School Boards to announce percentile of top 20 students in a week

New Delhi: School Boards across the country decided to make available the percentile of top 20 candidates within seven days to help students get a clear picture of the marks required to be eligible for  IIT entrance.

Reaching a compromise formula, the IIT council had announced that admission to IITs from 2013 would be based only on rank achieved in the advance test and selected candidates would be in the top 20 percentile of successful ones of their boards.

The representatives of the school Boards assembled for the Council of Boards of School Education (COBSE) meet, an apex body of all the boards, councils of secondary, senior education in the country.

"It was decided that the equivalent percentage of marks for top 20 percentile students would be available (within 7 to 10 days) to students so that they are able to know the percentage of marks that will make them eligible for IIT Entrance," said a statement after the meeting.

The meeting was called to discuss operational issues arising out of the decision by the IIT Council.

In all, 20 of 29 boards chairpersons and representatives were present during which they "wholeheartedly supported the idea of giving weightage to the Boards Examinations Results and were of the view that this will definitely strengthen the school education," the statement added.

To ensure the new format functions smoothly, the boards decided to declare their results before June 10 and will complete the revaluation work within June 30 of the year.

The members at COBSE, who supported the new common entrance format, suggested that the joint Admission Boards (JAB) of IITs may be co-opted as member of COBSE.

It was also decided that detailed guidelines will be issued by COBSE to the Boards informing them about details of new schemes and various responsibilities expected of them.

National Informatics Centre was requested to prepare a common format based on current format of results by the different Boards so that data could be transferred by the Boards to the professional examination organizing bodies.

The COBSE meeting also agreed to provide secured and category-wise data of OBC/SC/ST and general candidates for the ensuring efficiency in the new entrance exam format.

Discussing about other issues, the meeting reiterated the earlier decision to allow improvement in all five subjects to a student who has taken the board examination this year.

"This will help the students who appeared this year's Board Examination but want to improve their performance in order to be able to compete well in 2013 examinations," the statement said.

The idea to introduce advanced courses in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics was also supported by the Boards so that the students seeking to pursue career in areas related to these subjects can benefit. CBSE offered to prepare pilot courses in these areas.

Significantly, the Boards also agreed that a common design of question papers can be developed by COBSE for all the Boards which can be put into practice in Class XI from the academic year 2013-14 and Class XII from 2014-15. 

Unhappy schooldays can make you ill in middle age: Study

London: Being unpopular with classmates will not only make your child's schooldays miserable, it could also make them ill decades later, a new study has claimed.

Researchers at the Umea University in Sweden have found that children who are socially isolated in their schooldays are more likely to suffer health problems from obesity to high blood pressure when they hit their 40s.

The legacy of unhappy schooldays, the researchers found, was particularly high among the women studied. Importantly,  the health effects weren't limited to those who were bullied at school, suggesting even being slightly socially isolated can be harmful to health, the Daily Mail reported.

In the study, the researchers analysed data from a long term study that tracked the health and habits of around 900 16-year-olds for 27 years. At the start, their teachers were asked to rate how extroverted or introverted they were as well as how popular or unpopular they were.

At the age of 43, the participants underwent a battery of medical tests and results showed a strong link  between social isolation and unpopularity and a host of health problems such as obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, bad blood fats and lack of "good" cholesterol.

This cluster of problems is known as metabolic syndrome that greatly increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

The study, published in the journal PLoS ONE, also showed that the more unpopular a person was in their teens, the more likely he or she was to suffer from metabolic syndrome in the middle age.

The effect was particularly high among the girls, with the most unpopular and introverted at 16 more than three times as likely to be in bad shape at 43, the researchers said.

They also claimed their study was the first to show that unhappy schooldays could have such long-lasting consequences.

Various factors could be behind the effect. For instance, loneliness raises levels of the hormone cortisol and can push blood pressure up into the danger zone for heart attacks and strokes, the researchers explained.

High levels of cortisol can also suppress the immune system, raising a person's vulnerability to disease. The lonely also sleep more fitfully, feel lethargic during the day and are more likely to rely on sleeping tablets.

Those who feel left out may also resort to comfort eating and be less likely to look after themselves in general, they added.

Hence, it is very important for every school and education institution to ensure students are happy during their studying days. 

PM to distribute cetrificates at JIPMER on June 30

Puducherry: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would present degree certificates to candidates passing out of the various disciplines including MBBS at the third annual convocation in JIPMER on June 30.
   
He would also declare open the new block housing Women and Children Health Care, JIPMER Academic Centre and the Hostel complex.
   
Director of the Institute Dr T S Ravikumar told reporters here that a total of 311 candidates would be conferred with the degrees.
   
He said Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and the Union Minister of State in PMO V Narayanasamy would be among those who would attend the function. 

CBSE to provide answer keys to those who appeared for AIEEE

New Delhi: The CBSE has decided to provide answer keys and calculation sheet to students who appeared for AIEEE this year for their benefit.
 
The OMR Sheet, answer key and calculation sheet will be made available to candidates who have appeared for AIEEE 2012 on request along with prescribed fee of Rs 500, the board said in a statement.
 
Candidates may apply for the same along with the requisite fee on or before July 31, it said. 

Nearly 70 pc students clear Odisha matric exams

Cuttack: A little over 70 per cent regular students in Oriya medium schools cleared the annual High School Certificate (HSC) examinations in Odisha this year, the results of which were declared by the state Board of Secondary Education (BSE) here.
 
As usual, the pass percentage in ex-regular category was much lower pegged at 46 per cent. Similarly, 38.23 per cent students passed in regular correspondence course and 31.79 per cent students made it in ex-regular correspondence course, pegging the overall pass percentage at 67.90.
 
Dibyanshu Kar of Oupada High School in Balasore district topped this years examination securing 588 marks (97 percent) from a possible 600 marks. Ankit Mohapatra of Boudh Saraswati Sishu Mandir has stood second securing 583 marks while Sthitaprajna Nath Sharma of Ravenshaw Collegiate has stood obtaining 582 marks.
        
Continuing their supremacy in matriculation results, the private schools run by Sikhya Vikash Samiti namely Saraswati Vidyamandirs once again showed their dominance this year as 47 students of these schools cemented their positions in the top-hundred list comprising 110 students.
 
Unlike most other examinations, the boys in HSC examinations are consistently doing better than girl students. While 73.17 percent boys passed the examination in regular stream, pass percentage among girls was around 68.55. The same pattern was also seen in other streams as well.
 
A total of 445814 students wrote their papers in the regular stream of which results of 438184 were published. While 67235 students passed in first division, 91190 students made it in second division and 151555 students passed in third division.
 
According to BSE president Satyakam Mishra, results of 1099 students are kept withheld for various reasons and at least 9939 students were booked for resorting in malpractices during the examinations held in March-April this year.
    
District-wise analysis of results revealed that some tribal districts have done remarkably well this year while Nuapada among them stole the limelight by securing the top rank among all districts. A record 81.87 per cent of students here passed the examination while the strife-torn districts of Gajapati and Nawarangpur continued to perform miserably. 

Six AIIMS-like Institutes to start operating from Sept

New Delhi: Government decided to start six AIIMS-like Institutes in various states from this academic session and admissions to them will start by end-September.    

These six Institutes being set up on the lines of the New Delhi All-India Institute of Medical Sciences are coming up at Patna in Bihar, Bhubaneshwar in Odisha, Jodhpur in Rajasthan, Rishikesh in Uttarakhand, Raipur in Chhattisgarh and Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh.
   
The decision was taken at a review meeting of these Institutes by Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, where Health Ministers of Bihar, Odisha and Uttarakhand and Health Secretaries of other three states were present.
   
Sources said admissions to the first year of MBBS in these Institutes will be done by September-end and each of these Institutes will admit 50 students during the first year.
   
Sources said when the infrastructure in these institutes is completed, the number of admissions will be scaled up to 100.
   
After the meeting, Bihar Health Minister Ashwini K Chaubey said government has decided to bring about an Ordinance for starting these Institutes as the attached hospitals with these Institutes are yet to start.
   
During the review on the progress of these Institutes, set up with central assistance, it was discussed that most of them were in advanced stages of completion and Azad urged the states to adopt a pro-active approach in completing them early.
   
While in five of the Institutes, almost 80 per cent of the work in Phase I is complete, that in the Raipur Institute is lagging behind, sources said.

Anand Kumar criticises IIT council's decision

Patna: Super 30 founder Anand Kumar criticised IIT Council's decision to give 20 per cent weightage to Class XII marks in the IIT-JEE entrance test as 'hasty' and said that the measure will mar the prospect of students studying in the government schools.
  
The IIT Council's decision to give 20 per cent weightage to Class XII marks in the IIT-JEE entrance test from next year is a hasty decision and will go against the poor, who dont get opportunity to study in elite public schools,” he said.

DU 2nd list out, cut-off drops

New Delhi: The-cut off percentages for admission to popular courses  in Delhi University did not show any remarkable drop in its second list tonight and 14 colleges even declared admissions to B Com (Hons) course closed.
     
While admissions to B Com (Hons) was still open in several colleges after three days of admission, the cut-off percentage dropped only marginally.
     
In Hindu College, which had put its first cut-off at the maximum of 99.25, the bar dropped only by .25 percentage points. SRCC closed admission to B Com (Hons) but is still admitting in Economics at a percentage of 96.5 to 97.5.
     
At Ramjas College, B Com (Hons) is available at 96-98 per cent per cent, while LSR has invited students with 96.5 percentage points for admission in the second list. 
     
Commerce is available at Sri Venkateswara college at 96.5 97.5 per cent, while Economics is available at 95.75 96.75 per cent. 
     
While the drop in top most colleges was not remarkable, students can still get admissions in a number of off-campus colleges to the popular course at of 85 to 90 per cent.
     
The lowest cut-off for admission to B Com (Hons) was 81 per cent at Aditi Mahavidyalaya, even as Dyal Singh, Gargi, Janki Devi, declared admissions closed.
     
While a number of colleges will still be taking admissions in popular English (Hons) course, some top colleges like Hans Raj, Kamla Nehru, Lady Sri Ram and Sri Venkateswara, closed admissions to this subject.
     
The next three days will see colleges taking admissions on the basis of its second list and will announce a third list on July 2. 

Anaemia control programme in Haryana schools

Chandigarh: The Haryana Health Department has planned to implement the Anaemia Control Programme in state-run schools from July, a spokesman said. 
 
Under the programme, students both girls and boys of class VI to XII will be given Iron Folic Acid (IFA) tablets having 100 mg iron plus 500 mg folic acid on a weekly basis, he said.
 
"Students would take IFA tablets along with the class teachers after lunch break in the school premises", the spokesman said.
 
Adolescent girls would also be given IFA tablets every week by anganwadi workers under the programme.
 
He said that the scheme would be implemented in six districts of Ambala, Rohtak, Yamunanagar, Rewari, Kaithal and Hisar and will be expanded to remaining districts of the state later.
 
A menstrual hygiene scheme aimed at increasing awareness among girls and women in relation to personal hygiene would also be implemented, he said, adding rural women would be encouraged to use sanitary napkins regularly.
 
They will also be made to understand issues related to sexually transmitted infections, reproductive tract infections and urinary tract infections, the spokesman said. 

DU admissions begin, moderate turnout on first day

New Delhi: Delhi University colleges did not see a repeat of last year's mad rush on the first day of admissions, June 26 as students turned out to report but in moderate numbers, with ever-popular Commerce and Economics courses witnessing the maximum registrations.

Unlike last year, when a major chunk of seats in a few colleges were filled on the very first day, there was still a lot of breathing space left after day one.

At Sri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC), 223 students took admissions on B Com (hons) course against 501 seats, while 55 students reported for the 123 seats in the Economics course.

SRCC Principal termed the response as 'wonderful' and said he expected more activity in the upcoming two days.

Hans Raj college saw a little over 150 admissions, most of them in B Com (hons). While 50 of the 200 seats were taken in the Commerce course, only 17 of the 100 seats were filled on the first day in Economics.

"Most of the admissions took place in Commerce and Economics. Subjects in the Arts and Science streams saw up to 90 and 50 registrations respectively," said Hans Raj Principal V K Kawatra.

Numbers were the same in other colleges, with Hindu college that set this time's highest cut-off percentage of 99.25 per cent taking up to 152 admissions on the first day.

Officials pointed out that last year's admissions took place in the absence of pre-admission forms and the first day rush of 2011 can be attributed to this fact.

The colleges will continue taking admissions for two more days before declaring their second cut off lists on June 29.

Officials at Dyal Singh college said 300 students reported on the first day of admissions but not all could be admitted as many forms were not complete.  

The maximum rush was expectedly for Commerce and Economics courses.

Officials at the Lady Sri Ram college did not divulge the numbers but said English, Political Science, Psychology and History were the major draw.

While there was no 100 per cent cut off figure announced this year, the required percentages were quite high, in some colleges more than last year's.

The colleges were cautious in announcing high cut offs so as to not take excessive admissions in the first round. The cut offs are expected to come down in the subsequent rounds of admissions.

Following a second cut-off on June 29, another three cut off percentages will be declared on July 3, July 6 and July 10. Further lists and conversions of OBC seats, if required, will be notified later, the University has said.

Last year, the 100 per cent cut off had sparked a major outcry, prompting even the HRD Minister Kapil Sibal to intervene and ask the Vice Chancellor to look into the issue.

This year before the admission season began, Sibal again assured students seeking admission in Delhi university that there would be "no problem" of the kind they faced last year when the cut-off touched 100 per cent. 

Indian, Aussie scientists to be part of up multi-million dollar joint programme

New Delhi: Top scientists in India and Australia will team up for cutting-edge research in fields of environment science, materials science, stem cells and vaccines as part of a joint multi-million dollar programme.
 
Australia and India will support 13 new collaborative projects and seven joint workshops through the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund.
 
"This programme brings together leading scientists in both countries for truly world-class research. This is Australia's largest science fund with any country and one of India's largest sources of support for international science," Australian High Commissioner Peter Varghese said.
 
He said this commitment was a measure of Australia's strong belief in the quality and future of the science relationship, which was an important element underpinning the overall strategic partnership.
 
Australian government has committed $4.37 million (Rs 23 crore) to these new projects and workshops. The Indian government will fund the Indian teams' participation. 
 
Participating institutions in India include Banaras Hindu University, the National Chemical Laboratories, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mumbai, IIT Roorkee, Immunology Laboratory Institute of Microbial Technology at Chandigarh, and the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine.
 
The partner institutions in Australia include the University of New South Wales, Melbourne University, Southern Cross University, Australian National University, Queensland University of Technology, CSIRO and  Deakin University. 

Haryana decides to give exemption to teachers

Chandigarh: With a view to recruiting Post Graduate Teachers in all categories, Haryana Government has decided to give one-time exemption of having essential qualification of 'consistent good academic record'.
    
The exemption will apply to those candidates who have already passed State Teachers Eligibility Test (STET) and Haryana Teachers Eligibility Test (HTET) conducted in 2008, 2009 and 2011, Education Minister Geeta Bhukkal said.

Shortage of 10 lakh MBBS doctors: Azad

Jammu: Shortage of 10 lakh MBBS doctors in the country is affecting health-care delivery system in rural areas, Union Health and Family Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad t said.

"There are seven lakh doctors in the country against arequirement of 17 lakh, leaving a deficit of 10 lakh doctors. This is directly affecting the health-care delivery system in rural areas," he said.
   
Azad was a public meeting at Kilhotran in Gandoh tehsil of Doda district.
   
He said though the Centre was providing adequate funds for construction of hospitals, there was shortage of MBBS doctors.
   
Azad said to provide better health-care in rural areas, the Union Health Ministry and the Indian Medical Association (IMA) were amending the syllabus of MBBS doctors who are undergoing training.
   
After the changes in the syllabus, trainee doctors would have to serve in villages for one year before getting MBBS degree.
  
He said the Union Health Ministry would launch a scheme under which 100 districts of the country would be covered in the first phase.
   
As part of the scheme, free check ups and diabetes tests will be conducted in males and females above the age of 30 years at the nearest PHC, while for pregnant women there will be no age bar for conduct of the test. 

Devi Ahilya Vishwavidhyalaya's PhD entrance test likely in August

INDORE: The Devi Ahilya Vishwavidhyalaya (DAVV) is likely to conduct its first PhD entrance examination in the first week of August, said varsity sources. 

The officiating vice-chancellor of the varsity has proposed to take up the issue in the next executive council meeting, which will be held after the new vice-chancellor, Professor D P Singh, assumed the charge. Singh will take charge on June 28 and subsequently date of next EC meeting will be finalized soon. 

"In the coming 15 days, the next council meeting will be held. The proposal of conducting examination will be taken up in the meeting. After the approval, notification will be issued. It will take three weeks to conduct the entrance examination after the approval of EC," said DAVV's officiating vice-chancellor Dr Rajkamal. 

IIT exam row resolved, new format from 2013

NEW DELHI: Ending a month-long row over introduction of a common entrance test (CET) for undergraduate engineering courses, the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) on Wednesday arrived at a compromise, whereby class XII scores are used to select candidates, while the tech schools continue to conduct their own admission tests.

The new format is expected to make entrance in to the top tech schools tougher, but has emerged as a  half-way house between the HRD ministry keen on increasing the importance of board exams and IITs not wanting to cede their autonomy.

According to the new formula, agreed to at a meeting of the IIT Council, all aspirants will give the JEE-Main exam. Of the approximately 12 lakh candidates, only the top 1.5 lakh will qualify to appear for the JEE-Advanced test. The two tests will be held on separate days within four-six weeks of each other.

All 1.5 lakh students will be given a score and an All India Rank. However, they will be selected for IITs not just on the basis of their rank in the Advanced test but also their board marks. For this, students will have to in the top 20 percentile of their state or central board.

So going by last year's scores, the cut-off percentage for a student appearing in CBSE board will be 78%, while for one appearing in the Uttar Pradesh state board will be 65%-66%. This is expected to standardize varying standards across central and state boards.

The compromise does seem laboured but this is what IITs will have to settle for. The original government proposal, backed by the IIT Council, drew flak for messing the admission format without achieving the professed objective of reducing dependence on tuitions.

The ministry's plan to introduce `one nation, one test' has been only partially fulfilled although the new format means board scores will reflect in a candidate's selection. On May 28, the IIT Council had announced that entrance for IIT will be based on a new format replacing the 60% cut-off for school marks with a 50:50 weightage on the class XII score and JEE Main. The merit list for IIT was to be based on the Advance test. The formula for centrally funded engineering institutions, including NITs and IIITs, was 40% weightage to class XII score and 30% weightage each for JEE Main and Advanced.

The Council's decision and consequently its powers have been challenged by IIT-Kanpur and Delhi Senates in the last few weeks with the institutes declaring they will hold their own entrance tests.

HRD minister Kapil Sibal did not attend Wednesday's meeting though he is chairman of the Council. Sources said his absence was intended to send out a message that there was no political interference in IIT's decision-making process.

Reacting to the IIT Council decision, Sibal said, ``There is still a long way to go but I'm sure that all stakeholders will work towards reducing influence of coaching institutes, give importance to school board exams, bring down the multiple exams and ensure there is no occasion for charging capitation fee...The present decision is a step in the right direction. I don't think the Council has achieved all four things but I hope it will be able to in the next three-four years."

The Councils of NITs and IIITs will also meet to discuss the new formula. Sources said that since IITs were holding their separate exam the earlier formula could be changed giving board marks 40%-50% weightage while the remaining would be given to the JEE-Main.

When asked if the new formula had been discussed with the senates, IIT-Kanpur director Sanjay Dhande said, ``This proposal has been discussed with senate representatives in a meeting in Lucknow and one in Delhi today. They have supported it."

All India IIT Faculty Federation A K Mittal said that the proposal should be brought before the Senates. ``We have no reservations about the implementation of this new format entrance test from 2013 but it must be brought before the senates for their approval," he said.

Second list may not open doors to top colleges

NEW DELHI: If you have pinned your hopes on the second cutoff list, be prepared to settle for a less fancied college. By Wednesday evening, Shri Ram College of Commerce had filled up all its BCom(H) seats and had only nine BA(H) economics seats remaining. General category admissions will close on Thursday. "A second list for general category is unlikely at SRCC although we may bring down the cutoff for OBC category in the next list," said principal PC Jain. 

Admissions to BCom(H) will close with the second cutoff list on Friday at SGTB Khalsa, Gargi, Moti Lal Nehru, Ram Lal Anand and Dayal Singh colleges, among others. However, sought-after colleges like Hindu, Kirori Mal and Sri Venkateswara, which didn't get many applicants to BCom(H) due to high cutoffs, will make themselves available to admission seekers. Hindu College had 29 seats left in BCom(H) on Wednesday, while KMC is yet to admit any student in the course. Sri Venkateswara managed to admit just 13 students. 

SGTB is likely to keep admission open for honours courses in mathematics, physics and chemistry. "Last year, we had a bad experience admitting students beyond capacity, expecting some to withdraw. Although we are keeping the science courses open, the drop will be marginal," said SGTB Khalsa principal Jaswinder Singh. 

Aspirants will have to plan their strategy as many courses across colleges are likely to be closed for admission with the second cutoff list. Gargi College is likely to close admissions to BCom(H), science and applied science courses, while SGTB Khalsa College will also close admissions to BA(H) in economics. Hindu College may close admissions to BSc(H) in zoology, botany, sociology, and KMC to BA programme and geography(H). Miranda House, which has filled 65% of its general seats, is likely to close admissions for geography(H) and sociology(H). 

Colleges like Kamla Nehru, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, Ram Lal Anand and Kirori Mal are likely to keep admissions open for most of the courses on offer. 

Miranda House may keep admissions open to English, economics, philosophy, history and BA programme, while Sri Venkateswara may bring down the cutoff by a percentage point for science courses. 

Tech colleges drop AIEEE application

NOIDA: Following Mahamaya Technical University's (MTU) probe into the admission procedure of 24 colleges that had applied directly to the AIEEE for spot counselling, 11 of them have withdrawn their application. However, MTU officials said the matter has been referred to the Central Admission Board (CAB) and any decision regarding punitive action will be taken by them.

Officials said the 24 colleges had submitted their documents, but they should have ideally consulted MTU first. "We would have told them that applying for spot admission while bypassing the MTU was a direct violation of the Supreme Court's guidelines for a single-window admission into technical universities, the UP government's guidelines on admissions for technical courses, and the rules set down by MTU," said SK Kak, vice chancellor, MTU. The university had previously asked the errant colleges to send the documents that had been sent by them to AIEEE on whose basis they had applied for direct spot counselling.

"The colleges have told us that they will not be taking in students through spot applications," said an official. MTU's examination controller, JP Pandey, expressed fear that if any of these colleges admit a student through spot counselling, he/she will be in a fix since the university would not be able to enroll him.

What students need to know about Delhi University Admissions

For those making the cut for admissions into Delhi University in the first list itself, there are a number of things to be kept in mind before venturing out. First of all, there is no need to rush as each college will have to admit any student meeting its cut-off -- no policy of first-come-first-served anymore, so no need to camp for hours outside any college before it opens. However, always keep in mind that you have only three days within which to complete your admissions before the next list is out.

Admissions will open at every college at 9 a.m. and will continue up to 1 p.m. from Tuesday to Thursday. On the other hand, evening colleges will open its admission windows from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., also starting on Tuesday and ending on Thursday. There will be no extension.

Also a pre-requisite for admissions at every colleges are documents like Class X Board exam certificate , Class X mark sheet , Class XII mark sheet , Class XII provisional certificate or original certificate, character certificate (recent) , OBC (non-creamy layer) certificate in the name of the student getting admitted, at least two passport size self-attested photographs and a transfer certificate from the school or college as well as a migration certificate from the board or university is required from those students who have passed the senior secondary exams from outside Delhi.

Also keep in mind that once you have taken admissions into one college, you will not be able to admit yourself into any other college or course before you cancel your admissions in the first college. If you happen to have the course and college of your choice in the second list, but have already taken admission in some other college through the first list, then please cancel your admissions first before seeking admissions for the second time because if you happen to simultaneously take admissions in two colleges, then there is the danger of both admissions getting cancelled. Rest assured, your admissions will be cancelled immediately after you apply, and you will get your certificates almost immediately but the refund of your fees might take up to a month.

The second list is slated to be out on Friday and admissions will begin at 9 a.m and remain open till Monday, July 2. The admissions will be closed on Sunday. Evening colleges will open its admission windows from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., also starting on Friday and ending on Monday, with a holiday on Sunday.

The third list will follow on July 3 and admissions will also start and will continue up to July 5 with the same timings. The fourth list will be out on July 6, only if there remain unfulfilled seats and will continue up to July 9 with the same timings and the Sunday falling in-between remaining a holiday.

The schedule for SC/ST candidates and those falling under the physically challenged candidates quota is different. The first list for SC/ST will be displayed at the Arts Faculty in the North Campus, irrespective of where the registrations have taken place and these candidates will have to collect admission slips from this centre, which will start issuing them at 10 a.m., before proceeding to the college to take admissions. The Physically Challenged Candidates list will be out at the Dean Students’ Welfare office at 10 a.m. and even will have to collect admissions slips before proceeding to any college.

2 New PG Prgms Launched At Indraprastha University

The Indraprastha University (IP) has launched two new courses for the academic session 2012. The courses include M.Tech in Food Processing and PG Diploma in educational Leadership and Management. The Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU) has begun accepting applications for admission to various technical and professional courses offered by the University.

Officials from the university revealed that the courses were being launched keeping in mind the increasing demand for these courses. The growing food retail market has increased the demand for a qualified work force in the fruit and vegetable manufacturing sector. The new M.Tech in food processing course will provide in-depth knowledge about the recent technology pertinent to the existing food processing sector.

What are Courses based on: M.Tech in food processing provides the students the knowledge of recent technology relevant to the current food processing sector. The course deals in-depth with the nutraceuticals, health and proper diet food. And the PG Diploma in education leadership and management is aimed at creating leaders in the field of Education.

Eligibility Note: Students who have a background of B.E, B.Tech, MS and Msc can apply for these courses. And to pursue PG diploma in Educational Leadership and Management course students should be graduates from any discipline with 50% of aggregate marks.

Job Opportunities: Students can choose food processing sectors, food standards and analysis companies. Students can get employment in food research institutes in India and Abroad.

The university has also updated the curriculum of some of its other courses including IT and Computer Engineering, MA in English, PG in Mass Communication and ECE.

Anna University Grants Free Marks to VVIP Students

The junior faculty members at Anna University, Chennai confessed that an agitation exists where VVIP's wards were passed with brilliant scores in spite of their irregularity and poor performances. The agitation has been running in two to four campuses of the reputed university. It is recognized to be as one is the College of engineering in Gundy (CEG) and the other is the Madras Institute of Technology in Chrome pet.

This academic malpractice is being done in the name of revolution and has been carried out for pas three years. This is for the first time when the issue has come up with the proofs. A few junior faculty members accepted that they allotted passing marks to some of the students on instructions of an official from the University Examination Department.

An assistant professor from department of Computer Technology at MIT confessed his mistake in a letter to Chief Minister's cell. Another assistant professor at Ramanujan Computing Centre in CEG addressed his  letter to a semi-government organization, which is already aware of this agitation.

An MIT assistant professor named an official indulged in this malpractice and said They gave me the papers and asked me to give pass marks for some of the students. I have been given the subjects from their first semester and other semesters too".

Distinctly, in the month of April, the assistant professor was handed over with such subjects copies which are in no connection with his proficiency. He being a computer teacher, was asked to correct Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics papers.

As same to the above incident, a professor at CEG refused to do such a thing as it can bring a bad name to the university. In his letter he said, "In future, I cannot do this kind of malpractices where it affects the brand of my University".

However, in the month of March, a leading daily news had published about this agitation activity which mentioned the role of an senior professors who have been instrumental in the malpractices.

Indian Academy of Sciences appoints first Jubilee Professor

London: The Indian Academy of Sciences has appointed a Cambridge University scientist as its first Jubilee Professor.

Professor Ashok Venkitaraman, who holds the Ursula Zoellner Professorship of Cancer Research in the University of Cambridge and is the Director of the Medical Research Council's Cancer Cell Unit there, has been appointed as first Jubilee Professor in 2012.

The Indian Academy of Sciences, founded in 1934 by the Nobel Prize-winning physicist Sir C V Raman, celebrated its platinum jubilee in 2009.

The Council of the Academy has instituted the Jubilee Professorship in connection with this event.

The distinguishing feature of the Professorship will be to offer the holder an opportunity for interactions and exchanges with students, researchers and teachers in several parts of India, and not just in the major metropolises.

He is known for his research on the causes and treatment of cancer.

Prof Ajay Sood, President, Indian Academy of Sciences said: "I am delighted to have Prof Ashok Venkitaraman as the first occupant of Jubilee Chair of the Academy.

"As envisaged in this professorship, I am sure that students, teachers and researchers will be inspired by their close interaction with Professor Venkitaraman at the different universities and colleges he will visit." ? 

Professor Venkitaraman said: "I am honoured to have been appointed the first Jubilee Professor of the Indian Academy of Sciences, and thank the Academy for this award.

"It has been very exciting for me to witness personally over the past few years the excellence of research in the biomedical sciences at several Indian institutions, and I look forward to extending my interactions with colleagues and students in India during the Jubilee Professorship." ? 

Venkitaraman learnt and practiced medicine at the Christian Medical College, Vellore, before completing his PhD at University College London, and his postdoctoral work at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge.

His first faculty position was also at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, where he remained before election to the Zoellner Professorship.

Venkitaraman is known for his contributions to understanding the genetics and biology of cancer, particularly in elucidating the impact of genome instability in carcinogenesis and cancer therapy.

(PTI)

School-on-wheels launched in Delhi

New Delhi: A non-governmental organisation (NGO) Wednesday launched a mobile learning centre for slum children in Delhi. The school-on-wheels was flagged off by east Delhi Mayor Annapoorna Mishra.

Launched by NGO 'Save the Children', in collaboration with Aviva Life Insurance Company, the centre comes equipped with trainers, teachers and counsellors. The Mobile Learning Centre (MLC) will work with underprivileged children in slum clusters in and around east Delhi's Subhash Nagar.

According to the NGO, the mobile centre aims to reach a total of 2,000 street and slum children, aged between three and 14 years, in a span of two years.

"Almost 50 per cent of the street children in Delhi are not literate. With the RTE (Right to Education) Act in place, the authorities cannot have an excuse if children are out of school," said Thomas Chandy, chief executive officer at Save the Children.

"We hope that the government will ensure that underprivileged students are mainstreamed in formal private and government schools," Chandy added.

Reaching out to the children at the critical age of 3 to 6 years, the mobile centre would aim at building a strong foundation for these children so that they are ready for mainstream schools in their lives, the NGO added.

Goa Govt makes interest-free loan plan more student-friendly

Panaji: The Goa Government today approved extensive modifications in its flagship scheme, under which interest-free loans are provided for higher education, making it more student-friendly.

The changes were approved at a State Cabinet meeting presided over by Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar.

Talking to reporters after the meeting, he said modifications were necessary to rejuvenate the Government- sponsored scheme. "The scheme was not getting desired response due to some existing shortcomings." 

The scheme, in force for over a decade, has benefited 3,338 students, who took loans to the tune of Rs 38.54 crore, of which Rs 17.99 crore had been paid back.

Under the scheme, students are given interest-free loans for higher education and they have to pay back the money once they start earning.

Parrikar said Department of Higher Education will be streamlining the plan wherein the loan amount would be disbursed within a month.

The scheme, which was to end on October 31, has been extended till December 31.

The Cabinet also raised the annual income limit of the borrower (family) from existing Rs five lakh to Rs seven lakh.

In case another sibling wants to pursue higher education, the income limit would be Rs eight lakh.

For students wanting to pursue their education abroad, the income limit has been fixed at Rs 12 lakh to Rs 14 lakh.

The scheme will also cover the reimbursement of `entitled fee' as against the earlier clause of paying only `fee'.

Himachal approves policy to recruit teachers in tribal areas

Shimla. To fill vacant posts of teachers in tribal and notified backward areas, the Himachal Pradesh government today approved a new policy to engage teachers and pay them on the basis of classes taken by them.

The Post Graduate Teachers (PGT) teaching Plus-one and Plus-two students will be given Rs 150 per period, while the Trained Graduate Teachers (TGT) will get Rs 100 per period for teaching students of Class IX and X.

The maximum amount paid to the PGT and TGT would be Rs 6,000 per month.

The language teachers would be paid Rs 75 per lecture and their maximum monthly payment would be Rs 4,500.

Similarly, the Junior Basic Teachers (JBT), teaching the elementary classes, would get Rs 75 per period, subject to a maximum of Rs 3,500 per month.

The Cabinet also approved the proposal to apply recruitment and promotion rules to the employees of the 95 per cent government funded private educational institutions which were taken over by the government, from the time they became government servants.

It also gave the nod for launch of 'Bal/Balika Suraksha Yojna' to motivate people to adopt orphan and destitute children.

The scheme aims at saving such children from admission into orphanages and encourage participation of families in discharging social responsibilities, besides ensuring emotional back-up to such deprived children.(PTI) 

The new IIT exam pattern - Factfile

New Delhi. The Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) Council Wednesday struck a compromise with the human resource development ministry on the new pattern of entrance examinations. Here are its salient features:

* There will be two exams, the joint entrance examination (JEE) "main" followed by the JEE "advanced".

* These combine the All India Engineering Entrance Examination (AIEEE) and the IIT-JEE, with the "main" exam being equivalent to AIEEE, and "advanced" being equivalent to the IIT-JEE.

* There will be a "suitable" time gap between the two exams, though it was not clarified how much.

* Only top 150,000 candidates (including all categories) from the JEE "main" will be qualified to appear in the JEE "advanced" examination.

* Admission to IITs will be based on the rank in the "advanced" exam.

* However, only students who come in among the top 20 percent scorers in their respective board will be considered eligible for the IITs.

* The "advanced" exam will be held by the IITs, just like the IIT- JEE. It will be conducted by a Joint Admission Board (JAB) and Joint Implementation Committee of the IITs, the same which so far conducted  the JEE.

* The JEE "main" will be conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), and it will coordinate with the IITs. It will be implemented from 2013.

* Admission to the National Institutes of Technology (NITs) and Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs) will be based on the "main" exam score. A final decision on methodology of admission is pending. A meeting of representatives from the NITs is scheduled for July 4.

* Admission to several deemed universities will also be on the basis of scores in the "main" exam, which earlier took students on basis of AIEEE scores. A minimum percentage criteria will be fixed for these too.       

About 16,000 appear for NET in Karnataka

The National Eligibility Test (NET) conducted by the University Grants Commission (UGC) was held across the State on Sunday.

T.D. Kemparaju, co-ordinator of NET’s Bangalore centre, said about five per cent of the 16,828 registered candidates were absent.

This time all three papers had multiple choice questions while one paper was descriptive type earlier.

Apart from the objective type papers, this time, the UGC is giving candidates the option of getting the photocopy of their answer scripts, said Prof. Kemparaju.

Even before the results are out, the candidates can match the answers in their OMR sheets to the answer keys that will be published and see how well they have done,” he added.

Women who want to make it big cannot be mediocre: Albright

New Delhi: Mediocre men can survive but if a woman wants to be successful, she cannot afford to be mediocre -- this is the advice that former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has for young students.

75-year-old Albright, a Czech-born refugee who rose to become US's first woman Secretary of State, said she used to feel unhappy when women themselves became judgemental about the capabilities of their peers.

Interacting with students of 'The Young India Fellowship Programme' here, she said, "There is a place for mediocre men in this world but not for mediocre women.

"If a woman wants to make it big in her life, she can't afford to be a mediocre one. Being extraordinary is the stage where a woman's journey begins," she said.

Albright, who was recently awarded US's highest civilian honour Presidential Medal of Freedom, advised the students to feel strongly for their interests.

"I never had a fixed plan for both my personal and professional lives but I always knew what I was interested in. Youth today should also identify and follow their interests and the rest of the journey will itself fall into place," she said.

Talking about the obstacles she had to face in her journey from being a refugee in America to a diplomat in White House, she said she returned to Washington in 1968 and started working on her PhD in Columbia University.

"There is a difference of ten years between my career and chronological age which impacted my PhD as compared to peers and my PhD was a delayed one," she said.

Talking about her personal and political life, she said her efforts to raise funds for her daughters' education led her to several positions on education boards.

Albright was initially asked to organise a fund raising dinner for the presidential campaign of then US Senator Ed Muskie and she said, "this association with Muskie helped me in getting the position of chief legislative assistant.

"However after then US Presidential elections (in 1976) one of my former professors was appointed the National Security Advisor, and he recruited me as the National Security Council's congressional liaison in the West Wing," she said.

Albright, who was undergoing the trauma of having lost her daughter Alice then, was employed to handle a new administration in National Security Council followed by her nomination for the US Ambassador to the United Nations by Bill Clinton in 1993.

"What used to make me unhappy was that the people who were being judgemental about me being capable of or not were women," she said.

On balancing career and family life, she said, "I always believed that there is a special place for such women in hell who choose career over kids or vice versa. Why not strike a balance between the two."

Indian Americans fund Hindu studies chair in US University

Washington:  An Indian American organisation has made a contribution of USD 3.24 million to establish Swami Vivekananda Visiting Faculty and Dharma Civilisation Foundation Chair in Hindu Studies at a prestigious US university in California.
 
To be established at the University Of South California (USC) School Of Religion with funds from the Dharma Civilisation Foundation, this is the first chair of Hindu studies in the US funded by the Indian American community.
 
"We are very proud to house the first chair of Hindu studies in the United States endowed by the Indian-American community," the USC President C L Max Nikias said in a statement.
 
The Los Angeles based Dharma Civilisation Foundation aims to fund studies of the Indian civilisation, focusing on Hinduism, Buddhism, Jain and Sikh religions.
 
The objective is to promote Dharma education through research scholarship, degree courses and endowed chairs.
 
Last year Nikias led a delegation of university faculty, administrators and trustees, including USC Dean of Religious Life Varun Soni, to India, where they met with key Indian partners in higher education, business and government, and with USC alumni, to build sustainable alliances in the areas of medicine and health care, neurosciences, the arts, communication and journalism, business, technology and engineering.
 
"This historic gift to the USC School of Religion highlights the department's commitment to study the enduring questions of human life and values from a global perspective," said Duncan Williams, chair of the School of Religion. 
 
"There is a profound wisdom tradition embedded in Hinduism, and we humbly believe Hinduism can make a valuable contribution to global problems and challenges," the Dharma Civilisation Foundation stated.
 
The foundation said USC was selected for this historic gift because of its tradition of reflecting the values of Indian community both locally and globally.
 
Williams is one of few ordained Buddhist priests to chair a religious studies department in the United States.
 
He previously served as the Buddhist chaplain at Harvard University and held the Shinjo Ito Distinguished Chair of Japanese Buddhism at the University of California, Berkeley.
 
Soni is the first university chaplain with a Hindu background.
 
A member of the State Bar of California, Soni spent time living in a Buddhist monastery in India.
 
"I believe that this is a watershed moment for the Indian-American community, which has built many Hindu temples in the United States but has never before endowed an academic program in Hindu studies," Soni said.
 
"This gift will help distinguish the USC School of Religion by emphasising strengths in areas that don't have a history in divinity schools.
 
We are looking at things in a global way by creating a religious studies program that isn't biased toward one part of the world," Williams said.
 
Pavitra Krishnamani, president of the USC Hindu Student Organisation, said the gift will let students discover or rediscover the religion.
 
"Growing up in a melting pot like America, it is important for second generation US Hindus like me to know their roots," Krishnamani said.