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November 2, 2014

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Past the DRDO office and following the ‘Kings path’, brings us to the sprawling 320 acre square of the Rashtrapati Bhawan, the second largest residence of a head of state in the world after the Quirinal Palace in Rome. The Political Science department of Ramjas College had planned a trip to the Rashtrapati Bhawan on the 31st of October.

After leaving our phones and cameras in the bus, we were allowed through the first security check.  Getting through security one has to climb up a tall winding staircase which leads to the forecourt.

At the entrance there are 31 steps to the portico with 20 columns and an exquisitely carved 2300 year old sculpture of the Ashokan bull.

For visitors, a side entrance leads to the reception room where the guards took a panoramic sweep of the group with the camera. An eye catching 3d painting hugged the wall beneath a huge ornamental chandelier. A door and past another check we were lead to the visitor’s corridor. One side of the corridor led to a room where they had gaming machines for quizzes, future models of public projects and scale models of our country’s Agni and Brahmos missiles. From there we were led to the Marble Hall which is called so because of the iconic slab of marble in the centre of the room.

The museum, where we were taken next saw an interesting display of utensils, cutlery and glassware used long ago with an authentic model dining table set behind glass. And at last we were led to the most beautiful part of the entire tour, the elegant Mughal Gardens located on the Western side of the Presidential estate.

The Presidential gardens like the building presents a classic intermix of Mughal and British styles spread over 13 acres.

The Mughal style canals, fountains and flowering shrubs at different ground levels amidst Western style lawns and flower beds are a sight to be seen. When the Gardens are open to the public in the month of February, it’s a treat for the eyes.

The Estate in all is spread over an area of 354 acres with nine tennis courts, a polo ground, a 14-hole golf course and a cricket field. From the time it was known as the Vice-regal Lodge it stands to this day, as a strong symbol of India’s democratic might.  All in all, the trip was an awe-inspiring one for the students and was well organized by the department faculty members.

Arindam Goswami

Although, it has been quite some time since the University of Delhi has scrapped the controversial FYUP, the B. Tech scenario regarding the validity of their degree yet remains contentious. According to a few sources, DU has not got a green signal from the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) without which, no B. Tech DU degree holder will be an approved engineer/technologist even if he/she may have completed the Four Year Course with outstanding results.

While a few students student pursuing the course are optimistic that DU will get the approval from AICTE, the confusion still prevails wherein most of the students are not sure whether they would receive the approval or prove to be the evergreen “lab rat” batch. Sources suggest that according to UGC, the respective colleges should take AICTE approval for their remaining B. Tech courses (electronics, computer science, food technology, instrumentation electronics and polymer science).

It is even said that it’s not DU’s responsibility to take AICTE approval, because DU can be affiliated to a college, but the degrees/programs in various colleges need to be recognized from respective regulatory bodies, which in this case is AICTE, is a duty of the college and not the University.

 

As more & more devices are finding their way into our lives, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to manage them all! But wouldn’t it be convenient, if we could manage our computer right from our phone or tablet?

Traditionally, using remote desktop used to be a bit cumbersome – configuring both computers, enabling sharing, entering IP addresses, etc. But nowadays, many programs offer this convenience in simple ways. One such software is TeamViewer. This extremely popular and simple program comes in two versions – Free & Paid. The only major limitation in using the free version is a 10 minute time restriction after which you’ll have to reconnect. This shouldn’t be a bother as reconnecting can be done instantly (and 10 minutes are good enough!).

The beauty of TeamViewer, however, lies in its cross-platform compatibility. It works on everything – Windows, Mac and even Linux. Not just this, Team Viewer allows you to control your computer from all leading smartphone platforms as well! This includes Android, iOS & Windows Phone 8. Now there are many apps that will allow you similar functionality, but Team Viewer beats them all in streaming quality and ease of use. It also allows you to access all apps and documents present on the host computer.

To begin with, simply download TeamViewer on your computer. Do a ‘Basic Installation’ and select ‘Personal / Non-Commercial Use’, if you intend to use the Free version. Once completed, your TeamViewer ID & Password shall be available on the screen. Next, install TeamViewer on your smartphone and enter your ID in the ‘Partner ID’ field. That’s it! Now you can connect to your PC anytime anywhere! For better management, I suggest you make a free Team Viewer account.

Now you literally have a computer in your palm! You can view, share & edit files right from your phone. Happy TeamViewing!