and finance are among the emerging fields. As many as 85,000 vacancies in public sector banks and myriad opportunities in private sector bode well for the students aspiring to enter the fields of banking, finance and marketing.

The banking sector requires and demands very professional students. Those who can practically handle situations, are quick learners, have the ability to think and analyse things accurately and understand the nitty-gritty of the sector, are the most suited for this profession", says Amit Goyal, Director of T.K.W.S. Institute of Banking and Finance, Delhi.

India is expected to become the third largest banking hub in the world by 2040. Good news for freshers is that, 40,000 employees would be retiring over the next few years and hence there will be ample opportunities in the sector. Of late there are 30 public sectors and 50 private sector banks in which the American Express bank, Max New York Life Insurance, ING Vysha, IndiaBulls and Birla Sunlife have multiple vacancies.

Besides the basic banking job profiles like lending, depositing money, making DDs and handling various banks and institutions, there are other jobs like easy credit, corporate credit, project credit, finance credit and consumer credit.

PG Diploma in banking operations and finance is one of the courses that students desirous of entering this field can opt for. Eligibility:

* Age limit should be between21 to 27.

* 50 per cent marks in graduation in any discipline/ three year Diploma in Engineering from board of technical examination after Plus II with minimum three years of supervisory experience

* Should have the basic knowledge about banking sector-its pros and cons.

Admission Criteria

To get into PG Diploma in Banking and Finance one has to clear an aptitude test and a personal interview.

Courses

* PG Diploma in Banking and Finance

* PG Diploma in Banking Operation

* PG Diploma in Marketing Management

* PG Diploma in Financial Management

* Certificate Course in Finance and Banking

Salary

Freshers can get a minimum package of at least Rs 20,000-30,000 per month and the salary keeps on increasing with experience.

Institutes

* Indira Gandhi Open University, New Delhi

website: www.ignou.ac.nic

* TKWS Institute of Banking and Finance, New Delhi.

Website : www.tkwsinstituteofbancking.org

* Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi.

Website: www.ipu.ac.in

* Indian Institute of Banking and Finance,

Website: www.iibf.org.in 

Certification programme for design professionals

Corel recently launched the Corel Certification Programme in India to provide a platform to design students and professionals to validate their product skills and knowledge in CorelDRAW software.

The company will be introducing Certification Programme through their 21 Corel Authorised Training Centres across India. The company is rolling out the programme along with its exclusive national distributor, Aditya Infotech Ltd.

“The new Corel Training and Certification Programme demonstrates our commitment to the career development and success of designers in India, and proving employers with a trusted reference when making staffing choices", Gavin Watson, Director of Sales for Corel, said.

The company has introduced two levels of certifications — Corel Certified Designer and Corel Certified Expert, in the programme. Students who are pursuing their studies in any domain or even those who have dropped out of their academic studies can appear in Corel Certified Designer test to assess their entry-level skills in CorelDRAW.

While, the recommended eligibility criteria to appear in Corel Certified Expert test is minimum two-years of working experience in graphic designing to certify their mastered advanced-level skills in CorelDRAW.

Talking about the employability of the courses Sathish Venugopal, Country Manager, India Subcontinent for Corel Corporation in India, said, “Employers who recruit certified staff will ensure increase in competence, higher productivity, hence, to greater ROI." 

A Good Boss
Preetinder Kaur

You're the boss. But it's no fun (and very difficult) being a boss who is not respected, is ineffective at managing staff, or is even actively disliked. How do you get your staff to be the best thing that ever happened to you? By being the best boss that ever happened to them. But if you're someone who is pretty much the ultimate authority in his or her company or store (a small business owner or a general manager of a renowned company, for example) here's how to be a good boss:

Realise that management succeeds via the efforts of the workers. Just because you're in charge doesn't mean you deserve all the credit for the work being done. Your staff is responsible for the bulk of the work. You are leading them as they get it done to be sure all regulations are complied with, etc.

Delegate responsibility and then trust your people. Once you've trained someone to handle a task, allow him or her to handle it without interference. Different people have different approaches, and someone else's way of doing something may be just as efficient as your way. Before you step in and force your way on anyone, give an honest evaluation to the method, and if you find it works just as well, even if it's different from yours, let it be. Constantly correcting your people undercuts their confidence and does not allow them to exercise their own style.

Know your employees to know your strength. Watch your staff; get to know them as individuals. Understand their motives. This will allow you to enhance, adjust and align their motives with your goals. The cream always rises to the top, and it's your job to figure out which employees do what is required in their jobs, and which employees do all they can in their jobs. There is a huge distinction.

Most bad bosses are under the (mistaken) impression that there is something threatening about this, because the bad boss thinks that s/he is the only one who can perform a given function.

Empower your staff to make decisions, and don't second-guess them. If you've done a good job of training your people to be your proxies, then you must believe they are doing their best to act in your (and your company's) best interests. Even if they make a wrong decision, or handle a situation in a way you would not have, don't second guess or berate them. Instead, use it as yet another training opportunity. Hear out their reasons for their action— most of the time, when taken in context, there is a logical basis for what they decided to do.

Help them learn to work out issues without your intervention. Sometimes one or more of your staff may experience friction with others. If they come tattling on one another to you, listen to them carefully. If someone is not fulfilling his own responsibilities or is mistreating another employee, you'll need to step in and resolve a conflict at work. But if you're satisfied it's only an issue of competition or a simple personality clash; urge them to settle it between themselves.

Show appreciation. Never hesitate to pat your employees on the back, Compliment staff and thank them for their excellent service — if customers are there, letting them know how you value your people can go a long way towards the customers actually having more faith in the services your business provides.

When your staff feel valued and appreciated, their job means more to them than simply a paycheque. When your customers know that you, as the manager, think highly of your staff, they feel confident that they're in good hands, and it gives you more freedom to leave your customers in the very capable hands of your staff. See how this becomes a "win-win-win". Show your appreciation by doing things for your staff. They will go the extra mile for you if you do something nice for them.

Learn to be an effective listener. Your employees deserve to be heard when they have concerns. Allow them to finish talking before you speak; do not assume that you know what they are going to tell you before they finish talking; do not form objections in your mind while they are talking. Instead try to be fully engaged while they are talking without making it about your rebuttal. Acknowledge their points, which doesn't mean that you agree, but do mean that you understand their concerns. Repeat their points in your own words to confirm, if necessary. You may not need to take any action, but hearing them out is important to their sense of empowerment and significance. Often, simply saying, "I appreciate your telling me this" is all that's needed to make them feel they were heard.

— The writer is Project Assistant, IIT, Ropar

IN CONVERSATION
Spreading the net of soft skills 

An excellent academic record is no longer the sole criterion for landing up that coveted job as most employers look for candidates who can handle day-to-day challenges of a work position. “Soft skills” can make a difference between success and failure. With only one in four engineering students and one in 10 humanities graduates found employable by leading hirers, the widening gap between the classroom education and job skills crucial for employment is threatening to daunt India’s growth. The government, too, has realised the enormity of this disturbing situation and even introduced this year a centrally-sponsored programme to vocationalise secondary education in order to improve employability of youth. “Training youth in soft skills is very important in the current scenario”, says Alok Jain, EVP & COO, Aspire, a company that provides enhanced employability and life skills to students. The company has trained over 30,000 students across 40 institutions in 12 states in skills like English communication, industry skills, leadership skills and personality development.

In Chandigarh for the launch of an extensive programme for students in Punjab, Jain talks about the latest modules being used to enrich skill development among college and university students.

Excerpts from an interview:

What are soft skills and why are these important?

Soft skills are the non-technical skills, abilities, and traits that all employees need in order to function effectively in a work environment. These skills are ‘transferable skills’ meaning they are portable from one job to the next. They will serve a person well no matter what position or career field he seeks. It is important to recognise these skills and incorporate skill development into the academic experience.

What are the latest trends in this field?

As the demands of different industries keep on changing very fast, the training modules also are updated from time to time. Like at present our programme ProHire Classic v3.0 especially for the tier 2, 3 4 cities’ students. The USP of this programme is that it is multi-channel delivery software with focus on enhancing students’ skill areas and leading to their overall development. Through this software students in Punjab’s institutes will be able to get connected to the experts directly for clearing their doubts and enhancing their soft (communication) as well as hard (IT & Management) skills. We aim to create Employability Enhancement Management System (EEMS) through this programme. Students will be given international certification via the University of Cambridge for ProHire Classic. Besides students, we would also be focusing on the teachers by providing faculty development programmes to them.

What is the aim of this training?

The aim of this module is to help the students get their first job easily. With this training, students will be able to develop soft skills that are very much in demand these days and help in differentiating an individual from the others in the eyes of recruiters.

Assessment partner for ProHire classic training is University of Cambridge ESOL examination. The programme will help students in improving their reasoning skills, communication skills and enhance their industry knowledge through rigorous group discussion, mock interview sessions apart from theoretical knowledge. They would also be given a chance to improve their hard skills in the areas of Information Technology and Management thus, giving them a unique chance to fashion themselves as the ‘most appropriate’ candidates.

How many Punjab colleges/institutes will be involved in this training?

We are already working in close coordination with five to six engineering and management colleges/institutes in Punjab. And with this module we will be increasing our base in the state.

As told to Geetu Vaid

Happiness @ work
Gems of ancient wisdom
If you feel for it, do it

Look at Anna Hazare. When he felt strongly that corruption was eating into India’s achievements, he came to Delhi and started a satyagraha. Moved by the plight of the indigo-growers in Bihar’s Champaran district, Gandhi went there, defied the orders of the British government and went to jail. Impressed by his fatherly efforts, his admirers christened the Mahatma as Bapu (father).

In order to feel what the Bengali poor were feeling, Albanian Agnes learnt the Bangla language and started wearing a sari. For her years of work on Calcutta streets, she became known as Mother Teresa.

When freedom fighter Subramania Bharati felt the ‘Swadeshamitran’ daily was too moderate a paper to carry his bold views, he joined Mandayam Srinivasachariar’s ‘India’ weekly in Madras. British hounding forced the printing press to be shifted to Pondicherry and ‘India’ closed down on March 12, 1910.

Janardana Swami, kiledar, Deogarh, put Ekanath in charge of the treasury. One day, a pie (half a paisa) didn’t tally in the records. Ekanath worked on the accounts till the wee hours and evened the accounts. On his concentration, Janardana Swami said, “If you would have meditated on God thus, you would have attained him.” The following Friday, Janardana took Ekanath to the abode of Lord Dattatreya and both men had the darshan of the lord.

In contrast, Gandhari, instead of guiding her blind husband and son, tied a shred on her eyes and ignored their misconduct. For the Mahabharata war in which her 100 sons died, she put the blame on others.

Her angry gaze charred Yudhisthira’s toe nail and she cursed that Krishna’s clan would be decimated.

Don’t just fret and fume. The proof of the feeling is in doing!

— Sai R. Vaidyanathan

The writer can be contacted at svaidyanathan@tribunemail.com

Fortnightly Quiz-390
Breaking New Ground

1. Which famous train between Mumbai and Ferozepur entered its 100th year of running this year?

2. When did the century’s longest and darkest lunar eclipse occur recently?

3. Which jubilee is being celebrated by Sevagram Ashram of Mahatma Gandhi in Wardha district of Maharashtra this year?

4. Who has climbed Mount Everest for a record 21 times?

5. Name the ship that was stuck at Mumbai’s Juhu beach recently.

6. From which country is India buying sea-based aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov?

7. After how many years were the passenger ferry services between India and Sri Lanka resumed recently?

8. Where was the world’s largest aviation and space industry show held recently?

9. In which Indian state is Naggar Castle situated?

10. Which state recently won the first Senior Men’s National Hockey Championship?

— Tarun Sharma

Winners of quiz 389: The first prize by draw of lots goes to Harshit Rawal, class VIII, St Mary’s Convent School, Narwana, Pin Code – 126116

Second: Panini Sharma, class V-C, Heritage School, Sector D, Sainik Colony, Jammu, Pin Code – 180011

Third: Arsh Chavan, class VI, Sacred Heart Senior Secondary High School, VPO Sidhpur, tehsil Dharamshala, district Kangra (HP), Pin Code – 176057

Answers to quiz 389: Li Na (China); Germany; Brain; E.coli; Iceland; June 5; Kerala; FC Barcelona; Chris Gayle; Six

Cash awards of Rs 400, 300 and 200 are given to the first, second and third prize winners, respectively. These are sent at the school address.

Note: Kindly mention the pincode of your place on the letter/postcard to facilitate the delivery of the prize money.

Answers can also be sent at quiz@tribunemail.com