The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

EDUCATION

388 awarded degrees
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 29
The 29th annual convocation of Guru Gobind Singh College for Women, Sector 26, was held at the college multipurpose hall today. Krishan Mohan, home-cum-education secretary, UT, was the chief guest. As many as 388 students were awarded degrees.

Principal of the college Dr Harjinder Kaur welcomed the guests and students on behalf of the college management and staff. She read out the annual report highlighting the achievements of the college.

The chief guest delivered the convocation address in which he congratulated the students and urged them to be committed towards their work.

President of the Sikh Educational Society Gurudev Singh Brar delivered the vote of thanks and complimented the students on their achievements.

Govt Home Science College: Government Home Science College, Chandigarh, held its 39th annual convocation, here today. Dr K.K. Talwar, director, PGI, was the chief guest. Dr Sukhvarsha Narula, principal of the college, welcomed the chief guest and read out the annual college report. 28 students were awarded masters in food and nutrition, child development and clothing and textiles. 35 students were awarded postgraduate diplomas in fashion designing and nutrition and dietetics. 80 students were awarded degrees in B.Sc Hsc. In all, 288 students were awarded prizes in various academic and co-curricular categories. 20 student council members were also honoured. Various prestigious awards were also given to meritorious students.

Professor Talwar, in his address, spoke on how various streams of home science are related to the field of medicine and eventually lead to happy homes and good health.

Seminar on social exclusion
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 29
A two-day national seminar on ‘Social Exclusion, State and Globalisation’ organised by the Ambedkar Study Centre, Panjab University, began with a welcome address of Kehar Singh, fellow, Panjab University, Chandigarh. Coordinator of the centre Manjit Singh gave a brief account of the centre’s achievements during the past six years. The centre has completed seven projects and has organised nearly a dozen workshops and seminars.

Capt Kanwaljit Singh, minister of cooperation and defence welfare, Government of Punjab, inaugurated the seminar at the Golden Jubilee Hall, Panjab University. In his inaugural address, Capt Kanwaljit Singh pointed out that though we boasted of having the world’s largest political democracy, inequalities and caste discrimination was rampant in the rural areas leading to many socially exclusionary practices. Citing the example of attack on Iraq, he said even the UN, from whom various nations hoped equity and peace, has failed in its role. Capt Kanwaljit Singh honoured former professor of sociology Prof P.N. Pimpley with a memento for his lifetime contribution to studies in social exclusion. Capt Kanwaljit Singh also announced a grant of Rs 4 lakh for the centre.

Later, Professor Pimpley read out his keynote address.

Skills programme now for Classes VI, IX
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 29
After the success of C-TOSS programme in colleges and government schools of the UT, the Chandigarh administration has decided to extend it to class VI and IX students.

The programme was initially launched for class XI students but keeping in view the need for improving the skills of students at a younger age and to broaden their base, the administration has decided to introduce the programme to the two classes.

Under the programme, students are being trained to enhance their skills, including communication.

Currently, the programme is running in 38 schools, after its launch in six schools in July, 2004. Government schools in the rural areas also form part of these 38 schools.

Prof Dilgir dead

Chandigarh, March 29
A renowned educationist and former chairman of the department of mass communication, Panjab University, Prof H.S. Dilgir, left for heavenly abode today after a brief illness leaving behind the entire PR fraternity in shock.

Professor Dilgir was a multifaceted personality and made his unfathomable mark as an author, theatre artiste, film producer, orator and a PR person.

He was a visiting professor to many universities. — TNS

No ‘contemporary’ books on Indian architecture
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 29
“It’s the lack of historians and critics that the gap between those who can understand the realms of architecture and others is ever increasing,” said Dr Vikram Prakash, a renowned scholar and professor of architecture at University of Washington, Seattle, who delivered a lecture on year zero at Chandigarh College of Architecture. “It was in the year zero i.e before the onset of AD and after BC, when the Roman empire and the Chinese empire were at their peaks and India had a horde of small empires who were struggling to rule after the fall of the Mauryan empire, that some of the best architectural monuments were created,” he said.

Ruing the fact that in reality there are no contemporary history books and literature that are available on Indian architecture, he says “buildings are always related with the economy, culture and lives of the people.”

He is working on a book ‘New History of Architecture of India’ that will document periods in the history of architecture of India starting from the Indus valley civilisation till the present times. The architectural historian is all set to foray into making documentaries on Indian architecture.

COURTS

Major-General denies variations in affidavit
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 29
The Judge Advocate General at Army Headquarters, Maj Gen Nilendra Kumar, has denied that there were variations in the contents of an affidavit submitted by him before the Delhi High Court and statements made by a representative of the Army Headquarters as was reported in these columns on March 13.

In a communiqué to The Tribune, he also termed as incorrect excerpts, “An officer from the Military Secretary’s Branch today stated before the court that the general had been admitted to a military hospital for four months from January 1978. He added that there were no records with the MS Branch which corroborated his claims of being posted or attached at Lucknow during the said period.”

He has also denied that he had contended that there was no requirement of attending 66 per cent lectures.

Our Correspondent replies: High Court orders and other relevant documents in our possession substantiate our story. While simply terming as incorrect the excerpts of the report, the general has failed to provide his version of the court proceedings.

Further, in his own additional affidavit filed in the High Court, a copy of which is available with The Tribune, Maj Gen Nilendar Kumar has sought to amend certain portions of the affidavit filed earlier, which the court had perused along with a draft of an affidavit handed over by an officer from the MS Branch. It was thereafter that the court ordered the Army/Government to file the affidavit within two weeks. In its earlier order, on which the draft was prepared, the court had listed a series of issues to be covered in the affidavit. The date “January 1978” as mentioned in the report should have read “January 1977” and is a typographical error.

CULTURE

Poets enthral audience at Indo-Pak mushaira
Our Correspondent

Panchkula, March 29
As many as 15 leading poets from North India and Pakistan participated at an Indo-Pak mushaira organised by the Haryana Urdu Akademi in association with the district administration at the newly built Inderdhanush Auditorium, here. The Kanpur-based Haq Kanpuri gave a majestic start to the event with his couplets "Kisi Martabi Ki Kwahish Na Makaan ....Hai."

Pakistani poet Kishwar Naheed enthralled the audience with her couplets laced with a poetic glow of imagination. Recalling her birth place at Bulandshehar, she expressed, "Yaad Rakho Ge Ke, Is Ghar Ke Makeen Ham Bhi Thhe, Gali Kuchou Se Kehna, Unke Saaye Mein Hum Bhi Thhe." Young Nafees Kanpuri talked of romantic hypocrisy saying, "Khel Ishq-O-Mohabatton Ka Samjey Hai Woh, Aaj Gham De Diya, Kal Khusi Chheen Li". Similar sentiments were articulated in Nawab Devbandi's couplets, "Tanhaee Ka Jashan Manaatey Rahey, Apne Sher Khud Ko Sunatey Rahe." As per the tradition, the senior most poets presented their qalaams much later, which kept the audience bereft of relishing the poetic elegance of the literary icons, which included stalwart poets Dr Shams-ur-Rehman Farooqi, Malik Zada Manzoor, Malika Naseem, Noor Jahan Sarwat and Kashmiri Lal Zakir.

Earlier, Haryana Governor Dr A.R. Kidwai, along with Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda and education minister Phool Chand Mullana presented the Haryana Urdu Akademi awards to literary luminaries. The prestigious Hali Award carrying a citation, a memento and cash prize of Rs 1 lakh was conferred on Dr Shams-ur-Rehman Farooqi. The K.M.S. Bedi Award for Rs 25,000 was presented to Ibne Kanwal. Other awardees included Dr Sayyidain, Prof Azad Gulati, Dr Naseerruddin Azhar, Kedar Nath Sharma, Ishaq Hafiz, Kulbushan Parwaz (USA), Om Krishan Rahat (Australia), Dr Sultaan Anjum and Rajinder Verma. The akademi also honoured writers above the age of 75, including Ajiz Jalandhari, O.P. Laghar and Shanti Swaroop Shah.