Say NO TO RAGGING

College is a place, which gives new definitions to student’s life and welcomes the students to a new phase, where at every point they get to learn new things. Colleges in India are meant to make students learn different situations, so that they are further able to become competent enough to deal with the complications of life. One thing, which every student has to face is ragging, which is usually meant to introduce the students with the seniors and make them familiar with the college environment. But, with the changing times, the definitions and the ways in which the ragging is being conducted in colleges is changing drastically. Now ragging has become a tool, which is used by the seniors to humiliate the freshers and to make them realise their power. Due to which ragging has been started considered in the negative sense, and in fact it has caused a terror in the students, due to which they prefer not going to college in the first few days.

This has to be stopped, by any means it has to be. Though, ragging has taken the shape of a terrifying act performed by the seniors of the college, to harass the freshers in one way or the other, but somewhere, someone has to take a step ahead and put a ban on such degrading actions. There are many unions and groups formed in the colleges of India, which are for anti- ragging. But, it is still not working and many students are not following the rules and norms formed against ragging. They say ragging is for fun, but if we actually see, the kind of ragging practised in the colleges today are for the fun of seniors only, but for the freshers it becomes an embarrassment.

Therefore, before doing any such heinous act, first try and place yourself there, and feel the pain and humiliation, a student goes through, when he is being ragged. It is actually a crime, and moreover being a senior, you should welcome the freshers coming to your college in a cheerful manner and make them feel comfortable in the college environment. This would not only add value to your college, but you will also gain respect in the eyes of the new fuchas!!

Government Adopting Latest Technology to Boost Education System

The Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry is coming up with a unique ID programme to monitor education system in India. This program is set to help millions of students across the country in various ways from their primary and secondary to higher education levels.

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) will store the entire record of a student’s education. It will be made compulsory to enroll students in the programme from the first day of their school. UIDAI, based in New Delhi aims to assign 12-digit universal identity numbers to more than 600 million citizens in India over next four years. Some of the benefits of adopting Unique ID are listed below:

-Monitoring the education system

-Speeding up the education loan grant process

-Smoothening the repayment of study loans

-Tracking school and college dropouts

Moreover, it will help check forgery as banks will not have to worry about students showing fake educational qualifications to avail loans. It will prove to be of immense help to poor students and can propel dissemination of education across the nation.

The Unique IDs will contain photographs, fingerprints and iris scans but since these keep changing up to 18 years of age, the biometric identity of parents will serve as a foolproof measure. And as soon as the student turns 18, his/her photograph and biometric prints will be treated final for all future uses.

The discussions between Union Government and UIDAI are nearing completion with two rounds of consultations already done in last three months. It is one of the largest government schemes in several decades and so, many highly experienced professionals are roped in to implement the task effectively and in time. Since ‘UID is not a one-size-fits-all product’, the biggest challenge is to market the idea among citizens from every caste, region and religion while creating ‘want’ for this identity number.

Course in e-governance

Computers or the world of technology has changed the meaning of our existence. Today, we have got so much dependent on developments in the IT field, that from the starting of our day, till the time, we go back to our dream world; we are surrounded by different technologies, which make our life rolling in the right direction. The growth of the country is also to a great extent dependent on the frequent use of these technologies, which further increases the production value and saves time and energy. Government and the private companies are also at every stage implying these technologies to make their work easier. One most important task, which is the basis of the growth of every company, whether private or public is the feedback of its target audience.

Therefore making the communication process easier, between the sender and the receiver, e- governance is the word, which is practised by most of the private and government agencies. And to produce professionals for this field and train the students for this particular field, a new post graduate course called e- governance has been introduced by National Institute for Smart Government, Hyderabad. The programme has been announced by the institute in association with IT department of ministry of communication and information technology and TA Pai Management Institute. This one year e- governance course is specially designed keeping in mind the working attributes of the mid and senior level executives. This is to make them understand the e- governance system, from the view point of businessmen, general masses and the government.

The course will instil the information in the students with the use of all latest technologies and practical exposures to the e- governance system. There will be three terms, including an educational tour and an internship period for 18 months. So, all those executives, who want to grow in their career and have a better view of their working systems, in terms related to IT can opt for this course and share and enhance their work skills.

So, all set to rock !!

Colleges are about to open, this is the time, when a new phase of your life will begin and you will get to enter an entire different world, which is a mix of education and fun. I know there must be so many thoughts going in your mind. What would happen, what would you wear, how will be the people there, what would the college environment like, how would the teachers behave, and would it be actually like a cool journey towards the achievement of your dream goal. There are a number of things, which a student goes through, before actually starting his first day in college.

So, to lessen and share the burden of thoughts pondering your mind, following are few of the things, which you should keep in mind, before entering your dream college:

 Be positive: Being optimistic is the key to all problems. You need to be positive in your attitude, the way you talk, present things and approach people. A sign humbleness and respect should be reflected in your behaviour. You should not be very egoistic and must have that ability to turn the ball towards your court with your sweetness and majesticity.

 Make your own style statement: Wear clothes you are comfortable in. One should not just copy and paste the latest trends on him, but should wear clothes, which suits their personality and which looks good on him. It’s not always necessary to be dressed the way others are dressing; in fact, you should have the ability to set examples for others.

 Don’t be shy: Drop the attitude of being reserved and shy. Gone are the days, when people would approach you asking, who are you, where are you from, and etc. etc. Now-a-days, you need to step ahead and make a place for yourself in the cluster of the students present in the college. So be open and introduce yourself to others.

Thus, by following few of the above mantra’s you can control your nervousness and move ahead with the ticklish feeling of entering your dream college, and yes be confident and have a fantastic career ahead!

Modernizing Education in India

There has always been a debate in India over transforming the traditional education system into the contemporary one. Today, the way education is imparted is witnessing a transition with blackboard, chalk and duster being replaced by whiteboard and marker. It has become a two way interactive process rather than teacher teaching and students listening (or hearing in many cases).

Everything in the education system is changing from the look of the classroom in schools and colleges to the learning process via use of technology. The conventional methods of teaching or rote learning are now inching towards modernity with tech based learning becoming immensely popular. Various schools and colleges have come of age and are adopting e-learning ways to walk hand in hand with the rapidly changing world scenario, trends and technologies.

E-learning has become an indispensable part of learning in the current times. Other countries have been following it from ages but it is comparatively newer to Indian domain. The low literacy rate and the lack of access to computers and internet have been detrimental to the progress of education sector in the country. Though learning process has improved by leaps and bounds, lot needs to be done to develop and maintain the overall efficiency of the system.

The content quality is not only the top most priority but also of paramount significance. Information anywhere anytime seems to be the buzzword, catching up with both students and teachers. With the vast usage of laptops, CDs, web, wireless networking, etc., learning is just a click away. Distance learning is growing the fastest with e-learning becoming a favorite across the taught and the teaching faculty. Even though internet has grown the fastest in the world, Indian education system still needs to cash in on its benefits galore. The path is defined and thus, success too shall come soon.

Last chance for admission in DU !

Securing a seat in any of the DU colleges seems to be the toughest nut to crack in today’s scenario. The cut- off lists for DU released this year were unimaginably high and students have been drooling around the various colleges of Delhi University, to grab a seat for themselves in the course of their choice. Most of the colleges under Delhi University have closed their admissions after releasing the third cut- off list. It has been a heart breaking announcement for most of the students. But still there is a hope, as some of the colleges have released the fourth cut- off list for admissions. The fourth cut – off list was listed in the colleges on 6th July and the students can fill in the admission forms till 9th of July, i.e. today. The students should immediately check their stats, as in whether they match with the admission criteria’s for the fourth cut- off list or not. This is your last chance to board the train for admission into the most prestigious educational institution of the country, i.e. Delhi University.

While filling the OMR sheet, the students are expected to fill at least two or three career options, which widens the chance of them cracking in any one of the courses applied. Becoming a part of the Delhi University is the choice of every student, for which each and every possible effort should be made. In case of the courses, which have entrance examinations, the students should give their best shots and crack the entrance tests, with all their hard work and abilities.

Success does not come through short cuts; you need to put in a lot to achieve the status of a winner. And admission in the college of DU, is the very first step of a student towards the achievement of his goal, therefore the student should put his best foot forward and should keep trying till the last ray of hope diminishes.

Special Scheme for Education Loans Launched by Bank of India

A special scheme is launched to disburse education loans to needy students across the country. Bank of India is organizing Education Loan Camps pan India for two months to cater to the education finance needs of the parents and children. This loan can be repaid within 7 years after a year of the course completion or six months after getting the job whichever is earlier.

The campaign was inaugurated on 6th July by Chairman & Managing Director of Bank of India, Mr. Alok K. Misra in Chandigarh zone consisting Chandigarh, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Students from Chandigarh based colleges received on-the-spot sanction for education loans covered under Shiksha Suraksha Plan. The camps are run throughout the country as while South India is an existing education hub, North India is the upcoming one. With increasing movement of students for higher education, the financing needs have enlarged significantly.

Bank of India (BOI) holds 4th position with 5% share in the total outstanding in the Education Loan by all Public Sector Banks as on 31st March 2010. An overall growth of 29% and Chandigarh Zonal growth of 22.50% was witnessed at the end of last financial year 2009-2010. The education loan rates of Bank of India are 9.5% up to Rs. 4 lakhs and a further concession of 0.5% interest up to Rs.50,000 and 1% to loans over Rs.50,000 for girl students is also provided. Not only this, 1% interest concession is given to all the students upon service of interest during moratorium period of loan.

The higher education sector in India is developing at a swift pace with more and more number of students opting for post graduate studies. This is further encouraged by easy availability of education loans and finances that then support their career goals.

3 Day India-US Summit on Higher Education

The city of Mumbai is all set to host a three day India-US higher education summit on July 30 to celebrate the completion of 25 years of the Indo-American Society. Union Human Resource Development Minister, Kapil Sibal will inaugurate the event that is expected to strengthen Indo-US relations on education front.

Marking the golden jubilee of the society, this event is aimed at creating collaborations and exchange programs between education institutions, students and faculty from India and US. It will offer participants with brilliant opportunities to get together with important business, political and academic personalities at both national and international levels.

The Indo-US society works on creating frameworks of government policy and partnership models. It also helps in gaining access to networks that enable education providers to explore the huge untapped demand growing everyday. Over a lakh students from India go to US for higher education while several more lakhs wish to do so. This offers immense opportunities to education institutes in US to attract a huge chunk of Indian students to their country.

The primary objective of the three-day summit is to promote the Indo-US society as a facilitator of knowledge cultivation and talent development. It is expected to serve as a catalyst for research and technology that will be of value to students planning to pursue higher education. Moreover, the summit would focus on implementing policies that can bring change in the current education paradigm to match international standards. This involves increasing access and enhancing quality of India-US higher education which would remain the predominant issues in the meet.

The India-America Summit is to be held in Mumbai at Hotel Grand Hyatt, chaired and addressed by prominent personalities from various educational institutions. Some of them are Vijay Khole, former vice-chancellor of Mumbai University; Sarah Farley, COO, Global Knowledge Initiative; Bala Balachandran, faculty, Kellogg School of Management; Joel M. Rodney, chancellor, Pennsylvania State University; N. Jadhav, member, Planning Commission of India and others.