Hindustan Times: July 2008

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Indian Institute of Technology open exam process to students

Results of the IIT's Joint Entrance Examination (IIT-JEE) - one of the most keenly contested examinations in the country just got more transparent. Taking note of the numerous queries filed under the Right to Information Act (RTI) regarding its admission procedure, IIT Joint Admission Board has decided to release the cut-off scores for individual subjects and different streams on its website.

Applicants can now get to know the cut-off scores in individual subjects like physics, maths or chemistry and also aggregate cut offs for streams like computer, electronics, mechanical and civil engineering. For the 2007 entrance exam, the institute had posted their question papers and correct answers on their site.

The first detailed score sheets will be released on August 1 at 8 pm on the institute's website www.iitg.ernet.in for students who appeared for the 2008 entrance exam. The score sheets will show the opening and closing ranks of different branches for every category, general and reserved.

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Labels: admissions, chemistry, cut-off marks, electronics, entrance exams, graduation, IIT-JEE, IITs, institute, maths, mechanical, physics, procedure, results, RTI, streams, students

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Homeless? Congrats

If you haven't bought a house of your own yet, or feel priced out of the market now, there may be some good news in store. Home loan rates are set to rise again, while realty prices head for a bigger-than-expected fall. The result: paying rent just got smarter.

That's one way of looking at the brighter side of Reserve Bank of India's credit policy on Tuesday, which, otherwise, painted a gloomier picture of the economy and brought such measures that would make the slowdown worse than now.

The central bank raised the rate at which it lends to commercial banks in the short term, and ordered them to hold more cash in reserves, in a bid to contain inflation that has reached a worrisome 12 per cent and threatens to detail the India growth story .

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Labels: auto finance, bankers, central bank, commerical bank, growth rate, home loans, India Australia, inflation, market, RBI

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Navi Mumbai, the new terror hub

How a wifi link was stolen investigations into Saturday's Ahmedabad serial bombings have thrown up the first clues: the terror operations were likely planned in Navi Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra.

It is now emerging that someone logged in to American manager Kenneth Haywood's Wi-Fi connection - installed in his apartment in Navi Mumbai - to send the e-mail warning of a terror strike, minutes before the first bombs went off, intelligence officials told the Hindustan Times on condition of anonymity .

Three of the four car-bombs in Gujarat were stolen from Navi Mumbai and the fourth was traced to an area near Nashik, said officials of Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) in Mumbai. The findings came on a day when the death toll crossed 50, a bomb was defused in Surat, and tense Indian cities were flooded with bomb hoaxes.

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Labels: Ahmedabad, ATS, bomb hoaxes, clue, email, Maharashtra, Navi Mumbai, serial bomb blast, terror, terror strike, warnings, WiFi

Monday, July 28, 2008

Fear of 2002 keeps Muslims indoors

Fear hung over large parts of Ahmedabad as the city's minority community huddled indoors on Saturday after news of the serial blasts spread. For them, it was a flashback to the post-Godhra communal riots of 2002.

In Juhapura, Shah Alam and Naroda, silence and deserted roads replaced the usual bustle. People in the Naroda Gam area - where one of the worst massacres of 2002 had taken place left the village last night, while residents of Shah Alam kept a night-long vigil. Some panicky survivors of the 2002 carnage even called up NGO activists seeking their advice on what to do.

"Though people were calm, there was palpable tension visible in them," said community leader Sharif Khan Pathan, one of the prominent organisers of the Shah Alam relief camp after the 2002 massacre.

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Labels: Ahmedabad, Hindu organisation, Juhapura, minority community, Muslim, NGO activities, scared, serial bomb blast, survivors

Friday, July 25, 2008

Born Muslim, raised Hindu

Every Day for six years, Mohammed Salim Sheikh and his wife mourned the loss of their two-year-old son Muzaffar, missing since a deadly mob attack ruined their home and life during the 2002 Gujarat riots.

Last year, they found him.

But Muzaffar had now become Vivek, 7, son of Hindu fish-seller Vikram Patni, a childless man who cared for him since and with whom the boy wants to stay rather than his biological parents. A court battle followed. On Wednesday a court declared he , would continue to live with the Patni family .

"I'll move High Court. This isn't the end," said Sheikh. Muzaffar – or Vivek – clung frightened to the arms of his feeling parents on February 28, 2002 as thousands of rioters raided Ahmedabad's Gulbarg Society in a , six-hour carnage that also killed former MP Ehsan Jaffrey who had given them shelter.

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Labels: battle, biological parents, childless man, fish-seller, Gujarat riots, High Court, Hindu, mob attack, Mohammed Salim Sheikh, Muslim, survivor

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Delhi learns to live with Bus Rapid Transit

The long wait at traffic intersections is still there and so are the jaywalkers and lane jumpers but the madness and chaos is now conspicuously missing. Three months after it was made operational, things seem to be finally falling into place at the much-criticised 5.8 km-long Bus Rapid Transit corridor.

The opening of the BRT corridor between Ambedkar Nagar and Moolchand on April 21 had unleashed utter chaos and congestion on the once smooth road. Tempers were frayed and scuffles became common as motorists had to wait up to 40 minutes to cross the Chirag Dilli crossing. The scene was similar at intersections like Archana, Saket and Pushpa Vihar. The traffic signals were not working and the pile-up of cars were a kilometer long and lane jumping was rampant.

Three months down the line, Hindustan Times went back to the stretch and found out traffic on the corridor has finally stabilized and motorists, cursing the new system till sometime ago, have now made their peace with it.

The changes

The first visible change at the corridor is the scrupulous lane discipline being displayed by motorists. In three hours HT spent at the corridor, not even one car or two-wheeler jumped into the nearly empty bus lane. More importantly, the waiting time at the traffic intersections has come down to a good extent. The constantly malfunctioning traffic signaling system of the corridor too is working efficiently now with separate signals for motorized vehicles, cycles and buses.

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Labels: auto rickshaws, BRT, Bus Rapid Transit corridor, cycles, delhi, DIMTS, interactions, motorists, small cars, traffic, traffic signals, vehicles

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Lok Sabha Televisions ratings soar

Television Viewers have found India's political drama just as gripping - if not more - than the saas-bahu soaps, the Sensex and even sports. And advertisers are flocking to news channels and the government-run Lok Sabha TV to make the most of the situation.

Viewership for Lok Sabha TV which telecasts the Parliament session live, surged by 46 per cent on July 21, the day the special session of the Parliament began. Industry watchers said there was a surge in the number of advertisers vying for space during commercial breaks between MP speeches, though no conclusive data was available. On the same day, DD News viewership shot up by 20.4 per cent, while NDTV India recorded an 18 per cent rise.

Hiren Pandit, of Group M ESP, a media agency, believes that ratings of news channels will be up by 20 to 30 per cent. "Some advertisers will grab the opportunity," he said, adding that he knew of a few who had joined the action in the past two days.

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Labels: advertisers, DD News, Lok Sabha, Lok Sabha TV, media agency, NDTV India, news channels, Parliamnet session, ratings, run, semsex, sports, telecasts, television

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Chicken tikka, samosa power Israeli troops

Some of the toughest troops in the world have fallen in love with Indian culinary delights. In an outstanding endorsement of Indian cuisine, chicken tikka and samosa have become the staple diet for the Israeli Defence Forces.

If Indian food has found its way around Israeli barracks, the credit goes to an Indian lady who made Tel-Aviv her home 25 years ago. Born in New Delhi to a colonel, Reena Pushkarna's restaurant chain - Tandoori- currently supplies over 1,500 tonnes of packaged food to the forces every year.

Reena told the Hindustan Times from Jerusalem, "Yummy food makes peace all the way I can proudly say that an entire generation of Israeli soldiers is growing on my chicken tikka."

Business has steadily grown since the Tandoori chain bagged an Israeli Defence Forces contract some five years ago, she said. Her restaurants in TelAviv, Jerusalem, Herzliya and Eilat are the favourite ports of call for both army reservists and generals.

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Labels: Chicken tikka, diet, Indian cuisine, Indian food, Israeli Defence Forces, Israeli troops, Jerusalem, power, samosa, Tandoori

Monday, July 21, 2008

United Progressive Alliance pads up for slog overs

The Murky backroom battle to gain control of India see-sawed all of Sunday as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) appeared to be just two short of the 272 votes it needs - before Prime Minister Manmohan Singh comes to the Lok Sabha on Monday to move a one-line motion to seek the House's confidence in his council of ministers.

But victory is not certain. The Opposition numbers at midnight on Sunday stood at 266, just four short of the UPA's figures as hectic meetings continued into the night. The Congress tried to keep its flock intact by asking party leaders - also deputed to snatch Opposition MPs - to host dinners, breakfasts and lunches.

The numbers game will continue its roller-coaster ride over the next two days. As the debate before the trust vote unfolds over at least 16 hours, one member parties and MPs are out to strike it rich or push their pet projects either through the UPA or the Opposition (graphic).

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Labels: BJP, breakfast, confidence, council of ministers, CPM, dinners, Lok Sabha, lunch, Opposition, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, slogs, trust votes, UPA, victory

Friday, July 18, 2008

Bussiness of death runs into bad days

The tombstone maker is carving marble name plaques for new homes. The elderly grave digger who has buried hundreds of bullet-ridden bodies is idle. And the post-mortem man in his spotless white coat now only deals with jilted lovers and jobless youth.

Times are changing: the business of death has run into bad days in Kashmir.

From the 4,510 deaths in 2001, the highest number for a year in the insurgency, militancy-related fatalities dropped to about 890 in 2007, officials say. This year, 84 people have been reported dead until mid-June.

So 20 years after the deaths began, three different men in different parts of Srinagar, with similar glazed emotionless eyes — Mohammed Maqbool Tramboo the tombmaker, Abdul Kabir Sheikh the grave digger and Mohammed Maqbool the post-mortem man — have little to do.

“Until a few years ago, there were times when I used to be working day and night, continuously. There is no doubt, the number of militancy deaths is much less and the levels of violence have gone down drastically,” said Mohammed Maqbool Tramboo, 37, a tombmaker who left his home in Anantnag town 15 years ago to make a living in Srinagar.

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Labels: bad days, bussiness of death, grave digger, jobless youth, marble, post-mortem, runs, srinagar, tombstone maker, violence

Thursday, July 17, 2008

In a year's time, you could ride the lovable bug

It's official. All those who've desired to drive the lovable bug needn't wait too long now.

The Volkswagen Beetle will be in India before 2009 ends. "We should see the car in India within a year," Joerg Muller, managing director, Volkswagen Group India, said on the sidelines of the launch of the Jetta, a sedan aimed at the well heeled youngster and businessman.

The German automaker is waiting to put in place a network of sales, service and quality before the car, made famous in such memorable Hollywood films as Herbie and The Love Bug comedy series, is brought to India.

"It is a car that instantly brings a smile to whoever sees it, and since it is one of our best vehicles, we need to ensure we give customers the best quality and service," Mueller said.

For the uninitiated, the Beetle, which made Volkswagen a household name, is a two- or four door mini-car with a distinctive, rounded appearance.

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Labels: drive, German automaker, Herbie, Hollywood films, India, lovable bug, mini car, quality, service, vehicles, Volkswagen Beetle, youngster

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

India profile tanks, Foreign Institutional Investors pullout sinks Sensex

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIS) pressed the panic button as global agency Fitch downgraded India's credit profile to "negative". Sensex, BSE's 30-share benchmark index, dropped to lowest levels in 15 months as foreign funds sold shares worth Rs 702.50 crore on Tuesday alone.

ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank, two of India's three largest banks, tumbled. Sensex fell 654.32 points, or 4.9 per cent, to 12,676.19. All stocks dropped on the index. The NSE Nifty dropped 178.60 points, or 4.4 per cent, to 3,861.10.

"Money is flying out of emerging markets and inflows into India have been negative so fax:" said Madhavi Vora of ULJK Securities, a broking firm. "There is a major liquidity crunch along with other external factors like political uncertainty that are ailing markets."

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Labels: Bank, BSE, FIIS, foreign funds, HDFC, ICICI, India, Nifty, NSE, panic, Sensex, shares, stock market, tumbled

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Man almost drowns in reality TV stunt

A 22 year old almost died while taking part in a dangerous stunt for a TV reality show performed at a mall late on Sunday.

Anjar Khan had strolled into Treasure Island mall when he came across the competition to publicise Khatron Ke Khilari, a new reality show to be aired on Colors entertainment channel. Visitors were dared to remain under water in a glass tank for as long as possible.

Anjar stayed in the tank for 3-5 minutes - when onlookers realised something was wrong. He was pulled out, but after taking a few steps he collapsed. He is currently on ventilator support. Doctors said water had entered his lungs.

Police were questioning three executives of Candid Marketing, which organised the show. Visitors alleged there was no doctor around, as required, at the show.

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Labels: Anjar Khan, Colors entertainment channel, competition, drowns, Man, reality TV stunt, Treasure Island mall, Visitors

Monday, July 14, 2008

3 in 10 people lie to get a job: research

Lies are fast becoming the ladder for India's corporate climbers. And India Inc is slipping.

Three in every 10 job-seekers lie to prospective employers about themselves, reveal three all-India surveys carried out between January 2007 and March 2008.

The dishonesty ranges from lying in resumes and inflating current salaries to submitting fake certificates, including fudged university mark sheets. This dishonesty contributes, directly or indirectly, to India Inc losing an estimated $40 billion (Rs 1.72 lakh crore) annually through corporate fraud carried out by company insiders, says a survey by background check firm India Forensic Research.

"We have seen that people who lie on their CVs are more prone to committing larger frauds later on," said Ashish Dehade of First Advantage, a US based multinational background check firm which has studied 1.5 million cases over the past 15 months. "Recently six employees of a multinational bank committed a major credit card scam. It was found that all six had lied on their CVs about their employment record. In fact, all six had lied even to get their previous jobs!"

Infotech giant TCS runs background checks on all recruits within seven days of issuing offer letters. "Information security is key to our industry We cannot afford any compromises," said K. Ganesan, company vice president.

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Labels: check, CVs, dishonesty, fake certificates, India Forensic Research, infotech, Job, Job-seekers, lies, TCS, university mark sheets

Friday, July 11, 2008

Trust vote 'as early as possible'

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will seek a vote of confidence "as early as possible" in response to the Left's withdrawal of support to the UPA on the India US civil nuclear agreement.

According to a Rashtrapati Bhavan communique issued after the PM called on President Pratibha Patil on Thursday evening, the PM told Patil that "he and his cabinet colleagues (were) keen to seek a vote of confidence as early as possible." The PM spent 30 minutes with the President. The communique was based on a letter he handed to her.

The PM will communicate the exact date of the trust vote to the President on Friday. There was speculation on Thursday that the government may choose a date around July 22 to call a special Lok Sabha session for the vote. Though the date will be finalised only after meetings of the UPA and the Congress Working Committee (CWC), coalition MPs have been asked to be in Delhi by July 22. This will be the first time since the beginning of the coalition era in 1989 that a PM will seek a trust vote after four years in office- six PMs before Singh faced trust votes inside their first couple of years.

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Labels: cabinet colleagues, civil nuclear agreement, CWC, delhi, India, Manmohan singh, Pervez Musharraf, president Pratibha Patil, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Sonia Gandhi, trust votes, UPA, US

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Fourth list: Seats still left in top-draw BCom

There is some hope left for those who were not able to get through in the first three rounds of admissions in Delhi University There are still a few seats left in several colleges all over the city, including coveted ones in north and south campus for popular courses like English(H), History(H), Hindi and Political Science(H).

Colleges like Hans Raj, Hindu, Kirori Mal, Moti Lal Nehru, PGDAV Ram Lal Anand, Ramjas, Satyawati Co-ed, Khalsa, Zakir Husain and Deshbandhu still have seats available in different courses. While in Hans Raj admissions are still open in BCom(H), Mathematics(H) and Sanskrit(H), Hindu has declared a fourth list for BA Programme, BCom(H), English(H), History(H), Mathematics(H) and Sociology(H). The cutoffs marks have further dropped by 1-2 per cent.

But the fourth cutoff list still managed to throw up a few surprises. Delhi University's fourth cutoff list for academic year 2008-2009 has turned the BCom(H) admission prediction on its head. This course was tagged as one of the most sought after subjects at the time of common form analysis. However, this seems far from the truth as many top campus colleges continue to remain open for admission to BCom(H).

Commerce courses

Hansraj College, Hindu College, Kirori Mal College and Daulat Ram College - which are some of the most popular colleges for BCom(H) after Shri Ram College of Commerce - are the four north campus institutions that have dropped their cutoff by 0.25 to 1 per cent in the general category Hindu College, which had in fact the highest number (23,850 candidates) of applications through the centralised form for this course, has decreased its qualifying marks from 93.5-96.5 per cent to 93.25-96.25 per cent. Off-campus institutions such as Maharaja Agrasen and College of Vocational Studies have brought down their cutoff percentage by another .5-1 per cent.

Science courses

Science courses have still not found many takers. According to the fourth list, there are still seats left in popular science courses like Physics(H), Chemistry(H), Botany and Electronics(H).

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Labels: admissions, BCom, commerce courses, Delhi University, graduate students, Hansraj College, Hindu College, Kirori Mal College and Daulat Ram College, science courses, seats, top courses

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Left gone, numbers game on

The congress is counting on the Samajwadi Party (SP) and a bunch of small parties to pull the government through during the vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha. But there are already indications that such support will not come easy, cheap or early.

Within hours of the Left announcing the pullout, one of these potential kingmakers, the two-MP JD(S), announced it would take a final decision on supporting the government only on the day before the trust vote. Another, the three-MP TRS, wanted the Centre to start the process for carving out a separate Telangana state. And the SP said it had kept its side of the agreement by pledging support to the government; it now expected the government to do its bit.

Congress floor managers on Tuesday spoke about having 236 members on the coalition's side, and getting another 39 from the SP, taking its support past the magic figure of 272. But it was clear that the Congress could not take anyone for granted. The challenge will be to muster the numbers and keep its flock together in a situation where smaller parties increasingly figure they could be the only ones standing between the government staying or going.

The first sign of the difficulty of the task came from former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda. Even as Congress managers counted the JD(S) as a firmally, Deve Gowda declared his two MPs would make a decision only on the eve of the trust vote.

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Labels: Andhra Pradesh, bargains, challenge, Congress, creation of Telangana, decision, difficulty, former prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda, government, KCR, Lok Sabha, Samajwadi Party, Telangana state, TRS

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Skipper Dhoni may skip Lanka Test

Mahendra Singh Dhoni could be the first Indian cricketer to pull out of a tour citing fatigue. The India ODI skipper, it was learnt late on Monday, had conveyed this to the BCCI.

Earlier, asked whether he would opt out of the Sri Lanka tour, where the first of the three-Test series begins on July 23, Dhoni said: "You will get to know it in the next couple of days."

Make what you will of that but remember Dhoni had a similar answer to the question after India were annihilated by Sri Lanka in Sunday's Asia Cup final in Karachi. Also remember that he had, during the Asia Cup, raised the issue of international cricket's gruelling schedule.

On Monday, he also appreciated an earlier statement from the BCCI that a player could rest when he felt the need for it. "In the sub-continent we have a full year of cricket and there's no off-season. It's tough for cricketers. When we want rest we should get it," he said. "The BCCI has said we can take rest whenever we want which, I think, is a very good policy" he said.

The birthday boy - he turned 27 on Monday said he was "100 per cent ht". Playing non-stop since India's ODI series against South Africa in June 2007, it is possible that Dhoni would opt out of the Tests and take over for the five ODIs, beginning August 18.

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Labels: Asian Cup, BCCI, Birthday, cricketer, Indian cricket team, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, ODi, South Africa, Sri Lanka

Monday, July 7, 2008

Sariska's first couple may have mated before airlift

Big cats come with baggage. Before their fate brought them together to a new home in Sariska, the young animals had formed a pair. Many in Ranthambhore spotted the Lakrda female mating with a robust collared tiger not far from Malik Talao - the same picturesque water body that made her mother famous as the Lady of the Lake - days before she was moved to Sariska.

While some mistook the tiger for the Kachida male - one of Ranthambhore's many collared tigers -the bulkier frame was a giveaway The Lakrda female's partner was none other than the T10 male, say forest sources, the tiger that preceded her to Sariska on June 28.

Early days still, but Sariska's first tigress just might be carrying her first litter from her old home. If she shows signs of pregnancy now and goes on to deliver, Sariska might have a second generation of tigers much earlier than expected.

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Labels: big cats, couple, forest, Lakrda female, Ranthambhore, Sariska, Sariska's first couple, tiger, young animals

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Samajwadi Party says yes in 'national interest'

He congress can breathe easy The Samajwadi Party's public endorsement on Friday of the India US civil nuclear deal as one "in national interest" enables the Manmohan Singh government to go to the IAEA with an easy mind and with the claim that it continues to enjoy the majority in the Lok Sabha.

While welcoming the latest convert to the deal on board, the Congress also got ready to bid farewell to the Left parties which had been extending outside support. The communists on Friday wrote to External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who heads the UPA-Left panel on the deal, to inform them by July 7 whether the government would approach the IAEA. The letter and the deadline raised the hackles of Congress spokesman Abhishek Singhvi who said, "Sovereign governments or political parties cannot be subjected to deadlines."

The government's response - when it comes would set the stage for the formal parting of ways between the partners who have had a uneasy relationship for over four years.

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Labels: communist, Congress, deal, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, IAEA, Lok Sabha, national interest, nuclear deal, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Samajwadi Party, UPA, UPA-Left panel

Friday, July 4, 2008

City prepares to party with Bollywoodi hottest

Who would turn down an opportunity to party with John Abraham, Deepika Padukone, Sameera Reddy and Neil Nitin Mukesh? If the response to HT City's 'Party with Bollywood' contest is an indication, Dilliwalas have their minds set on winning the 75 tickets to the mega party featuring their favourite stars, as well as thousands of other prizes up for grabs.

Day One saw a flurry of SMSes -15,000, no less - of which 8,000 correct entries have already won a prize. The five mega winners are student Harneet Suri, engineering service consultant Sanjeeb Banerjee, software engineers Ujjwal Singh and Satish Kumar Singh, and just-out-of university Shaili Bhatia. All five were on cloud nine. "As soon as I got the call, I told my wife I'll meet Deepika," said Banerjee excitedly Satish Singh was first time lucky - 'Party with Bollywood' is the first contest he has participated in. Now that he knows he'll meet Deepika in person, he says, "I've to prepare questions to ask her".

Other winners are planning for the big day too. "I'm going to wear a black shirt gifted by my sister," says Suri. Bhatia knows exactly what she'11 ask John: "How do you work out?" HT City has made life more colourful for these contestants

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Labels: Bollywood, Bollywood Star, contest, Deepika Padukone, delhi, grabs, John Abraham, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Party, Party with Bollywood, prizes, Sameera Reddy, tickets

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Stillborn found alive after 10 hours

Call it a miracle or a medical mystery. A baby declared dead by a doctor returned to the mother's lap after 10 hours -- alive and breathing.

Sangita Das (32), a Howrah resident, gave birth to the "stillborn" male baby at midnight on Sunday at the well known Belle Vue Clinic. It was a premature baby of 25 weeks. Three nurses present during the normal delivery found it was a "stillborn case" as there was no sign of life in him. They then conveyed the sad news to the mother.

But Sangita's husband Manas Das found the baby breathing when doctors did a last moment examination before releasing the "body" on Tue. Doctors on duty found signs of life in the newborn and immediately sent him to the Calcutta Medical Research Institute (CMRI) for critical care treatment.

Manas lodged a complaint with the Shakespeare Sarani police station on Tuesday, demanding an inquiry into the negligence of the hospital doctors and nurses. He said no doctor was present during the delivery and that nurses did the job.

Manas said, "The nurses asked my wife to convey the message to me. On Tuesday morning I rushed to the hospital to collect the body. The nurses asked me to arrange for a Hindu Satkar Samiti vehicle to carry the body for cremation. Even the doctor, Gautam Khastagir, informed us around 9.30 a.m. that our baby was dead."

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Labels: alive, baby, Belle Vue Clinic, CMRI, delivery, doctors, hospital, medical, miracle, mother, mystery, nurses, premature baby, Stillborn case

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Distance learners close gap, two get into Indian Administrative Service

If you thought distance learning was only for losers, here's a reality check. Two IGNOU graduates have cleared this year's civil services, and are set to become IAS officers.

The Indira Gandhi National Open University or IGNOU today has 18 lakh students. In Delhi, for every student enrolled in a regular Delhi University college, there are two enrolled in DU's School of Open Learning.

Although the number of students is high, the general view is that distance education is for those not good enough for regular colleges. But IGNOU graduates Keshvendra Kumar and Kumar Ravikant Singh, both from Bihar, have proved that view wrong.

Keshvendra, 22, cracked the exams on his very first attempt, and is among the youngest in his batch. After school in Sitamarhi, he did a railways vocational course, as "job was a priority since my family did not have the resources to fund my education". While working as a railways booking clerk, the son of an Ayurvedic doctor enrolled for Hindi (Hons) in IGNOU. And then came civil services.

Ravikant, 23, the son of a milkman, said: "Since my father couldn't afford my tuition fees, I took up a job and then enrolled in IGNOU." He secured 77th rank - not bad at all for someone who got 69 per cent in his Class X boards. "In Class XII, I got 84.4 per cent. With these marks, I could never have got into a good regular college."

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Labels: civil services, Delhi University colleges, distance learner, education, exam, graduate students, IAS, IAS officers, IGNOU, open university, priority, regular colleges

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Judiciary shoots down plan for Indian Administrative Service-like exam to select judges

Supreme Court and High Court judges have shot down a government proposal for the introduction of a national level examination system to select judges on the lines of the civil services.

The Law Ministry proposal seeking to set up an All India Judicial Services to select district and high court judges has been given a cold shoulder by higher judiciary, documents show.

"The creation of such a service would help attract bright and capable young law graduates into the judiciary," the ministry had written to the courts last year.

Only 11 of the 21 high courts responded to the ministry's letter. Nine of them completely rejected the proposal. The Supreme Court and 10 other high courts did not even bother writing back. A majority of the courts said they felt there was no need for the creation of such a service.

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Labels: civil services, exam, High Court, IAS, judges, judiciary, Law ministry, National level examination system, Supreme Court

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Hindustan Times