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August 28, 2014

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Arthashastra , the Economics Society Miranda House organized a seminar on 28th of August with honourable guest speaker Rajeev Malhotra. The seminar was aimed at discussion and interaction on the Union Budget and its importance, Budget 2014, GST and the Planning Commission.

Mr Malhotra has served as the Economic Advisor to the Ministry of Finance and has formerly served as an Executive Officer at the Planning Commission. He is a professor, an Executive Director at Centre for Development and Finance. He is also a celebrated lead author of the book India Public Policy Report. The vision behind organizing this seminar was to invite engaging and eminent speakers to address a young audience on global economic conundrums.

“By inviting students from various colleges and specialties like Political Science, Commerce and Mathematics, we hope to encourage a multiplicity of perspectives on key issues.” said Raavi Agarwal, a third year student of Economics honors and the president of the Economics Society, “We felt a discussion on the Union Budget was imperative for an insight into the policy maker’s mindset which would help us understand the minutiae of the budget and public policy as a whole.”

The agenda of the seminar was an appraisal of the Union Budget and the role of Fiscal Policy and its entirety. The speaker, Rajeev Malhotra addressed questions regarding the effectiveness of public policy in India and bottlenecks to efficacy of policies. He also explained some key terms and concepts related to the FRBM act, Fiscal policy, Deficits and taxes while highlighting the key trends and figures of Fiscal deficits, GDP growth and other macroeconomic parameters through a PowerPoint presentation.

“We were thrilled with the overwhelming response from the students across the university. I found it an informative and enriching session and the students were also pleased with the actual content of the session. We hope to organize such numerous fruitful colloquia in the future.” said Raavi. “Mr. Malhotra gave us some key points on the discussed topics which are lucrative in the sense of application,” said Ayushi, a second year Economics Honors student of Miranda House who attended the seminar, “I enjoyed being part of the session as it was very interactive and alive.”

Image source: Vishleshan team

When I say Penny Dreadful, I expect half of the people to assume the gothic leading lady from the poster to be the ‘Penny’- supposedly, the villainous and thereby the dreadful. Somehow reminding us of shows like The Vampire Diaries and True Blood.

But we can’t help it, can we? Well, she is wearing a necklace made of scorpions and no matter how badass it appears in the posters, it does warrant an assumption of her being a good old vampire goddess. Though I assure you, this is definitely not the case.

The show derives its name from a 19th century British publication type under which ‘Penny’ stood for the fact that these books were rather cheaper to purchase than any other publications running in the market. Similarly, ‘dreadful’ stood for the lurid and suspenseful storylines that this publication offered. So, just to clear it out, there isn’t a ‘Penny’ in the show.

Set in the same century as the actual Penny Dreadful publication, the show is extraordinarily refreshing, considering the fact that it delves into the genre of fantasy, which is repeatedly churning out the same story lines again and again. Penny Dreadful is a psychological coaster running for about 60 minutes as it aims to keep you at the edge of your seats and at the same time satiating your appetite for science fiction and the supernatural. Not to mention, its standards to adapt from the classics. Yes, not ‘classic’ but ‘classics’ given that several adaptations like Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Frankenstein, Van Helsing and even Oscar Wilde’s Dorian Grey have been successfully made into one single show.

And I must add, Penny Dreadful has an amazing cast helming the project. Eva Greens (the women with the scorpion necklace/ Vanessa Ives) and Josh Harnett (as Ethan Chandler) being the crown jewels of this loaded casket.

As they say it rightly ‘There is something within us all.’

 

Priyanka Kapoor

[email protected]

 

With all our gadgets being Wi-Fi enabled there’s no reason to be offline, even in a market!

In an expensive yet progressive move, the New Delhi Municipal Council is introducing Wi-Fi zones in the city’s popular hangout spots!  The service is up and running in Khan Market and would be introduced in Connaught Place by the end of this month, followed by Karol Bagh market soon.  This facility is completely free for the first 15-20 minutes.

In Khan Market, Airtel & Vodafone have teamed up to provide this service whereas in CP, Tata Docomo has partnered to offer Wi-Fi over 4Kms, covering both inner and outer circles.  To use the facility, the visitor would be required to give his email address and mobile number, on which an OTP (One Time Password) would be received, required for successively connecting to the network.  The browsing should be smooth as 4G speeds are being offered. The security being a major concern, has been effectively taken care of with Tata & Vodafone passing the “Five Layers of security”.

The first 15-20 minutes each day are free, after which the users are required to purchase a plan, either online or from various outlets offering scratch cards. The plans are very reasonable starting from Rs. 20 for 40 mins and go up to Rs. 50 for 100 minutes!

Till now free Wi-Fi was only offered in cafes and restaurants. where the complementary connections had their own flaws – poor speeds, tedious registrations and expensive premium plans (to name a few!). The ambitious project is being welcomed by the traders of these markets, who believe it would help attract more crowds. Future locations may include Dilli Haat & Sarojini Nagar as well.

So the next time you are out shopping, don’t forget to update your status!

After the earth shattering success of its flagship Mi3, the Chinese giant Xiaomi is now ready to capture the entry-level Indian smartphone market with its latest offering – Redmi 1s. If you (still) don’t know much about the brand, Xiaomi (Shia-o-me) is the world’s 5th largest smartphone manufacturer and is hailed as “The Apple of China” for its quality, innovation and massive popularity. Its reception in India has been incredible, it goes “Out of Stock” within seconds of replenishment!

Known for providing high end specification at dirt cheap prices, Xiaomi 1s surely delivers more than expected. Packed with a QUALCOMM Snapdragon 400 quad-core processor clocked at 1.6 GHz along with 1 gigabyte of RAM. The phone features a 4.7’ IPS LCD display with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels (312 PPI), coated with Dragontrail glass for making it durable. The dual SIM device, comes with an 8MP (1080p) rear shooter and a snappy 1.6MP front camera (720p). With 8 gigs of expandable memory the phone also support USB On-The-Go (OTG) – you can run USB peripheral like pen drives, keyboards, hard drives, etc. with the help of an adaptor. The phone runs of Android 4.3 (MIUI) and is powered by a 2000mAH battery. These are the only two things that somewhat pinch as Jellybean now seems ancient and the battery is a 100mAH small, however they seem minute snags in the overall package.

If you find the specifications alluring, you’ll be blown away by the price. Initially priced at INR 6,999, Redmi 1s has been launched at INR 5,999, exclusively on Flipkart. To be honest, it actually seems under priced for the monstrous specs it offers. It not only trashes its immediate competitor Moto E (Rs. 6,999) but also outdoes the highly efficient Moto G, now priced at around 10k. The registrations have started & the flash sales will begin from 2nd September. (Do remember, only those who register can buy the phone!)

The fact that Xiaomi is now highly popular in India (courtesy Mi3), the sales are predicted to be groundbreaking!  So if you are looking for a powerful phone, that doesn’t feel heavy on your pockets, Xiaomi’s latest may just be the one!

The Delhi University student experience is incomplete without the contribution of student-run college societies. The traditional skills of theatre and dramatics have always found a platform in DU and continue to thrive with a large number of active participants.

However, there seems to be a new wave of societies that are aiming to provide students with the opportunity to apply and acquire different skill sets. Two such societies have kicked off in SRCC this year- Cognizance and Connecting Dreams Foundation- SRCC Chapter.

new society 2

Cognizance aims to tap into the growing share of students that wish to venture into the realm of startups. The society has adopted the idea of Conception Creation Conversion. Students more often than not face multiple challenges and aren’t adept at taking the necessary steps to pursue their idea and Cognizance aims to solve that. The activities that they plan to undertake in the coming year include BOOT (build, own, operate and transfer) camps, digital marketing workshops, case study competitions, corporate social responsibility entrepreneurship, management games and stimulation activities. Apart from this they plan to tie up with various start-ups and have seminars by young entrepreneurs.

Another society that has begun operations in SRCC is the Connecting Dreams Foundation (CDF). There exist CDF chapters in LSR and Hans Raj College that have been active for the past year and the extension to SRCC will give students the opportunity to engage in this activity. The objective is the empowerment of youth and women in rural India. The SRCC chapter has adopted the village of Samana (UP) and will be working in collaboration with the local NGO Sundesh. The process shall commence with three-month basic courses in Education, Livelihood, Healthcare, Digital Literacy and English speaking. This shall be followed up by dedicated efforts to fulfill the needs of the people through their USP-Anna Tech Tree model.

Both the societies aim to provide students with the chance to learn beyond the classroom through new and innovative methods. To get further details about the two societies you can check their respective Facebook pages.

The chances of you going to Hauz Khas village and not finding a new, flashy, easy on the eyes eating joint are slim to none. Social Offline is yet another one of Hauz Khas’ new additions. But before you write it off as yet another pretentious café, here is what makes it stand out:

The Space:

Strategically located in an endearingly filthy alley in Hauz Khas village, Social Offline has an undeniably kitschy-industrial vibe which becomes apparent as soon as you walk past its hashtag plastered bare-brick walls lined with exposed piping. Inside, the café-cum-workplace has the ambience of a buzzing countryside pub set in a rusty warehouse, accentuated by stray pulleys hanging in corners, bare lightbulbs and rustic wooden furniture all overlooking good old Huaz Khas lake. Overall, the look is undoubtedly innovative, even down to to the trademark hashtags on the toilet rolls that double as napkins.

The Food:

Keeping step with the laid back atmosphere, the menu is essentially a plethora of every imaginable kind of comfort food, all served in their signature eccentric urban style. The Mexican lamb poutine was devoured in seconds, leaving us watery eyed and satisfied, while the Biryani was wholesome, delicious and brilliantly simple. Even the Thai Thali was as delectable as it was pleasantly humble, without any of the pretentious add-ons and exorbitant prices so typical to Hauz Khas Village. If nothing else, can you really go wrong with an All-Day Breakfast Platter?

The Booze:

It’s probably safe to say that I remember only the bare minimum after the ‘Booze’ section came into the picture considering I indignantly decided that I could take on one of their ‘Longest Long Island Ice Teas’ unassisted. I was tremendously mistaken. This ‘L.L.I.I.T’, which looks essentially like a gigantic test tube, tasted like the floor of shady theka in Delhi, though in its defence, it did get me adequately hammered.

The Crowd:

A pleasant blend of overly- energetic teenagers pumping their fists to EDM and a slightly more sophisticated, but equally inebriated, hipster working crowd, Social has it just right. Another plus is that the size of the place gives you plenty of room to escape whoever it may be you want to keep a safe, no-hands-on-ass distance from.

The Concept:

Obviously keeping with the ‘Work Hard, Play Hard’ motto, Social Offline is a concept in itself. During the day, upcoming freelancers, small companies and designers who don’t have the luxury of renting their own workspace can rent a table or conference hall, helping them to meet new people and, well, Socialize. The idea is to help people stay connected without a screen in front of their faces, and Social Offline has executed it brilliantly.

Imagecredits: http://theyellowsparrow.in

-Damini Gupta

St. Stephen’s College

Team Defianz Racing, a formula student team of Delhi Technological University (DTU) , fresh from their successful return from IMechE Formula Student event at Silverstone Circuit UK, is rearing to go for the inaugural FS India at Kari Motor Speedway, Chettipalayam.

Formula Student or FSAE is the biggest engineering competition in the world at the undergraduate and graduate level with partners such as Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 team, Shell and Jaguar Land Rover. In a country where engineering academic programs do not offer nearly enough practical experience to students, a student team which designs, builds, tests, and races a small-scale formula style racing car at an international competition with teams from over 38 countries, is a breath of fresh air.

After an impressive showing at the UK event, the team is looking forward to the next competition which is FS India while simultaneously planning ahead for the next UK event too.

The team presently comprises 13 students from Mechanical and Automotive Engineering disciplines, who work tirelessly, often over 10 hours a day to make the project a success. The project is funded partly by the University and the sponsors.

DR14, the car made by the team for 2014 has a Power to weight ratio of 240bhp/tonne, 4 cylinder 600cc honda cbr600f4i engine, 0-100 in less than 5.0 seconds which compares to supercars such as an Audi R8. Various adjustable suspension settings (camber, toe, steering ackermann), engine (mapping) and vehicle (brake bias, pedal carriage, etc). Stringent safety measures include front attenuator, side crash protection inbuilt to the mild-steel tubular frame, a rapid prototyped engine air intake tuned and heavily CFD tested.

Madhur, a senior member of the team says, “Most of us, in our team are crazy about automobiles, they are already in our nerves. Ours is one of the oldest teams in India and we are hoping to be among the top two or three positions in FS India.”