Spare The Ruler But Do Not Spoil The Child

The nation is abuzz with the news of Rouvanjit Rawla, a class VIII student of Kolkata’s prestigious La Martiniere School for boys, who hanged himself four months ago, reportedly unable to bear the humiliation after he was caned by his school principal Sunirmal Chakroborty, and allegedly by some other teachers as well. What was his crime? Read more

His class mates said that he was naughty and did not do his home work on time. Perhaps due to the alert of the media, the police complaint of the boy’s father, lodged after an interminably long 4 months period, did not rot in a forgotten file. The school principal has confessed to ‘caning’ the boy and has no regrets about the incident which, perhaps according to him was merely a part of the character building process of the students. Surprisingly no teacher from the school had thought it necessary to alert the parents about their son’s indiscipline—it seemed easier to thrash the boy. Also, more surprisingly, the boy thought it better to end his life rather than take, at least, his parents in confidence.

The problem is symptomatic of an archaic mindset within the education system that sees physical abuse as a means to discipline students. In reality it promotes a culture of violence. Such incidences, despite a decade old Supreme Court ban on corporal punishment, keep on surfacing in the media at regular intervals. We read them and forget them. But this time the eyebrows of the highbrows have been raised, as the victim and the perpetrator, both belong to the upper crust of society. Till now we felt smug in our gilded cages, thinking that such aberrant acts can only happen to ‘them’ and not ‘us’—them being students of low/middle income backgrounds, studying in government/ run of the mill/village schools, managed by dissatisfied / sadistic and lowly paid teachers. But now a premier college of a so called cultured city, manned by the ‘creme a la creme’ of teachers, is in the docks for an unpardonable misdemeanour. It has forced the bhadralok (civilized people) to wake up from their hallucinating stupor and look at the grime under their expensive carpets.

While school teachers cannot absolve them from such heinous crimes, parents are to be blamed equally. I still find it hard to believe that not only the ritual of caning persists in temples of learning, but also that there seems to a complete breakdown of parent-children relationships. That teenagers find suicide an easier option than confiding in their parents, is a telling commentary on the present times where we parents want to showcase our offspring as shining trophies and not as fallible human beings. The family is as much to blame as the school.

Shobha De in her column in The Times Of India ( 14 June 2010) while rightly condemning this barbaric act, talks of her own school days in a Scottish missionary school where ‘rebellious and disobedient’ children like her were frequently caned. But she thought it wiser to hide the swollen, angry red welts on her upper arms from her parents and said not a word about the frequent torture. It is now, and that is too late already, (and she is honest enough to admit it) that she has come out in the open with this ‘dreadful part of her youth’—to retell and relive those hellish minutes when “I’d be summoned to the principal’s office after standing on the yellow bench for hours, often without food and water.”

I was luckier, perhaps, having studied under Irish nuns at Loreto Convent, Lucknow. I have very fond memories of my school days during the 60’s. Corporal punishment was not banned by law and we did get the occasional rap on the knuckles by some teachers, (but never from the nuns) and we took it all in our stride. There was no question of complaining at home, as that would have elicited tighter slaps from our parents, for daring to complain about our ‘guru’. Caning was quite commonplace in boys’ schools. I remember my younger brother regaling us with the novel methods of his peers for reducing the ferocity of the lash (which was ceremoniously given on their buttocks) – one of them being padding themselves with towels. All this was taken in good spirit as a necessary part of character building. We never questioned the morality of it all, because perhaps, we were brought up that way. And also because never ever was a life at stake. Suicides were not fashionable, as they seem to have become now. We were fed a heady mixture of strictness tempered with pure undiluted love in those days. But then times change and God fulfils Himself in other ways. We have gifted our children with ‘psychological stress’ and academic pressures’ bringing their tolerance levels to naught. I fondly remember my Physics teacher, Mr Zutshi (God rest his soul in peace), who was an excellent teacher and a very hard task master. His scoldings hit us more than any ruler or cane. But none of us nurtured any grievance against him. He loved us and shouted at us. But we knew that he corrected us because he cared for us. I came to know later that he resigned from his post during the late 70’s, as parents started complaining about him causing mental anguish to their daughters. Whatever little knowledge of Physics I have today (as well as moral values) I unashamedly owe them to the likes of Mr Zutshi.

Times change and so do perceptions. Corporal punishment has been rightly banned in schools. But the fragile tolerance level of our kids and elders needs a serious make over. We elders are robbing the children of a carefree and innocent childhood. Parental pressure, which starts rather too early in life (around age 2 years of the child) is the real killer. We are worse than tyrants, wanting our children to excel in all spheres, to keep one up in society. The result of this mindless upbringing, where winning competitions and earning prizes is the sole purpose of life, is breeding an uncaring, aggressive and senseless population of brats, irrespective of their economic status. Deep in their heart they do not believe that they can overcome their loneliness and craving for love/friendship without any strings attached to it. Their rudderless existence is making them not only ready to kill their peers (there are far too many newspaper reports of school children firing at each other), but also unmindful of taking their own lives. Ragging, instead of breaking barriers between seniors and the newcomers, has taken the vicious form of physical and mental torture. And we are happy to be mute spectators, as long as our child is not a victim—and then it is too late anyway.

It is easy to blame the system. But all of us are inadvertently nurturing a system which is indifferent and callous towards others. Love and compassion have been bartered with money and power. The reality shows on television are furthering this deterioration. We not only want instant coffee, but instant fame, name and money. Nobody has the time to brew humane qualities. Life is no longer sacred or precious—wealth and unbridled power is. Teachers and parents are equally to be blamed for this sorry state of affairs. The former are now considered to be merely paid employees, whose wages come from the pockets of the latter.

If only death can stir our consciousness, so be it. Let more people of the likes of Shobha De come out of their closets to form self help groups that stand up against corporal punishment, mental/physical ragging, cheating in examinations, disrespect for the law, and other underhand dealings. Let us stop treating our children as mere tools for enhancing our status in society. It is alright to spare the ruler, but do not spoil the child with excessive mollycoddling or with excessive strictness. Let us rear caring, loving and tolerant children, who are mindful not only of their rights, but their duties as well. Parents and teachers will have to temper love with firmness to become role models for this generation which seems to have lost its way.


Shobha Shukla
(The author is the CNS Editor, has worked earlier with State Planning Institute, UP, and teaches Physics at India's prestigious Loreto Convent. Email: shobha@citizen-news.org, website: www.citizen-news.org)

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Teens capture their neighbourhood

July 2008 was memorable for Mani, Saraswathi (Sarasu for short), Santhosh and their friends. Teenagers from Sudarshan Layout in Gurupanpalya, a very low income neighbourhood in southern Bangalore, they had inaugurated the Ambedkar Community Computing Centre (AC3) near their homes. Teaching themselves and children around them about the immense possibilities of free software, they aroused the curiosity of its pioneer, Richard Stallman. After hearing about them at a free software conference in Thiruvananthapuram, he visited AC3 in December 2008. Committed volunteers with Stree Jagruti Samiti, AID-Bangalore, Free Software Movement Karnataka and Ambedkar Yuva Sangha who have been assisting them throughout, catalyzed this. (Geeta Menon, Balaji Kutty, Senthil Sundaram, Pulkit Parikh, Aravind Rajaram, Nitin, Ravi et al are among those who started a tutoring centre with the kids which grew into AC3.) Read more

Earlier this year, the children responded eagerly to the idea of photographing their world. Learning the basics, they caught on camera their realities and that of others (especially in their area) over two months. Knowing their enthusiasm and abilities, I was delighted to see these children Born into an UnEqUaL World present their creations during the National Conference on Free Software held in Bangalore on 20th and 21st March 2010.

"Each picture tells a tale of a child caught in the limbo of the now and the tomorrow. They are beautiful yet starkly contrasting, innocent yet riddled with hard experience, bleak sometimes but hopeful mostly", summed up Lavanya Devdas who has contributed her might to this initiative along with Balaji, Senthil and others.

Sarasu, in the bottom right frame (of the second photo), is a nineteen year old undergraduate studying Commerce. When she is not at college, she divides her time between household chores and managing AC3 which she co-founded. Exuding confidence and often guiding and helping younger kids, she has broken the gender barrier to independence and education that existed in her family.

Asha (with some of her work below), a seventeen year old pre-university student was always interested in photography but never had access to a camera. She loved this opportunity and plans to continue clicking if possible. "I was keen on depicting how we cope with minimal water supply. I also want to portray the lives of children forced to work", she said. She was excited when I suggested to her to try shooting moving objects to challenge herself and better her skills. Arumugam, a nineteen year old, dropped out of school in his early teens and works in a shoe factory. Although he take did not take too many pictures, he enjoyed participating in this project.




Mani, an eighteen year old high school student draws and paints by hand or using software like GIMP. A co-founder of AC3, he inspires the young and old moving around deftly in his wheelchair or with his friends' help. He has been exhibiting and selling his paintings (like the ones at the end) at conferences that focus on promoting open source software, the politics of copyright, developmental issues, etc. Interestingly, he usually donates his earnings to the AC3 or children in need, despite his own financial constraints.

Let Jill And Jack Play And Eat Well

With increasing affluence and socioeconomic changes, India, like the rest of the world, is witnessing an obesity epidemic, especially in children and adolescents. According to one study, the percentage of overweight/obese children in Delhi has increased from 16% in 2002 to about 24% in 2006. Read more
There is every reason to believe that this figure would have gone up further by now. In fact according to the latest study (mentioned below), obesity among both adolescent girls and boys in Delhi, has increased according to the measurement of parameters like BMI (body mass index), WC (waist circumference), W-HR (waist to hip ratio). The situation is not likely to be better in other parts of the country as well.

Consequently, obesity related conditions like metabolic syndrome, and hypertension are becoming common in children. The long term consequences of adolescent obesity include Type 2diabetes and coronary heart disease. According to one estimate, if the present situation is not controlled, then India stands to lose USD 237 billion over a period of 2005 – 2015.

A study was conducted by some doctors of DFI (Diabetes Federation Of India) and AIIMS (All India Institute Of Medical Sciences) on children of two schools in Delhi, to assess and compare the trends over 5 years (2003-2008), in anthropometric and biochemical parameters among urban Asian Indian adolescents, matched for gender, age, school grade and socieconomic strata, living in north India. In girls, a significant increase in obesity was noticed by way of increase in BMI (5%), WC (11%), whereas in boys, a marked increase in prevalence of obesity was seen according to the measurement of triceps fold thickness only (8.8%). In boys, a significant decrease of 9.1% was noted for HDL-c (high density lipoprotein cholesterol or the good cholesterol) as compared to 1.2% in girls.

These results are startling indeed and give a clarion call for immediate and sensible action. The culprit seems to be the increasing consumption of energy dense snacks and meals, coupled with decreased physical activity. Increased urbanization and industrialization has resulted in rapid nutrition transition, leading to excess consumption of high fat foods and soft drinks with high sugar content, causing imbalance of specific nutrients. Add to this the devastating effects of Trans Fatty Acids (which are present abundantly in fast foods, bakery items, and various fried snacks bought from the market), and the scenario becomes very grim. The sedentary life style of most of our school going children, only adds fuel to the fire of the poor and disease prone health of our youngsters.


As reported recently in news papers, our Sports Minister M S Gill has admitted that sports have remained a neglected area in schools. He wants that physical education and sports are given at least one period everyday compulsorily in school curriculum, beginning from elementary school onward. Perhaps the cause of his worry is that even though the country has a population of one billion, it fails to win Olympics gold medals or give great players to the world because over the years games and sports have got very little attention at the school level. Nonetheless, his insistence that adequate open grounds be provided for playing fields is in the interest of our children’s health. It is unfortunate that most schools have few sports facilities and/or trained sports teachers. Even parents are more worried about the facility of a computer lab, rather than a play ground. Students tend to treat the games period as a free period. Our former Health Minister, Anbumani Ramadoss also had stressed upon having compulsory Yoga classes in schools, with a view to curb the rising trend of obesity and Type2 diabetes in children.

Unless suitable measures are taken for the promotion of healthy nutrition and physical activity, the present trends are likely to cause a serious economic burden in terms of premature development of non communicable diseases in adulthood. School based educative intervention programmes seem to be the most cost effective way to prevent this obesity epidemic in risk prone adolescents. School children, their parents and teachers need to be sensitized on this issue. Nutritional and physical activity education can be given through lectures, focussed group discussions and other activities. Perhaps, more schools should join programmes like MARG (medical education for children/adolescents for realistic prevention of obesity and diabetes and for healthy ageing), and CHETNA (children health education through nutrition and health awareness), which are currently being run in a few schools of some cities thanks to the initiative taken by the eminent diabetologist Dr Anoop Misra, with support from the World Diabetes Foundation.

As right minded parents and educators, we need to join hands in the effort to promote healthy and active living. Parents will have to develop in their children a liking for wholesome and tasty food. The school managements and staff can support this endeavour by promoting the use of healthy food and creating awareness for making a conscious choice to avoid/ limit junk food, and increasing their physical stamina by making them run, march, jog, and play every day. Then we will not have students fainting due to fatigue, during the morning assembly. We may also be able to curb their aggressive and violent behaviour, as it has been scientifically proved that eating of junk food and overuse of internet abets abnormal behavioural tendencies.


Shobha Shukla
(The author is the Editor of Citizen News Service(CNS), Director of CNS Diabetes Media Initiative, has worked earlier with State Planning Institute, UP, and teaches Physics at India's prestigious Loreto Convent. Email: shobha@citizen-news.org, website: www.citizen-news.org)

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A helpline that reaches out to ‘stressed’ students

The recent spurt of suicides by students in the state is a matter of great concern for everyone. It simply points to something being drastically wrong in the society wherein we live. It points towards a big communication gap between teachers, parents and students. It shows up the hidden pressure and stress the students are carrying all the while like dynamite strapped to our body. Read more




It brings to the surface a maniac depression and desperation that is seething within the young of today. Part of a number race they have been forced into a system that forces them to compete all the time for survival. It results in a total burnout. It forces dynamic, powerful youth to be reduced into a helpless, non-entity. It makes him believe that if he is not a topper he has no right to live. It makes him feel guilty, useless and unwanted. The emotional baggage is so heavy that he succumbs loses all interest in life and the world and takes the extreme step of committing suicide.

"This suicidal trend among the youth distressed us too. We, like many adults felt the need to reach out, to talk, to analyze, and to counsel such students. What was born out of this concern was a helpline aptly named All is well", said Mr. Anshumali Sharma of Childline Helpline Lucknow. A Reader and Head, Geology, J N P G College Mr. Sharma’s work in Childline, a Government of India Project under the Ministry of Child and Women Development that works for abandoned children in 83 UP cities decided to expand the work base and include counseling of stressed students during the time of emotional crisis, especially during examination.

To help such students and to help them stop taking this extreme step some like minded NGOs -namely Human Unity Movement (HUM), Circle for Child and Youth Research Cooperation in India (CCYRCI) joined Childline Helpline Lucknow and started a 24x7 helpline service on toll free number 1098, 9415023121, 9415408590 and 9415189200.

Mr Sharma gave this information while addressing journalists at ‘Media for Children’-the fortnightly media sensitization session organized by Media Nest and UNICEF at the Uttar Pradesh Press Club.

He stressed that if a child gets to talk to someone just five minutes before he decides to take the extreme step of taking his life chances are that he will see sense and will change his mind and not commit suicide.

"All is well is all about reassuring a student a positive approach towards life," said Mr Sharma.
He said that they have discovered during their research and interaction with stressed students that it is over ambitious parents and insensitive teachers who are generally responsible for a child committing suicide. Mr Sharma said we must not make our children the vehicle of our own unfulfilled dreams and ambition.

"As parents we must analyze the caliber of our child and also study his area of interest. We must communicate to him that we respect his individuality and that we will not be disappointed if he does not excel in academics," said Dr Sharma. He thanked the media, specially the Lucknow media for being highly child-sensitive and for raising children’s issues in a big way. He said it will have to be a combination of responsible media, parents and teachers that will help reduce the negativeness from the mind of the youngsters.

Speaking on the issue the second panelist, renowned sociologist, Vice-Principal of JNPG College, Lucknow and Executive Secretary of Circle for Child and Youth Research Cooperation in India (CCYRCI). Dr Vinod Chandra, said that post-examination suicides by students is a new and greatly disturbing phenomenon. Earlier suicidal bids were sometime made by students who failed in examinations but now students are ending their lives even before the results are declared.

He suggested counseling sessions for not just students but also for teachers and parents. Dr Chandra suggested that there should be a Parent-teacher counselling association in every school.

Blaming the elitist schools for starting the ‘number game’ Dr Chandra said that there must be debates and discussions on our education system which will lead to a more student-friendly system where there will be healthy competition.

He suggested that parents of today despite their busy schedules must ensure that they spend quality time with their wards. This will instill a lot of confidence in their child and help build an emotional stable individual.

"We have since we launched the helpline already counseled 350 students online. There are days when we are receiving calls till wee hours of the morning. We get calls from oversees too," said Dr Sangita Sharma of HUM. HUM is a child centric organization basically devoted to the cause of child protection and child rights. A former school teacher, Dr Sharma, who was a panelist on the same programme stressed on a healthy relationship between the teacher and the taught.

Elaborating on the telephone calls that ‘all is well’ has been receiving, Dr Sharma said the basic thing she found was a lack of understanding between a child and the parent.

“There was this boy who called to say that he had scorned 90 per cent in all subjects but only 76 per cent in English and that his parents have been livid with him for this. The boy between sobs told me that now he has lost the will and the confidence to study and is petrified of the final exams. Do you blame the child or the parent,” she asked.

Stressing that it is not always the children who learn from teacher but vice versa Dr Sharma said that a child is a precious gift of God and He has sent him on earth with a special talent and we adults must respect this uniqueness embedded in each child.

Kulsum Mustafa
(The author is a senior journalist and secretary of Media Nest)

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Winds Of Change

‘The old order changes, yielding place to new; and God fulfills Himself in many ways’.
As a national daily has rightly pointed out, the great churning process of our moribund education system has begun, thanks to several new steps being initiated by the HRD Ministry. Every day new ideas seem to be cropping up. But it is imperative to tread carefully if one has to sift the grain from the chaff in this stupendous task. Read more

Mr Kapil Sibal’s stance that children should not be allowed to attend pre-school if they are less than four years old is a laudable one. Formal schooling should begin at the age of six. At present even two years old are going to preschool, and many get traumatised with the competitive environment in the school. Cases of stammering, bed wetting and other stress symptoms are not uncommon in them. Recently the father of a three year old proudly claimed in a party that his daughter was topping her class. As if this were not enough, many parents are sending their kids for private tuitions, in order to prepare them for entrance tests in formal schools. Thus the formative years of a child’s life are becoming too burdensome instead of enjoyable.
The decision to have at least a uniform syllabus (if not a uniform board) throughout the country at the plus 2 level, makes a lot of sense. This will at least end the fight for supremacy amongst the various examining bodies. A single entrance examination for different specialised courses after class XII will also go a long way in mitigating the sufferings and trauma of students.

Yet all that glitters is not always gold. Certain methods look wonderful on paper but very often they may not deliver the goods. One such area is the over hype created about examination stress and the novel administrative ideas to reduce it. Of course, it is always the CBSE which leads the way, and the others follow meekly. Everything is being done in the name of making the system more student friendly in the short term sense. Students of CBSE and ICSE/ISC (I am not aware if this followed by other state boards) are given 15 minutes of reading time, in addition to the writing duration of an exam paper. This is done to ease their pre exam tensions. But as an invigilator, I have always found most of the examinees squirming in their seats, their pens itching to start writing, in those first fifteen minutes. My personal experience says that this does not relax their nerves in any way. Some of them even start writing on the sly and get offended if checked. A better way could be to make a shorter question paper, which can be solved by an average student in two hours, to be answered in two hours and a half. It should be then left to the individual student to divide this time between reading and writing the paper.

 The latest directive of CBSE allows students of class IX, flexible timings to answer the question paper. This may vary from 3 to three and a half hours. According to news paper reports, educationists and students are happy with this move. But aren’t students to be geared to manage their time efficiently, rather than be encouraged to treat it frivolously? We, Indians, are notorious to have a very lackadaisical attitude towards time management. It is rare indeed to find any official/social function begin on time. In fact it seems to have become fashionable for a function (especially wedding receptions) to begin three to four hours later than the time printed on the invitation card. And our senses are so dulled that nobody seems to mind it. Is this what we are trying to instil in our students also? It is good to lead a carefree life but not a careless life.
Time management is the need of the hour in today’s galloping world, and we need to help our students to do so. Their skills should be honed to finish a given task in the allotted time, rather than get into the habit of stretching it. Some students have the tendency to write till the last second, irrespective of the time allotted to them. Time needs to be respected and not frittered away.

Making the Class X Board exams optional is a step fraught with dangers. It will only create another divide between the ‘have passed’ and ‘have not appeared’, with the former always having an upper edge over the latter. Too much of flexibility is as bad as too much of rigidity. Either retain the exams for all, or simply take them away. It is better to give more options in the choice of subjects, which is already there.
Some stress at the appropriate age is always conducive to a child’s growth. Only if over ambitious parents would not force their unrealistic expectations upon their children, and only if the media does not over dramatize the situation, things would not be as bad as they appear to be.

Another alarming directive is about the private schools being free to fix their own fees, but under no obligation to pay teachers a minimum fixed salary. This amounts to allowing the education mafia having the cake as well as the icing. I agree that simply raising the salaries of teachers cannot ensure quality teaching. But a decent salary, coupled with work accountability, will go a long way in overhauling a decadent system. It is pathetic to see the generally low quality of teaching in government/aided institutions, with teachers drawing a fat salary; whereas their private school counterparts struggling with measly salaries do a comparatively better job.

Let us hope that this churning or ‘manthan’ of great ideas will bring forth the gems hidden in the psyche of the education fraternity and succeed in separating the nectar from the poison.
Tamso Ma Jyotirgamay – let us move from darkness to light.

Shobha Shukla
(The author is the Editor of Citizen News Service (CNS), has worked earlier with State Planning Institute, UP, and teaches Physics at India's prestigious Loreto Convent. Email: shobha@citizen-news.org, website: www.citizen-news.org)

"Three Idiots" give society words of wisdom

It is a great satire on the education system and the attitude of society. It tells us rote learning can be very harmful. That knowledge is to ‘know’ and not just in the name of educating ourselves memorise whatever comes our way. Learning without understanding can prove to be very dangerous. Unfortunately we have been patrons of such system from time immemorial. Read more

Rote learning used to be important during the ancient times when education was being monopolized by a section of society, while rest of the masses remained illiterate. No doubt in spite of their educational exclusion, they had more knowledge than the so-called literates of the society. Even without getting the benefits of formal education, they understood their work and transmitted it generations after generations with utmost efficiency and dexterity. The cobbler, the agriculturalist, the blacksmith knew their work and carried it out very well and transmitted it also, without any compulsions of memorizing any kind of written text. Their knowledge was useful for every section of society and their service so important for the progress and development of the country.

On the other hand, so called ‘formal education’ was the monopoly of a particular section to maintain status quo. It was of help to no one but its patron alone. It was constantly meant to remind their coming generations that their caste was born to subordinate a large section of society. That the masses below them have to be denigrated to the extent that they easily give in and without any resistance believe in the superiority of the few above them and in their own inferiority. Anyone indulging in physical work has to be looked down upon and regarded as illiterate and uncivilized. But the question that comes in one’s mind is that, who is to be considered more literate and more civilized. A caste using its skills in the service of others from generations together is to be considered more civilized or a caste making rules for others, cleverly putting ones name at the top and the rest below them are strictly instructed to serve?

But generally, the serving caste without some amount of knowledge and skill couldn’t possibly move an inch, be it growing wheat for the nation, or making tools for industrial or any other purposes, or fixing a wall even. Every work requires skill and intelligence, and one needs a large heart to build houses for others and themselves stay in shambles. The servile castes have been doing this ‘godly gesture’ for ages together, no wonder Gandhiji used the word ‘Harijan’ to address them. They have exhibited remarkable amount of tolerance and willpower. Their stomach might remain hungry but not for a day they would take leave to take rest but continue to work in unison to achieve the target. Their children might be ill or injured but not for a moment they stop their work. They grow our crops, they make our tools, and they build our hospitals, but seldom are allowed to get proper treatment there. They build our schools but without any grudge, accept it as their fate of remaining unlettered and allow us to get literate.

But our studying in Convent or a great University abroad doesn’t teach us to be as sacrificing, tolerant and selfless as the so called illiterate, serving castes. The aim of the literates is to get high marks by hook and crook, to prove themselves in the rat race, through a false degree or anyhow get into a prestigious college later on by any means, give a ‘religious babu’ some amount of bribe so that he can also take his family to a trip to Vaishno Devi in the coming summer vacation of his siblings. But in the rat race of getting high marks human values ‘go down the drain’. It is evident that in the so called prestigious centres of higher education the same ‘high grader’ shows he can be a great villain for real and in ragging the junior students he puts to shame even the worst of criminals. Where from he got those lessons one fails to understand?

Convent education, public school education, high caste well preserved 'sanskars' given at home takes a backseat and the hidden “goonda” comes out. The mantra that time is, tradition has to be followed without questioning it! We were not spared we will not spare others! In the modern times there are so many other ways of entertainment but they still insist on going for sadistic pleasures! Is higher education so simple that allows students to indulge in such luxuries of wasting time? What is ultimately derived out of it, has the so called high graders, given a thought to it? It is here that is reflected that how dangerous rote learning can be. It kills inquisitiveness, reasoning, rationality and worst of all creativity. Like a dodo we fail to respond in an appropriate manner to the crisis situation, serial train accidents, children falling in borewell or students committing suicides under psychological pressures day in and day out! Our senses remain numbed to the utmost, failing to react till another mishap occurs. Everybody waits for a miracle to happen or someone else to do the job for them! Their marked indifference reflected in their attitude.

Sitting on high pedestals not for a moment they give thought to the idea what example they are setting before the society. Lalu Prasad ji was right when he said recently “we are totally devoid of civic sense.” For the same reason we still need ‘proper toilet training’ and other mannerisms while travelling in VIP trains atleast! Most importantly an attitude of concern for others has to be developed alongwith a feeling of belonging to a nation, which is like a plant that is to be nurtured unitedly. Right from nursery class we have learnt by heart patriotic songs we still might remember some lines here and there but spirit still remains lacking in our character. That's the reason on slightest pretext we are ready and more than happy to move to other country, braving ‘racism’, waiting for years together to get hold of a green card or a more permanent citizenship right. But would certainly object in our own country if a person of other state tries to get a job in our state.

We have learnt by heart ‘Saare Jahan se Accha Hindustan Hamara’, or our National Anthem but still cannot clearly understand what it is to be like living unitedly as one, in a nation and contributing to its development. If only we would have tried to understand before blindly memorizing our lessons! There is a rule that when we understand something it takes less effort to remember it! That is what is reflected in the movie 'Three Idiots' and that being knowledgeable doesn't end at achieving high marks alone, but there should be an effort on our part to know, understand and most importantly be concerned about the welfare of others and 'treat others the way we would like to be treated by others'. Three Idiots have certainly given society words of wisdom.

Dr Shura Darapuri

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"Revamp academic programme of IIT Kanpur to motivate students": Pandey

"IIT Kanpur must withdraw the expulsion order of students"

"Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur must withdraw the expulsion order of students and revamp its system so that the academic programme motivates students to learn and engage in engineering-related socially-useful work rather than go after non-engineering consumerist oriented jobs which are totally non-productive" asserted Dr Sandeep Pandey, Magsaysay Awardee (2002) and a former faculty member of IIT Kanpur and former member of Central Advisory Board on Education (CABE) of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India. Dr Pandey also launched a signature petition to mount further pressure on IIT Kanpur (petition is online here). Read more
"It is a shame that Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur has decided to expel 38 students belonging mostly to Scheduled Caste (SC)/ Scheduled Tribe (ST) category" said Dr Sandeep Pandey.

"While the general thinking of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) is in the direction of relaxing the examination system so that a more conducive learning atmosphere can be created for students, it appears that IIT Kanpur has yet to come out of the paradigm in which academic performance is used to penalize students" said Dr Pandey, who has been a former member of MHRD's Central Advisory Board on Education.

"Suicides among students are not very uncommon in IIT Kanpur and presently an unusually high number of students are receiving psychological counselling. The failure is not that of students but that of IIT system" said Dr Pandey.

"IIT Kanpur must withdraw the expulsion order of students and revamp its system so that the academic programme motivates students to learn and engage in engineering-related socially-useful work rather than go after non-engineering consumerist oriented jobs which are totally non-productive" reads the signature petition which he launched yesterday in support of the growing movement of students demanding withdrawal of expulsion order of students. To sign the petition, click here

Published in:
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Elites TV News, USA
News Trust News
Petitiononline.com
Tweetmeme.com
Dalitsrights.blogspot.com
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Rickshawallas Day At Loreto

Rickshawallas Day At Loreto

It was indeed a programme with a difference. In keeping with the true spirit of Loreto, Tuesday, the 27th of October (which incidentally is also the International Hand Washing Day), saw this missionary school, open its gates to 55 odd rickshaw (a three wheeled pedalled vehicle, used as a common mode of transport in Indian towns) drivers, as a gesture of respect to this marginalised section of society.

Every morning and afternoon, come rain or blistering sunshine, these men of all ages, old and young, ferry the school children from their homes to school and back. But today those very children and their class mates and teachers joined hands to recognize the services which largely go unheeded. It was indeed a proud moment for all of us at Loreto to be part of a 'Giving, gentle as silence'.

It was an afternoon filled with meaningful entertainment. The students presented a street play on the theme of 'God Helps Those Who Help Themselves'. Two doctors from the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS) gave a presentation on general hygiene and maternal health under the banner of Health Oriented Programme and Education (HOPE).

Dr Prashant Agarwal, stressed upon the importance of clean toilet habits and washing of hands. This itself, reduces the incidence of many diseases by 45%. The simple gesture of washing hands thoroughly before eating is an effective way of reducing diarrhoea and pneumonia. Keeping our surroundings clean, does not require money, but just the right attitude which should be developed in all of us, irrespective of our social status. Another very pertinent observation made by the medical team was about the infamous spitting habit of Indians. Most of the rickshaw drivers confessed to be habitual tobacco/ gutkha users. They were exhorted to get rid of this habit. The doctor asked them to perform a simple test by putting their fingers inside their mouths. The pan masala/gutkha users' mouth was bound to open less as the skin inside the mouth contracts on prolonged use of tobacco products.

Dr Banani Poddar spoke on Maternal and Child Health. She stressed on the need of taking good care of the mother during pregnancy, in order that she deliver a healthy child, who should be fed on mother's milk alone during the first four months of infancy. No other nourishment, not even water, is required-such is the nutritional value of this diet. Tinned food supplements should be a big No No, as they are merely of cosmetic value, and may do harm than good.

The Principal of Loreto Convent requested them to send their children to school, offering to admit them in parallel run school of Loreto for under-privileged children.

A free medical check up of all the special invitees was done by doctors of SGPGI and by Dr Verma of the Civil Hospital. They seemed a little hesitant in the beginning but gradually each one gave his blood for blood group and haemoglobin testing.

The programme ended with a sumptuous feast arranged for the guests by the students. Each invitee was also presented with one kilogram of rice and ‘daal’, packed in eco friendly paper bags made by the students of the college.

This event marks just the beginning of a social change which needs to sweep across the country for a more equitable distribution and re allocation of resources, and to reduce the divide between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’.

Let there be enough for all, and let no one die of over consumption. Amen.

Shobha Shukla

(The author is the Editor of Citizen News Service (CNS), has worked earlier with State Planning Institute, UP, and teaches Physics at India's prestigious Loreto Convent. Email: shobha@citizen-news.org, website: www.citizen-news.org)

Published in:
Citizen News Service (CNS), India/Thailand
Central Chronicle, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
Elites TV News, USA
The Colombo Times, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Bihar and Jharkhand News Service (BJNS)
Northern Voice Online News
Inboxrobot.com

Rickshawallas Day At Loreto

Rickshawallas Day At Loreto

It was indeed a programme with a difference. In keeping with the true spirit of Loreto, Tuesday, the 27th of October (which incidentally is also the International Hand Washing Day), saw this missionary school, open its gates to 55 odd rickshaw (a three wheeled pedalled vehicle, used as a common mode of transport in Indian towns) drivers, as a gesture of respect to this marginalised section of society.

Every morning and afternoon, come rain or blistering sunshine, these men of all ages, old and young, ferry the school children from their homes to school and back. But today those very children and their class mates and teachers joined hands to recognize the services which largely go unheeded. It was indeed a proud moment for all of us at Loreto to be part of a 'Giving, gentle as silence'.

It was an afternoon filled with meaningful entertainment. The students presented a street play on the theme of 'God Helps Those Who Help Themselves'. Two doctors from the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS) gave a presentation on general hygiene and maternal health under the banner of Health Oriented Programme and Education (HOPE).

Dr Prashant Agarwal, stressed upon the importance of clean toilet habits and washing of hands. This itself, reduces the incidence of many diseases by 45%. The simple gesture of washing hands thoroughly before eating is an effective way of reducing diarrhoea and pneumonia. Keeping our surroundings clean, does not require money, but just the right attitude which should be developed in all of us, irrespective of our social status. Another very pertinent observation made by the medical team was about the infamous spitting habit of Indians. Most of the rickshaw drivers confessed to be habitual tobacco/ gutkha users. They were exhorted to get rid of this habit. The doctor asked them to perform a simple test by putting their fingers inside their mouths. The pan masala/gutkha users' mouth was bound to open less as the skin inside the mouth contracts on prolonged use of tobacco products.

Dr Banani Poddar spoke on Maternal and Child Health. She stressed on the need of taking good care of the mother during pregnancy, in order that she deliver a healthy child, who should be fed on mother's milk alone during the first four months of infancy. No other nourishment, not even water, is required-such is the nutritional value of this diet. Tinned food supplements should be a big No No, as they are merely of cosmetic value, and may do harm than good.

The Principal of Loreto Convent requested them to send their children to school, offering to admit them in parallel run school of Loreto for under-privileged children.

A free medical check up of all the special invitees was done by doctors of SGPGI and by Dr Verma of the Civil Hospital. They seemed a little hesitant in the beginning but gradually each one gave his blood for blood group and haemoglobin testing.

The programme ended with a sumptuous feast arranged for the guests by the students. Each invitee was also presented with one kilogram of rice and ‘daal’, packed in eco friendly paper bags made by the students of the college.

This event marks just the beginning of a social change which needs to sweep across the country for a more equitable distribution and re allocation of resources, and to reduce the divide between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’.

Let there be enough for all, and let no one die of over consumption. Amen.

Shobha Shukla

(The author is the Editor of Citizen News Service (CNS), has worked earlier with State Planning Institute, UP, and teaches Physics at India's prestigious Loreto Convent. Email: shobha@citizen-news.org, website: www.citizen-news.org)

Published in:
Citizen News Service (CNS), India/Thailand
Central Chronicle, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
Elites TV News, USA
The Colombo Times, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Bihar and Jharkhand News Service (BJNS)
Northern Voice Online News
Inboxrobot.com

Popular cartoon character 'Meena' will reach UP schools on AIR waves

Popular cartoon character 'Meena' will reach UP schools on AIR waves
Kulsum Mustafa

Lucknow, October 12, 2009: Widely recognized and appreciated in most South Asian countries, including India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh UNICEF's popular cartoon character Meena - will soon be being re-introduced to children in a totally new 'avtaar'. A special 15 minute magazine format broadcast, designed for school hour, centered on Meena will be broadcast by All India Radio (AIR) stations. Preparations are on to prepare the 30 pilot episodes. The number of episodes will later be scaled upto 160.

Meena was conceptualized by UNICEF in 1990. In these 19 years, 9 years old Meena has endeared herself to both the young and the old. She comes out as a smart, fun loving, spirited and loveable girl. Asking many questions she has proved to be a successful advocacy and teaching tool promoting girls’ education and children’s rights through shot films, spots, book, videos etc. The series of Meena films are available in a number of languages throughout, including Bengali, English, French, Hindi, Nepali, Portuguese, Spanish and Urdu Meena will now be using a powerful medium like radio to communicate messages on certain important aspects of child rights, health, child-friendly schools and social behavior changes.

Research has shown that simply through narratives Meena has done a great deal of good to society. She has succeeded in increasing girls’ enrolment in schools, and helped cut down the dropout rate of school children. Meena has held the hand of young girls and taught them to shun early marriage. She has dealt with child labor, gender equality, and health issues simply and effectively. Now Meena is being trained to take on a totally different responsibility- advocating child-friendly schools.

Though radio as a medium of communication is comparatively new for Meena, her mentors are confident that she will sail through it empowered by good and powerful stories backup. Meena of radio requires a team to help her adapt to this medium and communicate effortlessly with the children. Content writers with an all powerful creative team are already preparing framework of what Meena will communicate.

UNICEF in collaboration with the state education department organized a one day workshop on content development for 30 radio Meena episodes in Lucknow on October 13, 2009.

This pilot project, wherein each episode will be in magazine format will be of 15 minutes duration each and will be aired by All India Radio stations during school hours, first in Lalitpur and later in all schools of Uttar Pradesh.

The participants at workshop comprised UNICEF, AIR and education department officers, representatives of State Institute of Educational Technology, district co-coordinators, teachers, and students.

"The basic characteristics of Meena will remain, we are just giving her familiar face a voice," said Rachana Sharma, UNICEF official she illustrated the aims and objectives of Meena communication initiative radio programme in her presentation.

"Meena has a strong presence in Uttar Pradesh. She is a popular and necessary part of not just girls’ education but is also the perfect vehicle for carrying out health and social behavior change messages" said Vinobajee Gautam, UNICEF education specialist.

He said the framework for the content has been broadly divided into three themes – Child Rights, Gender equity and child friendly schools.

Mr. Suresh K Soni who heads girls’ education in the state was of the view that Meena radio episodes must incorporate information on adolescent issues and on environmental protection. Children he stressed needs sensitization on these issues.

"We are aiming at broadcasting the first episode on 24th January 2010, to coincide with Girl child day," Mr Atul Gupta, consultant, UNICEF, said.

Ms Sarita Singh, gender co-ordinator, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan spoke on the Meena communication Activities in Uttar Pradesh. She said Meena is engraved in the hearts of every school going child and many girls look upto Meena as role model.

Ms Sharmila Dass from Purple Audacity made a presentation based on the findings from the formative research done on the content in three blocks of Lalitpur district. She said the children as well as parents are delighted that Meena will be now on radio. However she sounded a word of caution and said the community was not very keen on Meena, who is just nine years old speaking on sex issues.

The content writers team realize the great responsibility they have taken. Reading and seeing Meena is very different from portraying Meena on radio but they said they are all geared up to face the challenge.

"We will base our messages on entertainment. There will be a song, a game and a story in each of the episode," informed Saumya Sen, director, Meena radio project creative team.

Kulsum Mustafa
(The author is a senior journalist and Secretary-General of Media Nest)

Published in:
The Colombo Times, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Modern Ghana News, Accra, Ghana
Thai-Indian News, Bangkok, Thailand
Citizen News Service (CNS), India/Thailand
Elites TV News, USA
World News Network (WNN), USA
Media Mantra, India
Bihar and Jharkhand News (BJNS)
Human Rights Today
Dailyindia.com
Wikio.com
Twitter.com

Popular cartoon character 'Meena' will reach UP schools on AIR waves

Popular cartoon character 'Meena' will reach UP schools on AIR waves
Kulsum Mustafa

Lucknow, October 12, 2009: Widely recognized and appreciated in most South Asian countries, including India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh UNICEF's popular cartoon character Meena - will soon be being re-introduced to children in a totally new 'avtaar'. A special 15 minute magazine format broadcast, designed for school hour, centered on Meena will be broadcast by All India Radio (AIR) stations. Preparations are on to prepare the 30 pilot episodes. The number of episodes will later be scaled upto 160.

Meena was conceptualized by UNICEF in 1990. In these 19 years, 9 years old Meena has endeared herself to both the young and the old. She comes out as a smart, fun loving, spirited and loveable girl. Asking many questions she has proved to be a successful advocacy and teaching tool promoting girls’ education and children’s rights through shot films, spots, book, videos etc. The series of Meena films are available in a number of languages throughout, including Bengali, English, French, Hindi, Nepali, Portuguese, Spanish and Urdu Meena will now be using a powerful medium like radio to communicate messages on certain important aspects of child rights, health, child-friendly schools and social behavior changes.

Research has shown that simply through narratives Meena has done a great deal of good to society. She has succeeded in increasing girls’ enrolment in schools, and helped cut down the dropout rate of school children. Meena has held the hand of young girls and taught them to shun early marriage. She has dealt with child labor, gender equality, and health issues simply and effectively. Now Meena is being trained to take on a totally different responsibility- advocating child-friendly schools.

Though radio as a medium of communication is comparatively new for Meena, her mentors are confident that she will sail through it empowered by good and powerful stories backup. Meena of radio requires a team to help her adapt to this medium and communicate effortlessly with the children. Content writers with an all powerful creative team are already preparing framework of what Meena will communicate.

UNICEF in collaboration with the state education department organized a one day workshop on content development for 30 radio Meena episodes in Lucknow on October 13, 2009.

This pilot project, wherein each episode will be in magazine format will be of 15 minutes duration each and will be aired by All India Radio stations during school hours, first in Lalitpur and later in all schools of Uttar Pradesh.

The participants at workshop comprised UNICEF, AIR and education department officers, representatives of State Institute of Educational Technology, district co-coordinators, teachers, and students.

"The basic characteristics of Meena will remain, we are just giving her familiar face a voice," said Rachana Sharma, UNICEF official she illustrated the aims and objectives of Meena communication initiative radio programme in her presentation.

"Meena has a strong presence in Uttar Pradesh. She is a popular and necessary part of not just girls’ education but is also the perfect vehicle for carrying out health and social behavior change messages" said Vinobajee Gautam, UNICEF education specialist.

He said the framework for the content has been broadly divided into three themes – Child Rights, Gender equity and child friendly schools.

Mr. Suresh K Soni who heads girls’ education in the state was of the view that Meena radio episodes must incorporate information on adolescent issues and on environmental protection. Children he stressed needs sensitization on these issues.

"We are aiming at broadcasting the first episode on 24th January 2010, to coincide with Girl child day," Mr Atul Gupta, consultant, UNICEF, said.

Ms Sarita Singh, gender co-ordinator, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan spoke on the Meena communication Activities in Uttar Pradesh. She said Meena is engraved in the hearts of every school going child and many girls look upto Meena as role model.

Ms Sharmila Dass from Purple Audacity made a presentation based on the findings from the formative research done on the content in three blocks of Lalitpur district. She said the children as well as parents are delighted that Meena will be now on radio. However she sounded a word of caution and said the community was not very keen on Meena, who is just nine years old speaking on sex issues.

The content writers team realize the great responsibility they have taken. Reading and seeing Meena is very different from portraying Meena on radio but they said they are all geared up to face the challenge.

"We will base our messages on entertainment. There will be a song, a game and a story in each of the episode," informed Saumya Sen, director, Meena radio project creative team.

Kulsum Mustafa
(The author is a senior journalist and Secretary-General of Media Nest)

Published in:
The Colombo Times, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Modern Ghana News, Accra, Ghana
Thai-Indian News, Bangkok, Thailand
Citizen News Service (CNS), India/Thailand
Elites TV News, USA
World News Network (WNN), USA
Media Mantra, India
Bihar and Jharkhand News (BJNS)
Human Rights Today
Dailyindia.com
Wikio.com
Twitter.com