|
|
|
|
State policy over pvt educational institutes paradoxical
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Girls outshine boys in 10+2 examinations
Workshop discusses steps to combat human trafficking
Large-scale mining, felling of trees ‘responsible’ for climate change
Hoardings deface public property in Mandi
Restore HPSEB's S&I circle at Chamba, say pensioners
‘Development of agriculture top priority’
Authorities fail to check traffic chaos in Palampur
Tanda medical college starts first lifestyle disorders clinic
Villagers apprised of legal, fundamental rights
Hamirpur MP flays UPA for bad governance
Dowry death: Husband, mother-in-law held
451+ HIV children get aid in Kangra
Chamba emerges as film-makers’ choice
Increase awareness to ensure gender justice: Judge
Mayo College win cricket tournament
The Mayo College team after winning the cricket tournament at Pinegrove School in
Dharampur.
vignettes
Himachal diary
|
|
State policy over pvt educational institutes paradoxical
Dharamsala, May 7 Under the said policy, the previous government allowed about 16 private universities and an equal number of engineering colleges in the state. However, it also faced criticism for allowing most of the private universities in Solan district adjoining Chandigarh. The Congress that was in the Opposition levelled allegations against the previous BJP government for allowing sale of land to outsiders in the guise of bringing up private universities. It also accused the previous government of commercialisation of education due to which certain institutes were carrying out illegal practices. Under attack from the Opposition, the previous BJP government formed a regulatory commission that has been made a supervising body over all private universities in the state. Now that the Congress government was in power in the state a probe has been ordered into the land purchased by private universities in the state. However, in most of the cases the land purchased by private universities was private land bought from owners directly. None of the private education institute that has come up in the state has resented the government move. Many of them while talking to The Tribune on the condition of anonymity said in case they were able to run their institutes successfully why they would like to close these down for other purposes. However, the private universities and engineering colleges are lobbying against the decision of the previous government to allow admissions only on the basis of the test conducted at the state and central level. The managements of the private institutions are alleging that they were competing with colleges in adjoining colleges for admissions. There was no condition of test in engineering colleges located in Punjab. Many students avoid giving entrance tests as they could easily get admissions directly in colleges located in adjoining states. Since colleges located in adjoining states were well established, they devise many ways to attract students of even Himachal putting at disadvantage the colleges that have come in the state. Last year, the entrance test conducted by Himachal Pradesh Technical University managed to attract just about 3,000 students against 6,000 seats available across engineering colleges in the state. In case the same was implemented, more than half of the seats would remain vacant in private colleges that would hit their viability. The delegation of private universities of Himachal met Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh to lobby against the mandatory condition of test for admissions in technical courses. However, the meeting did not yield any results. The private engineering colleges also met Minister for Technical Education GS Bali over the issue. The minister, when contacted, seemed reluctant to relax the mandatory condition for entrance test for admissions to engineering
colleges. He said no relaxation would be made that would compromise the quality of education in the state. However, the engineering colleges' managements are alleging that the state government should allow them to conduct admissions as per the norms fixed by the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) rather than laying its own conditions. Amidst all this, a milieu of confusion remains over the policy of the state government over allowing or not allowing growth of private educational institutes in the state. The Congress-led UPA government at the Centre has adopted a policy in the past 10 years that has allowed mushrooming of private educational institutes, especially in the field of technical education, across the country. Since the present government had been criticising the previous
government over allowing private universities in the state, now it does not want to take any decision for which it can be criticised by the BJP. It was a fact that despite criticism, private universities and engineering colleges that have come in the state have provided employment to local residents and have also provided opportunities to students of the state to get technical education within the state. Most of the students studying in private universities and engineering colleges set up in the state were Himachalis. However, the present government would also have to adopt a clear-cut policy over private educational institutes to allow their growth in the state that can help in the growth of the state economy.
|
||
|
Girls outshine boys in 10+2 examinations
Dharamsala, May 7 In the science stream, Shilpa of government school in Tikra of Mandi district topped the exam after securing 97.4 per cent marks. Anuj of BTC DAV College, Banikhet, remained second and secured 96.4 per cent marks. Govind Garg of SD School, Santokhgarh, and Vinay Kumar of SD School, Hamirpur, jointly secured the third spot and secured 96 per cent marks. In commerce, Shivani Sharma of Modern Public School, Banuri, topped the examination by securing 93 per cent marks while Varsha Goel of government school at Dadahu in Sirmaur district stood second. She got 92.2 per cent marks. Shilpa Dev of government school at Bhakra in Bilaspur district stood third and secured 90.6 per cent marks. In the arts stream, Sunaina Sharma of government school, Chamba, topped after securing 94.8 per cent marks. Mukesh Sharma of Kangra (91.4 per cent) stood second while Chaman Lal of Chamba (91 per cent) secured the position. In the vocational stream, Pap Singh of Nankheri in Shimla district, topped and secured 85.8 per cent marks. Aman Kumar of Dharampur in Mandi district stood second with 85.75 per cent marks. Manoj Kumar and Arun Mehta of Nankheri in Shimla were declared third. They scored 85.12 per cent marks. The secretary of the board said the students could apply for re-evaluation till May 20.
|
||
|
Workshop discusses steps to combat human trafficking
Kangra, May 7 The programme, which concluded at Police Training College (PTC), Droh, also told the personnel about new techniques adopted by the criminals involved in human trafficking and subsequent methods to crush their network. Three such workshops were held at the PTC in the past two months reflecting the gravity of the menace. During the third workshop, Rajesh Verma, deputy district attorney and director of the course, said 72 participants, including additional SPs, DSPs, Inspectors and other non-gazetted police personals of the Himachal Police, attended the workshop. The workshop was organised by the Bureau of Police Research and the Development in Police Training College, Droh. Major causes of human trafficking and steps taken by the law enforcement agencies to curb it were discussed threadbare during the workshop. The participants were informed that nearly eight lakh women, including 5 lakh below 18 years, have been pushed into prostitution in India. There were two lakh sex workers in Mumbai alone, which included 40,000 below 18 years. Senior police faculty
members said women were transported via India to the Middle East from Bangladesh and Nepal. Annually, 22,000 women and 44,000 children were reported missing in the country with 25 per cent of them remaining untraced. Rajesh Verma briefed the officers on various laws and and IPC provisions to deal with traffickers. He specially focused on the ITPA, 1986, Criminal Act and Rights Violation of the trafficked persons, law of labour trafficking, bounded labour system abolition Act, 1976, and prevention of the Immoral Trafficking Act and Juvenile Justice Care and Protection Act, 2000.
The Director of the Child Help Line, Dharamshala, spoke about the role of the NGOs to ensure post-rescue care of victims of trafficking. DSP Rajesh Sharma threw light on the role of the police and investigation techniques.
|
||
|
Large-scale mining, felling of trees ‘responsible’ for climate change
Palampur May 7
The complete change in the pattern of rain in the state has worried farmers, orchardists and tea growers. The climate changes have adversely affected fruit growers of the state, who play a significant role in the economy of the state. Apple growers are worried over the current situation as in winters they are facing drought conditions and in summers they bear with early monsoon. Apple is the only major cash crop in the state. Scientists in HP Agricultural University have recommended the state government that the state needed an immediate change in the crop pattern and its timing. The scientists have stressed on close coordination with the state Agriculture Department so that a new concept of change in the crop pattern could be conveyed to farmers and apple growers. They are of the opinion that the large scale mining, felling of trees and indiscriminate quarrying are some of the factors responsible for the climate change in the state. In the absence of political and administrative “will”, the deforestation and mining is still going on unchecked in the state. The state has allowed the cement industry to exploit natural resourses of the state in the most unscientific manner. Bilaspur and Solan districts are the examples where green hills have been turned barren. It seems that Chief Minister Virbhadara Singh, his cabinet colleagues and other government agencies are not concerned with this important subject, which would have an adverse affect in the long run. Today, the government has "no policy" for the grant of mining lease in the state, resulting in a large-scale felling of trees and heavy pollution. Illicit mining has not only become a major environmental hazard, but also causing a huge loss to the state exchequer. Palampur, a famous tourist place and one of the beautiful towns of the state, has been facing serious environmental threats because of reckless and unscientific mining going on in the Neugal river near the town. The Neugal river is one of the major source of drinking water for 200 villages of this subdivision. It feeds about 24 drinking water supply schemes of the IPH Department. The water level in the river has already gone down by 5 to 10 feet due to reckless mining.
|
||
|
Hoardings deface public property in Mandi
Mandi, May 7 The hoardings of controversial god men Sudhanshu and Kumar Swami have appeared on public places along the highways and private buildings in this temple town under the nose of the Municipal Council. Sudhanshu and Kumar Swami are visiting the town in the third week of this month to hold sessions at the Paddal Maidan for their followers. The hoardings of Kumar Swami have been erected near the entrance of the new bus stand building to attract public for the show. The hoardings have been erected without the permission of HRTC managers. Earlier, the High court and the Apex Court had forbidden placing of hoardings along the National Highways. "The High Court had directed all municipalities to remove hoardings along the highway. Nothing can be pasted on trees as it amounts to the violation of the Forest Act," said the residents. The residents have demanded action against the god men for defacing the public property in the name of spreading their gospel. "Every year, the god men head for Mandi-Kullu-Manali and recuperate in the high-end resorts. They have their own centres in the valley," said the officials. RS Thakur, Regional Managar, HRTC, and bus stand in charge Sohan Lal said nobody had sought permission from them to erect hoardings on the building of the bus stand. Perhaps, they raised it in the night, they added. Vice-President of the Mandi Municipal Council Gagan Kashyap said they had received an application for erecting four hoardings on private buildings from Sudhanshu, but no application was received from Kumar Swami. "But we will remove the unauthorised hoardings in the town as nobody will be allowed to deface the public property."
|
||
|
Restore HPSEB's S&I circle at Chamba, say pensioners
Chamba, May 7 In a press statement here yesterday, general secretary of the association Mukesh Bedi requested the Chief Minister that the re-establishment of the S&I circle was indispensable for the execution of hydropower projects in Chamba district. It had recently been allotted to the board by the Congress government.
|
||
|
‘Development of agriculture top priority’
Bilaspur, May 7 This was stated by Ram Lal Thakur, Chairman, State Planning Development and 20-Point Programme Implementation Committee, who was the chief guest, while addressing a day-long seminar organised jointly by the District Agriculture Department and Agriculture Technology Management Agency (ATMA) at Kothipura, near here, on Saturday. He urged all farmers present at the seminar to ensure that they got the soil tested after the harvesting season in their areas as the facility had been provided free of cost by the government and which was essential to ensure maximum yield. He said this test would enable them to know what crops were the most beneficial for them and what fertilisers and pesticides were required to give them maximum and better quality yield from their fields. He also exhorted them to take full advantage of government schemes that provide much help to them through various departments like Agriculture, Horticulture, Veterinary, Fisheries and Forests as this would help them improve their financial position much faster. Ram Lal inaugurated a “reaper and binding machine”, introduced by the Agriculture Department, for the benefit of farmers. He said this machine would save time, money and effort in harvesting and binding of various crops in fields. He also distributed quality seed kits to all 250 farmers present in the seminar from various parts of this area. Deputy Director, Agriculture, GC Lakhanpal, ATMA Project Director LR Dhiman, Deputy Director, Horticulture, Rakesh Dhiman, subject specialist DS Pant, district veterinary officer Shivani Thakur, district horticulture development officer Amit and Krishi Vigyaan Kendra scientists (Barthin) Sanjay Singh and Seema Shah were among those who addressed the seminar.
|
||
|
Authorities fail to check traffic chaos in Palampur
Palampur, May 7 Despite the fact that the Hotla-Kalu Di Hatti bypass is operational, the administration has allowed the passage of heavy vehicles, including trucks and buses, via Palampur town, resulting in frequent traffic jams in the town. The narrow Pathankot- Mandi National Highway is choking with traffic. Earlier, the SDM and them DSP had taken a keen interest for the solution of the traffic problem. They posted traffic constables at Holta and Kalu Di Hatti and diverted all heavy vehicles via Holta bypass, but after the transfer of these officers, all heavy vehicles are entering into the town, causing inconvenience to the residents. In the absence of zebra crossing in the town, it becomes difficult to cross the roads at many points. There has been manifold increase in the number of heavy and light vehicles in the town as three hundred vehicles are added to the town every month. However, the width of most of roads is the same as it was 25 years ago. Traffic jams in the town have become a regular feature. In the peak hours, particularly in the morning and evening, the traffic problem spells chaos on roads. Increasing political interference in the functioning of the police has made the matter worse. Palampur has witnessed all around development in the past 10 years. The population of the town has increased from 5,000 to 45,000. The number of new housing colonies has increased in the town but no new road or bypass has added to the town in past 20 years. Though many proposals were made for the widening of roads in the past years, these plans could not be implemented. The decision of the Municipal Council to grant permission to vendors to sit on the National Highway in front of State bank Of India, police station, the Cinema road have further aggravated the traffic situation, where daily accidents are taking place and pedestrians are the victims. SR Kapoor, President-Secretary of the Palampur Welfare Forum, said the matter was brought to the notice of the authorities many a times but no steps were initiated to regulate the flow of traffic.
|
||
|
Tanda medical college starts first lifestyle disorders clinic
Kangra, May 7 Dr Vivek Chauhan, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, DRPGMC, said with the improvement in economy and living standards, diseases related to modern lifestyle started appearing in people. These disorders were called ‘lifestyle- related disorders’, which include obesity and other complications like diabetes, hypertension, heart attack, fatty liver disease, osteoarthritis of knees and various types of cancer. He said childhood obesity was on an increase as had been shown by studies conducted across the country. The most developed countries like the USA had 75 per cent of their population that was overweight or obese. He further said India had always been the centre of spiritualism and yoga for centuries and these disciplines teach people how to maintain the home stasis between the outer and inner environment of their bodies. Dr Chauhan said the rapid urbanisation and blind following of the western lifestyle had brought a rapid decline in the health of Indians. He said as a result, India had now been labelled as the ‘epicentre of diabetic quake’. He said 6-10 per cent of the Indian population was currently diabetic, which was just a tip of an iceberg, and a higher percentage being in the pre-diabetic range. These findings were alarming but people continue to fall prey to the temptations of modern lifestyle. A recent survey of the Indian Council of Medical Research had shown a high prevalence of hypertension among state residents, which again, was a lifestyle-related disorder, Dr Chauhan said. This problem was becoming more prevalent in the younger generation, he said. He said DRPGMC, Tanda had taken a well-thought step in this direction by starting an obesity and lifestyle clinic, which would cater to all lifestyle-related disorders. He added that the clinic was the first-of-its-kind in the state and was run by the Department of Medicine of the hospital in collaboration with the Department of Community Medicine, in the Medicine OPD on every Thursday from 2pm to 4pm.
|
||
|
Villagers apprised of legal, fundamental rights
Nurpur, May 7
The objective of the camp was to apprise the villagers of their legal and fundamental rights. Holding of such a legal literacy camp was a part of their curriculum, but at the same time, it was meant for the assistance of the state Legal Service Authority in disseminate information regarding various laws enacted for the protection of the fundamental rights of people. In order to educate villagers about various acts or law, the students divided themselves into eight groups and had detailed discussions with the people. The students discussed about the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Guardian/ Ward Act and the Juvenile Justice Protection and Care Act. They also discussed the laws relating to child labour and dowry. Madan Lal, panchayat pradhan of the village, expressed gratitude towards the law department of the HPU and the local legal literacy committee for holding the camp.
|
||
|
Hamirpur MP flays UPA for bad governance
Bilaspur, May 7 He said this on account of recent intrusion by China into the Indian territory and death of Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh in a Pakistan jail. He said: "Pakistan first insulted us by beheading our soldiers and now again they killed an innocent Indian in its jail." adding that "the Indian Government had failed to give belligerent reply to our ‘errant’ neighbours." Anurag Thakur also accused the UPA of failing to curb inflation and its inability to provide employment to youth. He said the Central Government had no time for such activities. It was busy amassing money meant for the public welfare. He urged party workers to work hard to replace the ‘incapable government’ in the next parliamentary elections.
|
||
|
Dowry death: Husband, mother-in-law held
Nupur, May 7 The incident had sparked off tension in the area. A large number of people thronged the village and cremated the body on the premises of her in-laws’ house. Even the police failed to stop the infuriated crowd from conducting the cremation. The deceased, a mother of three, had married Lekh Raj 10 years ago. She was allegedly tortured by her husband and mother-in-law for want of dowry. She was admitted by her in-laws to Tanda Medical College, Kangra, in a serious condition on April 29 and died four days later. The Jawali police said her father Durga Dass had alleged dowry, harassment and torture as the causes of her death. A case under Sections 498 (A) and 306 of the IPC had been registered against her husband and mother-in-law. The duo had been remanded in police custody and would be produced in a court on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the police has also booked eight relatives of the deceased under Sections 147,149, 452, 427, 275, 277 and 120 (B) of the IPC for forcibly cremating the deceased at her in-laws’ house. The police has
|
||
|
451+ HIV children get aid in Kangra
Kangra, May 7 In Kangra, 451 beneficiaries availed benefit under the scheme in the last fiscal year, said Kangra Chief Medical Officer. The number was seven times more than 2007 when the scheme was launched in 2007. The increase in utilisation was attributed to Information, Education and Communication activities by the Health Department and personal efforts of the Integrated Counseling and Testing Centres staff, who facilitate the applications. District AIDS Programme Officer Dr RK Sood said the extensive awareness activities through inter-sectoral approach, NGOs, Red Ribbon Club of youths, anganwari workers and self-help groups, who had been trained, were leading the movement to increase awareness on various schemes. Panchayati raj representatives, Zila Parishad and BDC members had also shown enthusiasm by providing referrals to the ICTC staff, Dr Sood said. He said banks were also helping the HIV positive children by opening zero-balance bank accounts for them so that they receive the financial assistance at their doorstep. He appealed to all eligible beneficiaries to submit their applications at their nearest ICTC centre and avail the benefit of the scheme. He said the children and their families need not to come to the district headquarters to claim the assistance, but the funds would be transferred to the bank accounts of beneficiaries directly by the RTGS. The staff of ICTC centres of the National AIDS Control Organisation also help the beneficiaries open bank accounts and take steps to protect their confidentiality, Dr Sood said. Some guardians of affected children said the assistance was a great help to them as it helps them meet a lot of expenses and improve the quality of life of their children. Dr Sood said 99.5 per cent children above the age of five were school-going and they did not face any discrimination in schools which was a sign of healthy society. The highest number of beneficiaries was from Dehra and Palampur followed by the Jawalamukhi and Nurpur regions and lowest number was from the Kangra region. Most children were in the age group of 10-15, said the doctor.
|
||
|
Chamba emerges as film-makers’ choice
Chamba, May 7 The film focuses on the lifestyle of the people in Chamba region and is a story about Shailesh Sharma (Mithu), an urban boy, who falls in love with a rustic girl (Sheetal). He promises to marry her in the next “basant”. In the movie, Karan Arya plays a significant role. Shailesh Sharma (Mithu) is acting as hero of the film and Sheetal is the heroine (actress). Ibrar Mirza (Choudhary), alongwith his two brothers Pritpal Singh (Tuta) and Karan Arya (Balua), is in the role of a villain. Pankaj, Vikram and Duni Chand Rathore are other actors in the film. The director-producer of the movie, Hitender Rana, is making the shooting easy in the hills with his skills. “The movie is being shot under the auspices of Sunrise Motion Pictures and Ashutosh Audio-Video Craft, Mumbai,” says Hitender Rana. The movie is full of romance, fight, suspense and comedy. It includes five touching Himachali songs. The work on the movie had begun in January this year and is expected to be accomplished by the year end. The movie is expected to be released next year in February.
|
||
|
Increase awareness to ensure gender justice: Judge
Kangra, May 7 Justice RS Chauhan, while delivering a lecture on “Gender Sensitisation and the Indian Constitution” on the second day of the workshop organised by the Social Work Society of the Department of Social Work, CUHP, on the basis of his personal experiences as a lawyer and a Judge, clarified vague legal concepts and practices. Justice Chauhan also spoke on the role of the Constitution in bringing about solutions to the problems faced by the public in the present scenario. He highlighted the significance of the Constitution both as a legal and a social document. He said India, pluralistic in existence with regard to the languages spoken, cultures practised and social norms adhered to, needed a strong ground norm, the supreme law, to keep its integrity as a nation. He said it was in this regard that the Constitution became a ray of hope for the common man to get justice without the barriers and borders of any discriminating entities. The workshop organised two public lectures on the topics, “The Panacea for Social Problems” and “Gender Sensitisation and the Indian Constitution”. The faculty and students participated in these. The public lecture was presided over by Vice-Chancellor Furqan Qamar who laid emphasis on gender sensitivity in mental and social orientation. Prof Arvind Agarwal, Dean, School of Social Sciences, introduced the speaker. The lectures were followed by a discussion wherein all Deans, heads of departments, faculty members and students participated. The vote of thanks was proposed by convener Shabab Ahmad.
|
||
|
Mayo College win cricket tournament
Solan, May 7 Pinegrove won the toss and elected to bat. They were off to a slow start and lost early wickets in the initial overs. At one stage the score read 17 for the loss of 3 wickets. Mayo boys maintained a strict discipline in their bowling and fielding which kept the run rate under control and did not allow the host to use the willow freely. From there on, Manraj Singh who scored 16 and Nikhil Kansal 9 tried to build the innings, but could not find support at the other end and the team was bundled for a meagre 76 runs in 15 overs. For Mayo College, Uday Tomar was the most destructive bowler scalping 4 wickets for just 10 runs. Sahil Dewan took two. Chasing the total, the Mayo College boys too appeared nervous and also lost their opener with the score reading just 16. However, Sahil Dewan 25, Bharat Tandon 22 not out and Danish Brar 15 not out, played and kept their team on course to victory. Parteek Romana and Salil Bajaj took one wicket each for Pinegrove. Uday Tomar was adjudged Man of the Match. The Best Bowler award was given to Sahil Dewan of Mayo College, while Bharat Tandon of the same school won the Best Wicketkeeper prize. Anubhav of Assam Valley School, Assam, bagged the Best Fielder award, while the Best Batsman award was won by Kabir Sethi of Doon School, Dehradun. Parteek Romana of Pinegrove School got the Player of the Tournament award. Sumer Singh, Principal, Daly College, Indore, was the chief guest on the occasion and he gave away the prizes.
|
||
|
When gardens bloom and blossom in Himachal
by Shriniwas Joshi The bloom of Bird of Paradise (see photo) here at my home these days reminds me of CSIR-Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology from where I had brought the root bulbs of this plant in 1998. Was it D Mukherjee, an officer looking after the flowering plants there, who told me that it required good care if it had to be grown in the cold of Shimla?
He also told me that the Bird of Paradise was an exotic plant native to South Africa where it was commonly known as crane flower and featured on the reverse of the 50 cent coin. Its name came from its resemblance to a flying bird and it was a popular ornamental piece due to its attractiveness. He said its root bulbs were elongated and deserved a deeper space to grow properly and suggested that, in Shimla, the plant should be grown in a pot which could be kept inside when the temperature outside fell below 4 degrees C. I gave the bulbs to my green-fingered wife who buried those in a big paint-drum. The drum is so heavy with mulch, clay, sand etc. that it is difficult to carry it inside during winters, so is stationary and to save it from the cold, I give it a blanket of hay and remove the cover in warmer months. The Bird of Paradise plants are notoriously slow to begin producing flowers, taking five to seven years for that. People in Britain compare it with cat -- just wanting a sunny spot to lounge in and to get fed and watered regularly. In 1992, when the acronym IHBT was not tagged with the CSIR, it had brought out a technical bulletin “Flowering Plants of Palampur” edited by BK Sinha. Giving an account of the works already done on the flowering plants of Himachal Pradesh, it reads: “The pioneer floristic account of Shimla was published by Collett (1921) and that of Bashahr Himalayas by Nair (1977). Chowdhery and Wadhwa (1984) and Polunin and Stanton (1988) in their detailed work had referred to the occurrence of a number of species from Himachal Pradesh. Sharma (1976) had compiled information on economic plants of Himachal Pradesh. But there was no mention of Palampur exclusively anywhere.” The booklet adds to our information by saying that the flora of Palampur comprises 415 species belonging to 291 genera and 84 families of angiosperms. Angiosperms have the sex organs within flowers and the seeds are in fruit. Further division of the total species discloses that 117 in 76 genera and 13 families are monocots and 298 species of 215 genera and 71 families are dicots. Monocots and dicots are the two main types of flowering plants and they differ in morphological characteristics of leaves, stems, flowers and the fruit. Another flower in my garden that attracted me is purple geranium (see photo). It is coincidental that like Bird of Paradise, it can also be translated as Crane Flower. In Greek, Geranos means crane because the seedpods of geraniums are shaped like the beak of crane. The other similarity with the bird is that it is also native to South Africa -- coming to Europe in 1690 from the region of Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. I am not a botanist and cannot differentiate between one and the other variety of geraniums. Do you know that Geranium has 300 different varieties? I requested Mela Ram Sharma, former botanist, IIAS, to tell me the name of the flower. He sent me the information that I am sharing with my readers. It is Regal Geranium, sometimes known as Martha Washingtons. They are the showiest of the Pelargonium family. Its introduction to Europe was as late as 1830. These flowers like cool environment and high light. Regals are not to be treated like other geraniums as they are a different class and respond better if their management is given special attention. The spring has gone and the summers have set in. It is the period in Himachal Pradesh when the gardens bloom and blossom. Good gardening!
Tailpiece
|
||
|
Highlighting social evils through theatre
At a time when scams are surfacing one after the other in an uninterrupted stream focussing public attention on the issue of corruption as never before, the historic Gaiety Theatre in the state capital saw two relevant plays.
Based on the story of Vinay Khare and directed by Ayaz Khan, the play ‘Dilli ki Deewar’ highlighted how rampant corruption in the country was affecting the poor marginalised sections of society. It is centred around the story of a ‘safai karamchari’, Ram Niwas, who stumbles on a haul of currency notes concealed in a wall. Instead of tracing those who had stacked the black money, the entire administration goes after him and he is branded as a terrorist and ultimately killed in an encounter. No one knows where the money goes. The second play ‘Ek Aur Dronacharya’ was written by Shankar Shesh and directed by Daksha Sharma and it focused on corruption in education. It showed how teachers compromised their integrity to let go the ward of a VIP, who was caught while indulging in copying during an examination. The HCRFTR has been in existence since 1986 and in the forefront of the theatre movement in the state. It has been running a residential theatre training centre that offers a one-year programme in theatre skills. It attracts trainees from across the country. It has also brought out in Hindi one of the most important book on theatre entitled ‘Stanislavsky ka Abhinaya Sidhanta’. Imparting leadership skills
A decorated soldier from the Kargil operations, Lt-Col Samir Rawat was at the National Academy of Audit and Accounts, Shimla, to impart leadership skills to trainees. He started the MIND Academy after suffering a bullet injury during the conflict to provide training to the youth to perform well in corporate, academic, government administration, military, police and other fields. A cognitive-behavioural trainer with a doctorate in Psychology, Samir Rawat started the academy with the aim of developing and mentoring young minds. He is the first psychologist to be posted at the prestigious National Defence Academy and has been conducting workshops on leadership, teamwork, motivation and communication skills throughout the country. Rawat lays stress on instilling a right attitude and values such as self- discipline, propriety and integrity, dignity of labour, commitment to the Constitution, and sensitivity to the rights of citizen, particularly the disadvantaged and differently abled, for success and taking the country forward. One should be conscientious and forthright and always display the right values, ethical standards, norms of behaviour and personal conduct at all times. He uses an eclectic approach in teaching soft skills related to leadership and personality development, behaviour modification and counselling, besides conducting faculty development and training of trainers (TOT) for academic, civil services, military & corporate institutions.
Alumni meet
The first alumni meet of electrical engineering department, National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur, saw a congregation of about 50 former students, currently holding important positions in various organisations like NTPC, BSNL, EIL, HPPCL, DRDO, Indian Railways and various academic institutes. The meet was inaugurated by Dr Raman Parti, Dean, Student welfare, who highlighted the achievements and activities of the institute like NBA accreditation of engineering degrees, placements of pass outs. He also emphasised the need of continuing interaction with the alumni to gain from their experiences to bring changes in the curriculum to make the courses relevant to the changing needs in various fields. Former students of the department appreciated the initiative taken by Prof Rajnish Shrivastava, Director, NIT, in organising the events at the department-level, which was quite important to create a proper database and strengthen the bond. Various deans and heads of the departments interacted with the alumni and took suggestions from them to identify the gaps in present curriculum and need of
the industries. Dr SS Chandel, Head of Energy and Environment Centre, emphasised the need of industry oriented research and development projects with the active participation of former students. Earlier, Dr Ravinder Nath Sharma, Head, EED, welcomed the guests and assured to hold such interactions frequently. OP Rahi, coordinator of this meet, thanked the dignitaries.
|
|
||
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
A two-day state-level workshop was held in the district to make police officers aware of latest changes in the legal methodology to fight the menace of human trafficking.
The programme, which concluded at Police Training College (PTC), Droh, also told the personnel about new techniques adopted by the criminals involved in human trafficking and subsequent methods to crush their network.
The green hills of Himachal Pradesh have been indiscriminately stripped of their forest cover in the past 15 years, resulting in flash floods, devastating landslides and complete change in the pattern of rain. Besides, the large-scale construction of roads, buildings and other activities combined with indiscriminate mining and quarrying have further disturbed the ecological balance in the state.
The traffic situation in Palampur has moved from bad to worse as the administration has failed to initiate appropriate steps to regulate the increasing traffic flow in the town.
Despite the fact that the Hotla-Kalu Di Hatti bypass is operational, the administration has allowed the passage of heavy vehicles, including trucks and buses, via Palampur town, resulting in frequent traffic jams in the town.
In a first of its kind, a Himachali movie is in the making in the mountainous region of Chamba nowadays. The movie is an endeavour of those extraordinary talented youths, who could not afford to go to big cities for achieving their aim. The movie on which they are working is “Rut Basant”. Amazingly, the shooting of the film is drawing a huge crowd from all over
the region.
Justice RS Chauhan, a Judge of the Rajasthan High Court, during a two-day workshop at the Central University of Himachal Pradesh
(CUHP), emphasised on creating awareness and enlightenment among people about the laws providing a basis to ensure gender justice.
Mayo College (Boys) School, Ajmer, lifted the Invitational Cup at the cricket tournament held at Pinegrove School,
Dharampur, by defeating host Pinegrove School in the final played on April 23. Pinegrove won the toss and elected to bat. They were off to a slow start and lost early wickets in the initial
overs. At one stage the score read 17 for the loss of 3 wickets.
The plays were presented by the Mandi-based Himachal Culture Research Forum and Theatre Repertoire (HCRFTR) as part of its two-day ‘Natya Utsav’.