The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	3.29 lakh children to be vaccinated against measles in Karnal Bhanu P. Lohumi/TNS Karnal, January 19 Over 3.29 lakh children in the age group of nine months to 10 years will be vaccinated against measles during the ongoing fortnight-long immunisation campaign, which will conclude on February 3. The preparations and arrangements for launching the vaccination campaign were reviewed at a meeting presided over by Deputy Commissioner, Karnal, Neelam P. Kasni, and it was stressed that 70 per cent of the target would be completed during the first week itself. The representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Rinstha Premratne of Sri Lanka, was also present during the meeting. The district administration has set up 4,167 vaccination centres, including 1,400 centres in schools, 2001 in rural areas and 34 mobile vans to cover 3,29,324 children. Measles is a highly contagious and serious disease caused by a virus. Prior to mass vaccination programme launched in 1985, measles claimed 2.6 million lives every year and it remains one of the leading causes of death among young children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. An estimated 1,64,000 people died of measles in 2008, most of them under the age of five. Accelerated immunisation activities have had a major impact on reducing measles deaths. From 2001 to 2011, an estimated one billion children aged between 9 months and 14 years, who were in high-risk countries, were vaccinated against the disease. However, global measles deaths has decreased by 78 per cent from 7,33,000 in 2000 to 1,64,000 in 2008. About 85 per cent of the world’s children received one dose of measles vaccine by their first birthday through routine health services against 72 per cent in 2000. Kasni said nearly 1 lakh children die of measles in India every year, which was 2 per cent of the deaths due to various diseases and according to reports, 67 per cent of total measles deaths occurred in India. She said the first dose of vaccination had already been administered and the second dose would be administered during the campaign. The programme to administer second dose of vaccination against measles had been completed in 192 countries, while in India it is taking off now. Kasni said during the first phase, additional vaccination was done in Gurgaon, Faridabad, Palwal, Jhajjar and Mewat, while districts of Panipat, Sonepat, Rohtak, Bhiwani, Narnaul and Rewari were covered in the second phase. Additional vaccination dose of measles would be administered in the remaining 10 districts of Karnal, Kurukshetra, Ambala, Yamunanagar, Panchkula, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Sirsa and Fatehabad, she added.
	Banks change eligibility criteria PO candidates in dilemma Raman Mohan Tribune News Service Hisar, January 19 Hundreds of youth who sat for the common written examination conducted by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) for recruitment as probationary officers in public sector banks are in a quandary as the banks have changed the minimum qualification after they had cleared the examination. When the IBPS advertised the posts online, the minimum qualification prescribed was “a degree in any discipline from a recognised university or any equivalent qualification recognised as such by the Central Government”. As many as 10,42,484 candidates paid a fee of Rs 450 each for the test and took the examination. According to the record available on the IBPS website, only 10 per cent of them passed the examination. They were all issued scorecard making them eligible to be interviewed by banks for appointment as POs for the next 12 months. However, the banks have now stipulated that they will consider only those candidates who had scored above 55 per cent marks in the graduate degree examination. There was no mention of this in the advertisement issued by the IBPS in September last year. The advertisement had stated that “each participating public sector bank will independently issue a separate recruitment notification, specifying their vacancies and stipulating the eligibility criteria in terms of age, educational qualification, experience (if any), minimum required level of IBPS score in each component test plus total weighted score (if any) etc. Successful candidates in the CWE who have been issued scorecards and who meet the stipulated eligibility criteria are then required to apply to any of the participating banks they wish to, quoting their personal details and their CWE scores. Each bank will then individually shortlist candidates and carry out their selection processes such as group discussions or interviews etc for the final selection”. Pardeep Saini, an advocate who passed the examination conducted by the IBPS, said had it been stated that the banks would consider only those with 55 per cent marks in the graduate examination, he would not have applied in the first place. “Now that I have done all the hard work, I am told, I do not fulfil the criteria,” he said. Another advocate Vaibhav Jain said this was a clear case of fraud. “It appears that the IBPS deliberately omitted the condition of 55 per cent marks to earn the examination fee,” he said. The IBPS, an autonomous body registered under the Societies Registration Act-1860 and a Public Trust under the Bombay Public Trust Act-1950, has been authorised by the Indian Banks Association and has received a mandate from 19 public sector banks to conduct the common written examination.
	Plan to recruit over 500 docs Pradeep Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 19 The government is set to recruit over 500 doctors in the next few months to ensure better health delivery system in the state. Most of these doctors would be posted at primary health centres (PHCs) and community health centres (CHCs) , sources said. The interviews for the first phase of recruitment of doctors are due on February 10. Dr Narveer Singh, Director-General, Health Services, said applicants applying for various posts till January 31 would be eligible for participation in the walk-in interviews. Currently, the Health Department has a sanctioned strength of 2,206 medical officers (MOs) and 449 SMOs. However, the actual availability of doctors is lower than the sanctioned staff. While 2,239 doctors--1,833 MOs and 406 SMO--are on the rolls, about 600 are not available as they are on leave, pursuing postgraduation and are on deputation to other states. With the private sector offering better pay scales and perks to doctors, particularly specialists, “retaining” doctors had been a Herculean task for the state government. This is despite the fact that the Health Department had recruited over 2,000 doctors through walk-in interviews in the recent years.
	Checking corruption SPs told to visit police stations frequently Ravinder Saini Jhajjar, January 19 Taking a serious view of the rising incidents of involvement of cops in corrupt practice, the Director General of Police (DGP), Haryana, Ranjiv Singh Dalal, has directed the Superintendents of Police (SPs) of all the districts in the state to carry out frequent visits to police posts/stations of their area concerned in order to check the corrupt practices. A communiqué in this regard has recently been shot off from the DGP office to all Police Commissioners, Inspectors General of Police (IGPs) of various ranges and SPs of every district wherein the police officers have been asked to adopt all concrete measures to root out the possibility of corrupt practices from the Police Department. The DGP, in the communiqué, has said: “Inputs regarding the involvement of police personnel in corrupt practices is being received regularly. In view of this, all officers concerned are directed to pay frequent visits to the police stations and police posts to check and detect the evil designs of the subordinate staff.” He has also warned the police personnel that anyone found indulging in the corrupt practices would not be spared at any cost and stern action would be taken against the guilty. Even, any complaint on this front would also not be tolerated. The DGP is of the view that frequent visits of the police stations and police posts by the district police chief might turn out to be instrumental in keeping a check on corrupt practices to a large extent. Expressing concern over the lethargic attitude of SPs in sending reports pertaining to parole cases well in time, the DGP said despite circulating vital instruction by the police headquarters regarding the same, the SPs were not paying due attention to dispatch the report in stipulated time. He has directed the SPs to prepare a detailed report of parole cases while keeping in mind the instructions prescribed in this regard and it should be signed by themselves instead of the subordinate officers. Apart from this, the DGP has also directed the SPs to check drunken driving and overloading of vehicles with heavy hand saying that these two aspects were accountable for accidents.
	Jaggery-making units on the decline Bijendra Ahlawat Tribune News Service Rohtak, January 19 The traditional gur (jaggery) that continues to remain an important part of the diet of the rural people, especially in winter, has failed to keep pace with the sugar industry. The number of ‘kohlus’ (gur making apparatus) or crushers has declined sharply over the years, thanks to various factors including inadequate support from the government. “Gur making has declined considerably in the region due to demand-supply problem of sugarcane,” claims Parveen, manager of a crusher in Ismaila village. The number of ‘kohlus’ in the region has reduced to just 6-7 from almost 40-50 about 15 years ago, he said. Citing the reasons including a drop in sugarcane cultivation, he said the demand of the product has also slipped due to the change in taste buds of the people, who prefer to use sugar instead of ‘gur’ in daily use. Earlier, people used it as a sweetner in tea and as a dessert. Use of chemicals and other artificial products to provide flavor to the product has reduced the purity of the product, he lamented. Rajender, a ‘kohlu’ worker plant claimed that large inflow of ‘gur’ and ‘shakkar’ from neighbouring states like UP at competitive rates had led to decrease in local production over the years. But farmers are also realising now that they ought to grow sugarcane as the prices of sugar have been spiraling. “The rate of the ‘gur’ sold at the ‘kohlu’ is less than that sold in the market and many passers-by prefer to buy it here as it is fresh and pure,” he said. Sugarcane production this year was double as compared to production about two years back, he added. It is also claimed that the ‘snags’ in the functioning of the sugar mill in the district has also made several farmers to turn to crushers for sale of sugarcane.
	Three-week refresher course begins at Kurukshetra varsity D.R. Vij Kurukshetra, January 19 Lt-Gen Dr DDS Sandhu, Vice-Chancellor, Kurukshetra University, inaugurated a three-week refresher course on the theme, “Managing Business under the Emerging Global Scenario”, at Academic Staff College, being organised by the Institute of Management Studies, Kurukshetra University, here recently. In his inaugural address, Dr Sandhu elaborated on the relevance of the course theme in the context of the current economic scenario. He motivated the participants to keep themselves abreast with the latest trends and issues in the field of business and management. It would enable them to deliver relevant knowledge to their students. The co-coordinator of the course Prof BS Bodla, highlighted the relevance and contemporariness of the refresher’s theme. He took immense pride in organising the refresher course for the first time in the Institute of Management Studies. There would be 40 teachers from various colleges and universities from different parts of the nation attending the refresher course. Eminent academicians and corporate sector professionals have been invited to share their knowledge and experience during this three-week time. Vice-Chancellor Dr Sandhu released the first issue of The Society for Management Education Journal of Management published by The Society for Management Education (Regd) on the occasion. The stage was conducted by Saloni Diwan of the University School of Management (KU). The programme was attended by Prof Naresh Kumar, Prof Sudesh, Prof SS Boora, Prof Shashi Anand, Prof Mahender Singh, Prof RP Grover, Prof Nirmala Choudhary, Dr Sucheta, Dr Ajay Suneja, Dr Anil Mittal and Rajan Sharma.
	E-salary payment for govt staff in Jind Bijendra Ahlawat Tribune News Service Jind, January 19 Employees of government departments in the district are set to receive their monthly salaries through e-salary disbursement process for the first time. A training workshop was held for the Drawing and Disbursement Officials (DDO) and employees of the account section for the implementation of the new system from this month onwards. The concept of e-salary requires the departments concerned to submit the bills of the salaries to the employees online. The treasury office, which has been upgraded to meet the requirement, will bypass the usual paper work. Every regular employee of the state government will have access to his salary account details on the Internet and website of the treasury office. All information can be accessed online by clicking at the given password. Salary details and salary slip can be downloaded by the account holder once the department concerned sets up a database and issues the number and password to the employee concerned. In case of transfer, the employees would not be required to submit the Last Pay Certificate (LPC) as being done at present. The account details and the number will automatically get transferred at the place of posting of the employee, an official said. According to Sunil Behal, programme expert of the e-salary concept, the system had already been implemented in Panchkula. It would soon come into practice all over the state after setting up of the full-fledged network. He said all offices at the subdivision level would also be provided with the facility. The department concerned would have to ensure availability of a computer system with Internet facility in order to make the e-salary concept a success. The scheme would be applicable for the regular employees having a PAN number. They would be given a unique code number for operating the salary account online.
	Farmers-turned-bloggers carry awareness drive on farming Bijendra Ahlawat Tribune News Service Jind, January 19 Farmers in the district appear to be getting hi-tech and Internet savvy. Their blogs on the Net have not only started becoming popular but have also been recognised as an important tool for creating mass awareness regarding identification of farmer-friendly insects and the need to cut down the use of chemical-based fertilisers and pesticides having dangerous fallouts. A video on insect literacy on the Youtube has recorded as many as 55,000 visitors during the past about a year. “The idea of taking the help of the Internet in spreading literacy regarding useful insects, pests and pesticides has proved quite fruitful in view of the subject becoming popular across the state and a large number of readers and viewers joining the campaign, claims Surender Dalal, a farmer-cum-employee of the Agricultural Department and an active blogger. With at least six blog pages on various sites, including the MahilaKhetpathshala.blogspot.com, apna khetapni pathshala.blogspot.com, chopatchaupal.blogspot.com,drdalaljind.blogspot.com and kitsaksharta.blogspot.com. Dalal says he had started the first blogspot on the topic in 2008 and had been continuously updating the material since then. One of the pages identified as ‘Prabhat Keet Pathshala’ was started by him recently in which he had discussed the existence of some of the insects, including the antilochus cocqueberti, locally known as Lal Matku, and Tarkhan Tattaya, which, he said, were natural pest killers and a friend of the farmer in the field. The only thing was that a farmer should be able to recognise such insects and help in their growth so that there was a minimum requirement of chemical-based fertilisers to kill pests in the field. Having been educated in plant breeding and genetics from HAU, Hisar, Dalal claims that around 80 types of predators, parasites and pathogens have been identified in the field, of which a majority had been found beneficial to farming, but had been a victim of pesticides. Two farmers of Nidani village had been successful in getting handsome production of cotton crop by getting a control on the Leaf Curl Virus, a leading pest, last season by adopting an indigenous method of providing a nutrition solution that minimises the use of chemical fertilisers. Besides Dalal, Manbir Redu and Ranbir Singh, both farmers, run their blogs known as ‘Naugama’ and ‘Nidana Gaon Ke Gore Se’. With over 250 farmers and their kin in touch with the move in the region, it is learnt that there have been over 15,000 readers of these blogs in India and abroad at present besides the viewers of the video uploaded on the Youtube last year.
	US expert visits Y’nagar institute Tribune News Service Yamunanagar, January 19 Kimbirly Singh, recruiting officer of Effgrain, a US-based X-ray company, visited the Yamuna Group here recently. The main purpose of the visit was to meet the director of the Yamuna Group, Sarvjeet Kaur, and to plan for the placement of MBA, BTech and diploma students of the institute. Kimbirly took a tour of all the departments of the institute and met faculty members and had an interactive session with them. Kimbirly said her visit to the Yamuna Group was to initiate placement talks and in future they would conduct interviews as well. Dr Sarvjeet said the Yamuna Group, in a survey conducted by a research agency recently, had been placed on the first position with 697 marks. The research agency set 160 marks for infrastructure, 455 for faculty, 320 for admissions and 465 for placement, social responsibility and industry interface. She said the main objective of the group was to place its students in good multinational companies.
	Modern media studio launched at Yamunanagar college Attar Singh Tribune News Service Yamunanagar, January 19 Practical training is very important. Therefore, every educational institution should provide facilities for providing practical training to students who are doing professional courses. It is also true for the fields of mass communication, journalism and new media. This was stated by Dr KK Rattu, director, Doordarshan Kendra, Chandigarh, while inaugurating an ultramodern media studio for the Department of Mass Communication and Media Technology of Guru Nanak Khalsa College, Yamunanagar. He also emphasised on imparting regular training to media students. He also threw light on various aspects of media, especially the present trends in the field of mass media, while speaking at a seminar on “Present Scenario in the field of Mass Media” as a keynote speaker. He said paid and planted news, involvement of journalists in various scandals and lack of sensitiveness affected the credibility of journalism. He urged mediapersons to create values and ethics so that society could trust the media. He also explained the importance of the RTI Act in the field of media. Dr Verinder Kaur, principal of the college, said the Department of Mass Communication and Media Technology of the college had proved its existence by its performance. She said with the kind cooperation of the management, the college had started media studio with modernised audio-visual and editing system. She said the college would also launch more media courses. Dr Uday Bhan Singh, Head of the Department of Mass Communication and Media Technology, conducted the stage and performed a vote of thanks.
	Teachers to court arrest against UPA govt’s policies Ravinder Saini Jhajjar, January 19 Opening a new front against the UPA government in the Centre for not accepting their long-pending demands despite making several assurances, the All-India Federation of University and College Teachers’ Organisation (AIFUCTO) has decided to launch a three-day-agitation campaign for courting mass arrests at the Jantar Mantar in Delhi from March 14 if their demands are not fulfilled in time. Besides, the organisation has also decided to hold a protest on February 17 at every state headquarters not only to register its protest against the UPA government but also to mount pressure on them for getting their demands met. Decisions to this effect were taken at a meeting of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the AIFUCTO, which was recently held at Gulbarga University in Karnataka. The meeting was presided over by Dr Tarun Patra, AIFUCTO president, while members of the NEC from all states participated. Dr Vazir Singh Nehra, vice-president of the AIFUCTO and a delegate of Haryana at the NEC, informed this while talking to The Tribune here recently. He said the decisions had been taken after holding in-depth discussion from different angles over the Union government’s attitude towards their demands. Nehra said the whole nation had been divided into three zones to make the agitation campaign successful and one day for every zone had been fixed to join the agitation. Hence the college and university teachers would reach at the Jantar Mantar as per their zone schedule to court mass arrests, he maintained. “The AIFUCTO has been demanding a ban on commercialisation of Higher Education, releasing of central share of 80 per cent to all states by implementing the sixth pay UGC recommendations, withdrawal of the Pension Fund Regulation Authority Bill, contractual/guest/ad hoc teachers be given salary as per the UGC pay scales besides ensuring the execution of sixth pay UGC recommendations, including age of superannuation to 65, in all states,” said Nehra, adding that delegation of the AIFUCTO had met several time with the UPA government to get their demands fulfilled but no one was ready to pay heed to their demands. The AIFUCTO had also decided to participate in a nation-wide strike of various employees outfit on February 28 besides celebrating the year 2012 as Golden Jubilee year of formation of the AIFUCTO across the country at national, state and association level, Nehra added.
	Four kg hair removed from girl’s abdomen Bijendra Ahlawat/TNS Rohtak, January 19 Doctors of the Gastroenterology Department of the PGIMS Hospital here succeeded in removing a 4-kg mass of hair from the abdomen of a teenaged girl without surgery. This is perhaps the first time at PGIMS that an operation has been done with help of endoscopy without surgical intervention. Dr Parveen Malhotra, HoD, Gastroenterology, who conducted the operation, said the operation was conducted upon a 16-year-old mentally challenged girl. She had complained of pain in abdomen, anorexia and anaemia which persisted for two years. Though the family had consulted various hospitals, the problem had remained undiagnosed till she was admitted to PGIMS. He said clinical evaluation showed a large lump in the abdomen which seemed to arise from the stomach. The ultrasound of the abdomen revealed some mass in the stomach. It came to light that the patient was in the habit of eating her hair. Endoscopic examination revealed a large mass of hair (trichobeozar) which was occupying the whole of stomach. As the patient’s kin were against the surgical intervention, Dr Malhotra used various endoscopic techniques and was able to remove the mass of hair in multiple sittings.
	Camp for diabetic patients held Our Correspondent Rewari, January 19 A camp for diabetic patients was held under the auspices of Shri Balaji Jan Kalyan Samiti in the Boora Bazaar complex here recently. As many as 80 patients, including 61 men and 19 women, were examined at the camp by Dr Hem Saini, an Ayurvedic physician of the Rewari region. All patients were given medicines free of cost. The samiti chief, Ramesh Sachdeva, said over 6,500 diabetic patients had already acquired fine results by using their Ayurvedic medicines, which was supplied to them free of charge. The samiti was now going to organise one such camp for diabetic patients on January 31 at Nagpur in Maharashtra as well, he said.
	Awareness programme on RTE held Tribune News Service Fatehabad, January 19 Savera Arts and Education Society, Fatehabad, organised an awareness programme on Right to Education (RTE) in the Panchayat Bhawan in Bhuna recently. Shammi Ratti, president of the society, was the chief guest, while Deepak Kumar, chairman of Little Stars School, run by the society, presided over. Children of the school also participated in the programme. Ratti said though the UPA government led by Dr Manmohan Singh had enacted the law under which getting education had become the legal right of a child, lack of awareness was coming in the way of people. He said every big private school was bound by law to admit 25 per cent students from the poorer sections of society, but owing to the lack of awareness, people were not in a position to force these schools to implement this provision. He said Savera Arts and Education Society aimed at making these sections of society aware of their rights and ensuring quality education to their children. Suman Rani, headmistress of the school, Veena, Monica, Rakesh Kumar, Kamal Kumar, Suraj Singh, Happy Goswami, Chander Bhan and several other prominent persons of the town were present on the occasion.
	Rewari lad bags gold in tae kwon do championship Our Correspondent Rewari, January 19 Kalpit Soni (10), a student of class VI in VITS International School at Bhiwani, who hails from Nahar village of the Kosli subdivision of the district, bagged a gold medal by securing first position in the under-14 category of the North India Tae kwon do Championship held under the auspices of the Haryana State Martial Art Tae kwon do Federation in Jhajjar district recently. Prior to this, he had also won a bronze medal in the junior category of the National Martial Art Tae kwon do Championship held at Pune in Maharashtra last year. While the Jagriti Manch and other voluntary organisations of the Kosli region have felicitated Kalpit on his achievement, Prem Prakash Yadav, general secretary of the manch, said Kalpit would be honoured for his brilliant performance.
	Students display models at science exhibition D.R Vij Kurukshetra, January 19 Technology Education Research Integrated Institution (TERII) organised a one-day Science Exhibition and Quiz Contest - SEQC-2012 at its premises, 9 km from here, yesterday. On this occasion, TERII chairperson Garima Gupta said: “We need to keep the interest of the present generation alive in pure sciences as it is a known fact that the scientific growth is the foundation for any other growth”. Gupta said various science-based models ranging from the model of a bus stand to an innovative fire extinguisher were displayed in the exhibition. Each model carried unique ingenuity and creativity, she added. The first position winners in the science exhibition and the quiz contest were given away cash prizes of Rs 11,000 each, while the winners of the second and third position were given away cash prizes of Rs 5,100 and Rs 2,100 each, respectively. As many as 24 teams participated in the science exhibition, while 15 teams took part in the quiz contest. The Results: Science Exhibition: 1. Convent School, Karnal; 2. Dayal Singh Public School, Karnal; and 3. Gita Niketan Avasiya Vidayala, Kurukshetra Quiz Contest: 1 and 2. Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Public School, Ladwa; and 3. Maharana Pratap Public School, Kurukshetra.
	Weather may remain unstable Mustard, vegetable crops need special care: Experts Tribune News Service Hisar, January 19 The weather is likely to remain unstable in Haryana up to January 21, scientists of the Agro Met Department of Haryana Agricultural University said here today. The maximum temperature is likely to remain between 16 and 20 degrees Celsius and the minimum temperature between three and six degrees. Fog may occur in the mornings and evenings during this period, they said. The scientists advised the farmers in the state to undertake agriculture activities in accordance with the likely weather conditions. The sky is likely to be overcast and humidity levels will be high. North-West winds are likely to blow in the state. In view of these weather conditions, they advised the farmers to take special care of the mustard crop. The farmers could save their mustard and vegetable crops from cold weather conditions by irrigating them moderately. They said the sprouting process of seeds and growth of plants in the nurseries might be affected and as such nurseries should be covered with polythene sheets at night. They have also advised farmers to cover the small fruit plants with paddy husk to save them from frost. The farmers should also protect their livestock from the cold wave. They should keep their animals in a covered animal shed and keep the floor of the shed dry.
	Haryana farmers to visit China, Israel Sirsa, January 19 Over 26,000 farmers from the district have so far registered themselves for the Haryana government’s scheme of sending farmers on inter-district, inter-state and foreign tours. The government will send 620 farmers of the state on a visit to other districts, states and to other countries to acquaint them with the advanced agricultural practices. The Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board will send 20 farmers on a 10-day visit to Israel and China. A spokesperson of the Agriculture Department here said cotton and paddy growers would be sent to learn new practices of farm management to increase their farm productivity. So far, as many as 82,861 cotton growers and 78,055 paddy growers had been registered in the state for the purpose. In Sirsa district alone, 21,385 cotton growers and 5,187 paddy growers had been registered. He said later a draw of lots would be held and based on that farmers would be selected. He said another 200 farmers would be taken to other states of the country for eight days. In addition, 400 farmers would be taken to Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar and Central Cotton Research Centre, Sirsa. They would also be taken to farms of progressive farmers. The experts of agriculture and horticulture would also accompany the delegation of farmers. — TNS
	Workshop on personality development Tribune News Service Fatehabad, January 19 The Manohar Memorial College of Education, Fatehabad, organised an interactive workshop on “The Importance of Personality Development in Modern Education” recently. Fanny Lebel and George Hardwick, popularly known as Fan and George team of international trainers in the field of leadership and personality development and education, gave their presentation to the students. The trainers gave presentations on the “State Management”, “Rapport and Communication” and “Effective Learning”. “For making rapport with others one has to be at the same wavelength with them,” George said. “People do not care what you know, until they know what you care,” he said. On “Effective Learning”, he said education comes from the word “educe”, which means, “to bring forth or draw out the inner potentials”. “For being a good teacher, one has to develop great rapport skills and has to have brilliant state management”, he said. He added that two most important tools for a teacher were revealing the unknown and connecting the unknown to the known. Fanny and George, trainers from the UK, are presently working on developing personality skills among students of Gilly Mundy International Community School. Subhash Sharma, director of the Manohar Memorial Group of Educational Institutions, Mamta Chaudhary, principal of the Manohar Memorial College of Education, Mahesh Mehta, lecturer in English, and teachers of the host college were present on the occasion.
	Hooda to attend several functions in Sirsa Sirsa, January 19 Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda will participate in several programmes during his January 20 visit to Sirsa, where he is coming as chief guest in the convocation of Chaudhary Devi Lal University. Governor Jagannath Pahadia will preside over the convocation. Hooda’s schedule has been changed to accommodate several political programmes and a meeting with the members of the District Bar Association. According to the initial programme, Hooda was to arrive in Sirsa in the morning and was to leave the same day after having lunch in the university. However, according to the programme received by the district authorities now, Hooda will stay in Sirsa on the night of January 20 and he will address members of the District Bar Association the next morning before flying back to Chandigarh by the state helicopter. Now, both Pahadia and Hooda will take their lunch at the palatial house of the minister Gopal Kanda on the Rania road instead of the university campus, where the university authorities had made all arrangements for it. From there, Hooda will leave for Dhottar village in Rania tehsil, where a villager, Mani Ram Hooda, is hosting tea for the Chief Minister. Hooda will later go to Sangar Sadha village to pay homage to Dera Baba Bhumman Shah, the spiritual head of the Kamboj community. — TNS