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DU Beat’s milestones in 2014

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In the past few days we’ve captured the achievements of Delhi University, its students and its faculty members. We’ve shared some memorable moments, and we thought we’d extend the highlights a little further to talk about a few of DU Beat’s milestones this year. We’ve had a lot of good moments and a few truly exciting achievements that made us feel proud and ecstatic. Now that the year has come to an end, we’d love to share these incidents and relive them one last time.

It was a big year for us online!

Largely due to the work and foundation laid down by our team in the session 2013-14, we saw an unprecedented growth in our community online. This was carried forward by the current team and right now, we have more than 1800 Twitter followers (from about 500 initially), 130,000 Facebook followers (we started off the year with about 20,000!), and our page was authenticated by Facebook! We also set up our Instagram account and Youtube channel this year.

 

We increased our print circulation this year

Ours is a moving target and we’re always looking at printing more copies of our weekly newspaper. We increased our circulation by about 60% and are now distributing in 15 colleges in Delhi University. Here’s hoping we increase those figures even more next year!

 

Engagements and partnerships with youth brands

This year, we also partnered with various brands for campaigns related to the youth.  MTV Rock the Vote and Satyamev Jayate’s Mumkin Hai were two of our most noteworthy partnerships in 2014.

 

 

Interviews with celebrities from various fields

Thanks to the resourcefulness of our team members and a bit of luck, we were able to share some interesting interviews on our platform. This year, we got together for conversations with Aamir Khan, Shashi Tharoor, Kiran Bedi, Kanan Gill, and quite a few Bollywood stars like Sonam Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapoor. We’re working on doing more video interviews in the future, and improving our interviewing skills too!

 

Travelling around the country to cover events

Another first for our team, this year, we sent our writers and photographers to colleges across the country to cover major fests. Thanks to the friendly folks at IIT Bombay and BITS Pilani, we were able to share in depth articles on what fests are like in colleges outside of DU. We also got to write about the many laurels won by our University during the same!

Post by DU Beat.

 

Experimenting with competitions and graphics on our platforms

This year, we hosted a lot more competitions than usual, ranging from pop culture based Twitter quizzes to those on our Facebook page. Our graphics capturing various aspects of the student life were also a roaring success, what with the Design team and Editorial team collaborating to come up with some funny and relatable posts! 10556939_677349969008059_1343174817168106768_o

 

Launching the DU Beat app and Events Calendar

Summer 2014 saw our Android app hit the Google Play Store. We’ve received a good response so far and are tweaking it further to make it more useful and relevant. The events calendar is well on its way to becoming the go- to resource for many students to keep themselves in the know of all DU or students related events around the year. Contributions to the calendar are welcome!

 

Phew, 2014 sure was eventful! Here’s hoping that 2015 brings with it many more milestones for us as a team, as a newspaper and as a community. Happy new year!

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Word On The Street

2014 in Google Searches

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Google wrapped up the year more beautifully than anyone ever could with ‘Year in Search 2014’, featuring everything from Germany’s brilliant World Cup win, the disappearance of MH370 to the fight against Ebola and much more.

The trend charts of the Google 2014 tell us a lot about our society and the world or perhaps our ability to analyse tells us so.

Most searched people

Sunny Leone and Jennifer Lawrence are the two actors that managed to top the list of the most searched people in India and worldwide respectively. Does this tell us anything about ourselves? Pretty much I would say — but only if you’ve got the eyes to see that. And by eyes I mean, sense of reason and analysis. So, while J-Law got her nudes leaked this year, Sunny Leone had some shady background that every Indian felt responsible to research. You know, for general knowledge. Secondly, in a totally awkward turn out of events, Sunny Leone beat the current Prime Minister of India to number two on the Indian list. Now that is some achievement that one can put up on their gravestone.

Most searched trends

IRCTC (Most searched India) and the late Robin Williams (Most searched Global) top the list. Well what can I really say about IRCTC? (FYI: Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation) There can be two reasons of course. 1. We love trains. The whole lot of it. We relate to the character of Sheldon Cooper too much. 2. We keep on punching the refresh button. We try hour after an hour and the site remains unmoved and the tickets un-booked. If only Indian government could see that. Secondly, losing Robin Williams was one of the most shocking news that came across us in the year 2014. This and also the fact that the ‘Dead Poets Society’ actor committed suicide. O Captain! My Captain!

Most searched words

The most searched word of the 2014 is ‘Love’ fending off the Spanish ‘Amor’ and the Malaysian ‘Cinta’. This according to the Google Trend writers is reflective of the digital dating trend. Sites such as Match.com and Plentyoffish.com come out as the most searched dating sites of the year. Because yeah, on the internet there are plenty of fish and love conquers all for the phrase ‘I am in love’ beats ‘I am alone’ by 3.

Read more: http://www.google.com/trends/2014/

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Campus Central

Things that happened in 2014 which Delhi University shouldn't be proud of

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Delhi University added many new entries to the list of its achievements in the past year like high ranks in surveys, faculty and alumni awards and student distinctions in different fields. But apart from all the reasons Delhi University has to celebrate 2014, there were a few incidents that we weren’t  proud of. Here’s a look at some of these:

April 2014: Professor manhandled by ABVP leader for derogatory comments on Narendra Modi

Joint Secretary of Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU), Raju Rawat was accused of hitting Professor Umesh Rai, a Zoology professor and South Campus director.

Rawat had reportedly told the professor that his attitude would not last long since the Modi government would come and get rid of FYUP. To which Rai replied by saying, “Chaiwallahs are not equipped to come and take University decisions”. Rawat and a few other students also smeared black paint on the professor’s face.

Read full article here.

Vice

May 2014: DU student committed suicide over harassment

A 19-year old student, who was pursuing B.Com (Hons.) via a correspondence course from the University of Delhi, was found hanging from a ceiling fan at her residence in May 2014. She left a video message behind saying that she was deeply frustrated with a group of five from her neighbourhood who had been regularly harassing and stalking her.

Read full article here.

May 2014: DU professor arrested for Naxal and Maoist connections

Prof. G.N Saibaba, Assistant Professor at Ramlal Anand College, Delhi University was arrested by the Maharashtra police in May 2014 from the university campus. After months of alleged suspicion of Saibaba’s naxal and maoist links, the police finally held him after which he was taken to the Nagpur jail.

Read full article here.

Sai baba

June 2014: The FYUP debacle

Delhi University scrapping FYUP and switching back to the old TYUP has had after-effects even till the end of the year. It effected not just the FYUP batch and all the freshers, but even the final year students of the class of 2012.

Delhi University witnessed a lot of protests by students, teachers and different political groups. With a lot of unrest in the campus, University for months fought with the education system. This fight came to an end with FYUP being scrapped off almost hurriedly.

Read full article here.

September 2014: DU students requested removal of three teachers over homophobic comments

A letter was signed by over 200 postgraduate students of English demanding removal of three teachers newly recruited for the academic year of 2014-15. According to the students, the reason behind this demand was the unsatisfactory teaching along with communal, homophobic remarks and incorrect facts being taught in the classes.

Read full article here.

November 2014: Student killed by parents for marrying outside caste

In an incident in November 2014, parents murdered their 21-year old daughter for secretly marrying a man from other caste. Bhawna Yadav was a final year Sanskrit student of Sri Venkateswara College (Delhi University) and was strangled and beaten for three days after her marriage. Rajasthani girl had married Abhishek Seth, a 24-year old contractual assistant programmer at Rashtrapati Bhawan who is a Punjabi.

Read full article here.

parents murder

November 2014: Delhi University’s B.Com fifth semester paper an exact copy of earlier test

The question paper of the financial management for the fifth semester B.Com student at the Delhi University was the same which was given to varsity’s School of Open Learning (SOL) students to solve during their annual exam in May-June this year.

The sequences of questions were also exactly the same which appeared in the earlier paper. A committee was set up to look into the issue but no re-exam was conducted.

Read full article here.

December 2014: Students caught cheating over Whatsapp

During the Biology exam in SGTB Khalsa College on 8th December 2014, six students were caught cheating, pointing at paper leak possibilities. Reportedly, there were two incidents, one in which two students were using unfair means of information inside the examination hall and the other six students were caught with the photographs of the same question paper in their smart phones while the exam was happening.

Read full article here.

All images used have been taken from the articles mentioned in the post. Credits for the same have been mentioned in the original article.

Iresh Gupta [email protected]

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Flicks

Best of movie trailers in 2014

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2014 was undoubtedly the year of trailers. With several Hollywood movies only releasing teasers for trailers, this proved to be a very significant hype-creating strategy. While Indian cinema had only released its trailers a month, two or at most three in advance of movie releases, trailers everywhere caught the eye of everyone. If you have not seen any of these, I recommend you do, as most of the following are foresight for the movies coming out in 2015!

1. Fifty Shades of Grey

The most widely viewed trailer was a hit on youtube when the teaser for this Valentine’15 released in August. Beyonce’s Crazy In Love exclusive version has still not been released, but the audio behind the trailer sold like hotcakes on the internet. November saw the much awaited and speculated release of the global trailer, and the movie is already anticipated to hit Valentine’s Day like a blow, all thanks to the not-so-appreciated secrecy around the movie.

2. Avengers: Age of Ultron

After Marvel’s first Avengers about the superheroes union came to theatres, the wait for Avengers 2 came immediately too. One cannot deny that although the trailer kept its suspense intact, it was definitely refreshing to once again see the superheroes all together. Wait for May’15 and you shall know what the movie is about!

3. Jurassic World

Most of us were kids when Jurassic Park series earned fame, and all thanks to Steven Speilberg and television channels, we still got to see the three movies. But come June’15 and you will see Jurassic Park open its gates to visitors(not again). Well, this time there are no mere inspectors, but tourists and a hybrid for attraction. I am curious for the human hunting, are you?

4. Furious 7

The final testament! Not exactly. The final sequel to the Fast and Furious franchise, this one is the last to feature the late Paul Walker. Also, it is the apt sequel to the second movie, featuring Jason Statham. Fans are sure to miss him and so it is most appropriate to not make another movie in the series without him. But, look at this car chasing series’ end one last time and get ready for an adrenaline rush once again.

5. The Fault in our Stars

The movie based on John Green’s much popular book was a much awaited and widely viewed one. Although the movie released too this year, but it was a very moving adaptation. Have a look again at its trailer and reminisce in the film’s aura once again.

6. Gone Girl

This was one of the masterpieces I recommend everyone to watch. Read the book too. Ben Affleck is good but Rosamund Pike gave me chills for days. It is not a horror movie but it can scare you. To know the suspense, watch. Watch where did this guys’s wife vanish to? Or did he actually murder her?

7. Interstellar

Christopher Nolan fans will admit the movie kept them quiet for days. The effect is profound. But if you haven’t seen the trailer, you will never know the feeling of waiting for this director’s movie and what he has in store to shock you again. Matthew McConnaughey’s best performance so far, this one is still recommended as a must watch.

8. Mockingjay Part 1

The trailer was also one widely viewed owing to the huge popularity garnered by its actors and the movie series itself. While what happens to Peeta is a question before this trailer, what is District 13 is shown through glimpses in the trailer. Also, the various teasers through Capitol TV in all white just boosted the temptation.

9. Exodus: Gods and Kings

This one did not win much after its release, but the trailer was surely stunning. Christian Bale and the exceptional picturisation, effects and larger than life sets made this trailer a hit. If you have seen this trailer before a movie in a theatre, you will know why I mentioned it here. Just the greatness of the trailer is everything.

10. Haider

Now why did this movie become a hit? Because the trailer of this Hamlet adaptation was so interesting and affecting that it engrossed the masses and convinced them to throng the theatres for this Shahid Kapoor-starrer. Now, he did a brilliant job and earned critics’ good reviews after very long, so why not watch that fantastic trailer once again!

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DUB Speak

5 Strange New Year Traditions Around the World

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When it comes to celebrating festivals, us Homo sapiens can go to unprecedented levels and try some of the wackiest and weirdest practices by justifying them as age old traditions. Well, so is the case when it comes to celebrating the year’s last eve, the night of December 31st! While most of us just like casual partying, there are some groups and tribes which go beyond the usual. Here are some of the most unusual New Year traditions around the world!

1) Colored underwear: What, colored underwear? Yes! So is the case in Mexico and Brazil, where people wear colorful underwear and panties on the New Year’s Eve. The tradition goes on when one wears the color designated for a specific purpose. For example, if you want to find love in the next year, you will probably wear red underclothes, on the other hand, if you want to get richer, you wear a yellow one.

2) Burning popular celebrities and politicians: Scared, are you? Well, don’t be since in Panama people only burn the effigies of popular celebrities and politicians on the New Year’s Eve. The effigies are locally known as muñecos and are burnt on bonfires.

3) Wishing cows: Do you think that livestock is taken care of only in India? Well, if you do think so, then you’re probably wrong, since in Belgium farmers make it a point to wish their cows a Happy New Year. The case probably is that farmers, in order to make their cows produce more milk during the next year try to appease them; by what? Just by wishing them a Happy New Year.

4) Sleepover in a cemetery: Cemeteries worldwide have been known to be the place of the dead. But in Chile they become place for the living human being when the night of the New Year arrives. Families in Chile are much happier by sleeping next to their deceased loved ones rather than by partying and enjoying in a local club or bar on the 31st night!

5) Jumping into the jaws of cold: Nothing more can be expected out of Russians on the New Year’s Eve when some of the local groups of Siberia consume lots and lots of Vodka and jump into frozen lakes carrying a somewhat unusual thing, a tree trunk.

Howsoever weird these traditions might look; they carry a tinge of innocence and remind us that deep down we are a people who still love to have fun in a world dominated by war.

Cheers! Wishing you a very Happy New Year.

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Flicks

The most awaited movie adaptations of 2015

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The quantum of adaptations we saw this year made it feel like a celebration: If I Stay, This is Where I Leave You, The Fault in our Stars, Divergent, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, The Book Thief, Gone Girl, A Long Way Down, The Giver, Vampire Academy, The Best of Me. Indeed it was a time to grab your bucket of popcorn and bag of chips and revel in the happiness of watching your favourite characters come alive in flesh and blood (on-screen, duh). Fandoms were ecstatic, and young-adult fiction readers were on cloud nine. Even though bibliophiles are usually fretting over how the adaptations couldn’t live upto the book, this year even they welcomed the movies with open arms. Which brings us to the question: will 2015 be able to live up to the high standards set by 2014? We are no clairvoyants but we do have some hope in the following:

Fifty Shades Of Grey


Yes, we all know of the trilogy by EL James, which elicited extreme responses from its readers. You are either too much into it, or you loathe every word with the fire of a thousand suns. Explicit content, BDSM and lengthy scenes had forced many avid readers to drop the book halfway, making it one of the most abandoned book, according to a Goodreads survey. But with the trailers set to the voice of Beyoncé, Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson as the main cast, hopes have been set very high, making it one of the most anticipated valentine release.

Mockingjay


May the odds be ever in your favor, more so, because this year will witness the end of the Hunger Games as we know it. True, there have been rumors about an extension, but the books end here. So, lo and behold, the tragic end of an epic series. Jennifer Lawrence has won us already, the question is: who has won her? Will Katniss choose Peeta or Gale? Wait and watch.

Insurgent


Another epic trilogy, Divergent by Veronica Roth stars Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, Theo James in its cinematic adaptation. The fandoms are ecstatic, yet again.

Paper Towns


If you like John Green, you will not miss this come June. Paper Towns is a story of a friend searching for his neighbor-cum-crush. This girl happens to be Margo Roth Spiegelman, a self-proclaimed paper girl. The concept and plot will blow you away, that is for sure. Green is often posting his pictures on the set of the film starring Nat Wolff and Cara Delevingne in the lead roles. We hope he is also making sure that the film is just as insightful as the novel.

Dark Places


If you liked Gone Girl, here is another one from Gillian Flynn. The plot is summarized as a woman who survived the brutal killing of her family as a child, forced to confront the events of that day by a secret society obsessed with solving notorious crimes. Hold your breath for another chilling and intense work being transported to the celluloid.

Also lined up are Fallen, Frankenstein, Silence, Inherent Vice, Child 44, The Martian, fueling our hope for yet another year of varied movie adaptations.

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Sounds

Best of Music in 2014

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The year of 2014 saw many shades in the music industry, from drop in sales to new artists and bands which made breakthroughs with their albums. While relatively new acts like British rock band 1975 and Australian boy band 5 Seconds Of Summer released albums which were loved by millions, old acts like Coldplay and Beyonce also released hit records.

Now as 2014 nears its end, we bring you eight of the many albums which made a critical as well as commercial impact in music this year.

1. X (or Multiply) by Ed Sheeran


Sheeran’s X is currently topping year end charts and sales in UK. X also ranked number one in The Daily Telegraph’s list of Best 50 Albums of 2014. Apart from the international recognition and commercial success, X launched Sheeran into the mainstream market. The album gave hit and memorable singles like Don’t Sing, Thinking Out Loud, Sing and Afire Love. This is definitely the musical masterpiece of 2014.

2. In the Lonely Hour by Sam Smith


Another British artist in the list, Sam Smith’s studio debut album In the Lonely Hour was a surprise 2014 hit. Spawning five chartbusting singles – Lay Me Down, Money on My Mind, Stay with Me, I’m Not the Only One and Like I Can, the album was a commercial success and topped charts in many countries. Although the album received mixed reviews from the critics, it was a noticeable work of this year.

3. Ultraviolence by Lana Del Ray


Ultraviolence, apart from Lana’s third noticeable studio album, was also a big 2014 hit. The album showed Lana’s impressive vocal range and charted songs like Shades of Cool, West Coast and Ultraviolence.

4. Royal Blood by Royal Blood


Formed in 2013 in Brighton, this garage and blues rock band released a significant eponymous debut album this year. The album was successful in garnering substantial critical acclaim both lyrically and musically. Out of the ten song long track list, some of the noteworthy tracks in this album are Out of the Black, Come on Over and Ten Tonne Skeleton.

5. Ghost Stories by Coldplay


The sixth studio album by Coldplay was one of the most waited for releases of 2014. Ghost Stories got critical as well as commercial acclaim and topped charts in more than 20 countries. Tracks like Magic, Midnight, A Sky Full of Stars, True Love and Ink were remarkable hits by the band.

6. 5 Seconds of Summer by 5 Seconds of Summer


This Australian pop punk/ pop rock band’s debut album rocketed the act to international fame and acclaim. The album released five hit singles including international hits like She Looks So Perfect and What I Like About You. The band has emerged to be a noteworthy act of 2014.

7. The 1975 by 1975


Another prominent debut record of 2014, the English indie rock band’s eponymous album also made the act come in the public eye. Six singles from the album including The City and Girls were able to get charted on Billboard.

8. 1989 by Taylor Swift


The transition from country to pop made Swift’s fifth studio album an international chart topper, debuting at number one in over 10 countries. Till now, 1989 has charted two number one hit singles – Shake it Off and Blank Space. It also became the album of 2014 to hit the platinum mark in its first week of release.

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Campus Central

Best of Delhi University in 2014: Student and Society achievements

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The year gone by gave University of Delhi enough reasons to be proud, with multitudinous achievements by students in fields of academics, sports, fashion and social activism. Societies and clubs at various colleges also fetched laurels for the University at both national and international level.

We take a look at some of these achievements from 2014.

April 2014: Koyal Rana titled Femina Miss India 2014

The 2014 edition of the Femina Miss India beauty pageant was held on April 5, 2014 in Mumbai, India. Finalists had been selected in a round with 25 women competing for the title of Miss India World. Koyal Rana from Deen Dayal Upadhaya College, University of Delhi was crowned Femina Miss India 2014 by Navneet Kaur Dhillon, the previous year’s winner.

July 2014: Enactus SSCBS won National Championship, represented India in the World Cup

Enactus  at Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies (SSCBS) made Delhi University proud with its victory at the Enactus Nationals held in Mumbai, this July. The finals saw numerous teams coming in from all over India to compete on whose social endeavours had the maximum impact.

Enactus SSCBS, with its three successful projects- Project Akshar, Gramodhar and Sanitation Solutions also represented India at International World Cup on October 20.

Read full article here.

[caption id="attachment_28331" align="aligncenter" width="620"]Enactus CBS Enactus CBS[/caption]

August 2014: Delhi University’s alumnus Shreyasi Singh won Silver medal at Commonwealth Games 2014

Shreyasi Singh, a shooter from Delhi got back a silver medal for the country in the double trap event. The 22 year old was a student of Hans Raj College, University of Delhi. The Commonwealth Games 2014 that were held in Glasgow got back many laurels to the country.

Read full article here.

[caption id="attachment_28336" align="aligncenter" width="620"]Shreyasi Singh at Commonwealth Games 2014 Shreyasi Singh at Commonwealth Games 2014[/caption]

August 2013: KMC’s Robo Physicists society wins accolades at NASA

The Robo Physicists society of Kirori Mal College added yet another achievement in its name this year. A team of twenty undergraduates of Physics honors, headed by Dr. Sumitra Mohanty went to NASA for two major competitions which were Revolutionary Aerospace Concepts and Academic Linkages (RASC-AL) and Mars Society’s University Rover Challenge.

At RASC-AL, the team became the only international team whose paper for ‘Enabling Long Duration Missions Through Holistic Habitat Design‘, got selected for a further presentation at NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, USA. At Mars Desert Research Station in Utah, USA, the team secured 13th position out of the 31 teams from over 190 countries across the world.

Read full article here.

August 2014: Saachi Soni from IP College became the first Indian to climb Europe’s highest peak, Mount Elbrus

Saachi Soni, a BA (Hons.) Mass Media and Mass Communication student from Indraprastha College for Women went on to achieve laurels for herself and her country this year as India’s youngest woman from the country to reach Mount Elbrus, Europe’s highest peak. Her achievements also include her selection for an expedition to Mount Everest where she completed 90% of her climb and gave up the final summiting due to bad weather.

Read the full article here.

[caption id="attachment_28335" align="aligncenter" width="620"]Saachi Soni Saachi Soni[/caption]

August 2014: Hans Raj College alumnus Abhishek Verma felicitated with Arjuna Award for Archery

Abhishek Verma did Hans Raj College and Delhi University proud by receiving honorary Arjuna Award for his performance in Asian Archery Championship where he won three gold medals. The 25 year old also participated in Asian Grand Prix tournament recently in 2014 and bagged one gold and two silver medals.

Read full article here.

[caption id="attachment_28330" align="aligncenter" width="620"]Abhishek Verma Abhishek Verma[/caption]

October 2014: DU Student won ‘Young Achievers Award’ for Information Activism in the area of Media & Information Activism

A first year student of Shaheed Bhagat Singh College, Himadrish Suwan is pursuing Political Science Honours. On 5th of October on the occasion of World Teacher Day -United Nations, The International Association for World Peace (Affiliated to United Nations-ECOSOC,UNICEF,UNESCO,UNICED,DPI) & The Confederation of Indian Universities had awarded him the youngest international award – YOUNG ACHIEVERS AWARD for Information Activism in the area of Media & Information Activism.

He is well acquainted as an RTI activist with having filed more than 100 RTI’s. With help of his RTI’s, 16 coaches of Ranchi-New Delhi Rajdhani Experess got changed; earlier there were ICF coaches which are actually not meant for Rajdhani Express but with the help of RTI they could be changed to LHB Coaches which is actually meant for Rajdhanis.

November 2014: Project on ‘women empowerment’ by Enactus LSR gets recognition by Government of India

Enactus, Lady Shri Ram College for Women displayed the products of their “Project Yuvaakti” at Dilli Haat’s Vatsalya Mela from 12th-19th November 2014. In accordance with the success of past projects, the team LSR was granted a pro-bono stall under the name “Women of India” on recommendation by Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Indian Union Cabinet Minister for Women and Child Development.

Read full article here.

[caption id="attachment_28334" align="aligncenter" width="620"]Enactus LSR's stall at Dilli Haat Enactus LSR’s stall at Dilli Haat[/caption]

November 2014: Two Delhi University students awarded Rhodes Scholarship for University of Oxford

Sonali Chowdhry, an economics graduate from Miranda House and currently on a Young India Fellowship at Ashoka University, intends to study economics for development. Mayanka Mukherji is a final year sociology student at Lady Shri Ram College for Women and wishes to pursue an M.Phil in Visual, Material and Museum Anthropology.

Read full article here.

December 2014: Koyal Rana ranked 6th at Miss World 2014

After completing her Bachelors of Business Studies from Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College in May this year, she underwent training from various industry experts for the Miss World 2014. The pageant was held on 14th of December 2014 at ExCel in London where she was ranked 6th out of 121 contestants. She was also titled as the ‘Continental Queen of Asia’.

Read full article here.

All images used have been taken from the articles mentioned in the post. Credits for the same have been mentioned in the original article.

Iresh Gupta [email protected]

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Campus Central

DU in 2014: Protests, dharnas and drives

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Protests in 2014  

  • January 2014: DUTA conducts 12 hour standing dharna outside Arts Faculty
On the 4th of January, the Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA) staged a twelve hour ‘standing dharna’ from 12 noon to midnight to protest against the inhuman treatment meted out by the University against the security guards. See  the full article here.  
  • January 2014: FYUP: DUTA held ‘cluster dharnas’ against FYUP and more
DUTA had raised the slogan ‘FYUP Roll Back, DU VC Go Back’ in a poster issued by them for the dharnas. It introduced DUTA’s demand for implementing the Honours Degree in 3 years for the students of the erstwhile Four Year Program. See the full article here.
  • January 2014: Prashant Bhushan’s assaulter went on a hunger strike against AAP’s Reservation
Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga, founder of Bhagat Singh Kranti Sena (BSKS), along with his group opposed the Aam Aadmi Party’s move to reserve seats for students of Delhi in the University of Delhi on 17th January 2014. See the full article here.
  • January 2014: FYUP: DUSU and ABVP observed ‘bandh’ in Delhi University
abvp-bandh-620x350 The dissatisfaction against the First Year Undergraduation Programme (FYUP) was expressed as a ‘Delhi University Bandh’, organised under the leadership of DUSU and ABVP party members on the 17th of January, 2014 See full article here.
  • March 2014: FYUP: AISA conducted Bike Caravan against the FYUP 
AISA, in its protest against the FYUP, carried out a protest on the streets of the University Campus. A bike caravan consisting of AISA students hovered around 28 DU colleges as a part of its FYUP Hatao, DU Bachao yatra. See full article here.
  • June 2014: FYUP: One year on, NSUI  joined the protest against FYUP
nsuijoinsfyupprotests After being consistently neutral about the FYUP for a year, NSUI, the student’s union unit of the Congress Party finally spoke against the academic structure which was presented by the VC under the rule of the erstwhile UPA Government. See the full article here.
  • June 2014: FYUP: AISA held meeting to demand roll back of FYUP
AISA organised a protest on 10th of June to protest against the Four Year Undergraduate Programme and proposed an alternative structure for the framework of the University. It also asked questions to the ruling BJP Government to fulfil its promises of scrapping the FYUP. See the full article here.
  • August 2014: VC Dinesh Singh painted black as DUTA releases its ‘White Paper’
DU VC white paper The DUTA released a white paper against DU Vice Chancellor, Dinesh Singh on 5th August 2014 which particularly focused on bringing into the limelight, the financial, administrative and academic irregularities under his supervision. See the full article here.
  • August 2014: UPSC’s CSAT: Big fight for the languages
With much controversy arising, with respect to the government’s stand on the necessity of English in the UPSC CSAT exams, protesters have been behaving in quite an unruly fashion. See full article here.
  • August 2014: Subversion of Statutes and Ordinances by the VC demanded at DUTA’s annual GBM
The annual General Body Meeting of the DUTA, was conducted to discuss the secretary’s report, treasurer’s report and the audited report for the academic year of 2014 – 201 Topics related to Subversion of the Act, Statutes and Ordinances by the VC, Appointment and stability of teachers working on ad-hoc basis, Implementation of API, Removal of the VC were addressed. Read the full article here.
  • October 2014: ABVP organised campaigns against live-in-relationships; state that they lead to degradation of a woman
In a fight against ‘Love Jihad’ and ‘live – in relationships’, ABVP and its 200 odd ‘karyakartas’ launched one of its initial campaigns focusing majorly on ‘atrocities towards women and their objectification’. ABVP branded live in relationships as a force ‘against Indian Culture as they involve no fidelity towards values’. Read the full article here.
  • November 2014: Seven-day hunger strike for rent regulation held at North Campus
rentrgulationseven day Six people including a few students had organised a seven day hunger strike from 31st October to 6th November 2014 to protest against the poor implementation of the Rent Regulation Act with specific emphasis on a receipt for rent payment and fixation of rent in private establishments in the University Campus. Read the full article here.

Drives in 2014

  • January 2014: Delhi University community came together against #Sec377
queer pride On Friday, 9th January, the DU Queer Collective organised a non-violent protest against the upholding of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code outside the Faculty of Arts at the University Campus. See the full article here.  
  • February 2014: Delhi University students stand up against racism
againstracism Following the death of Nido Tania, the harassment of the two girls from Manipur and the Khirkee incident, a protest march was organised in North Campus on 3rd February by a group of teachers and students to raise their voices against the recent examples of racism in the city. See the full article here.
  • September 2014: Collection drives across the campus for Kashmir flood victims
In aid of the victims of the devastation of the flood in Kashmir, Delhi University’s colleges did their bit to try to make the lives of the victims a little easier, by conducting a series of drives in September. See the full article here.
  • October 2014: DU kicks off Swachhata Abhiyaan, DUTA slams for cancelling holiday
Swacchta abhiyan   In harmony with PM Narendra Modi’s ‘Swachha Bharat Abhiyan’, DU Vice-Chancellor Dinesh Singh launched ‘DU Swachhata Abhiyaan’ on 2nd October at Gandhi Bhawan, North Campus. See the full article here.
  • November 2014: ABVP & DUSU undertook cleanliness drive, demanded dustbins
ABVP and DUSU organised a Campus Cleanliness Drive on Monday in north campus, in harmony with the ongoing ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ spearheaded by PM Narendra Modi. See the full article here.   All images used have been taken from the articles mentioned in the post. Credits for the same have been mentioned in the original article.]]>

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5 ways to make resolutions that stick

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Folks, it is that time of the year again. The final countdown to the year 2015 has begun. However, don’t let the high dose of festivities fool you; because the last few days of the year have other, less frivolous connotations as well, the most well-known among them being New Year’s Resolutions.

Now before you start panicking and drive yourself into a frenzy, stop for a minute, take a deep breath and relax. Our perception of New Year’s Resolutions tends to be one of absolute dread. Why? Mainly because we make resolutions with great initial enthusiasm, but never enact them. Year after year, we make lists and lists to ensure that with each year, we achieve a certain degree of personal progress.  But somehow, we never come down to implementing our mighty plans.

So here is a quick guide to help you make and stick to your resolutions:

1. Review your year
The first and foremost step to making resolutions is carefully analysing your year. You need to start by identifying key events that took place. Understand what went right and what went wrong and reasons for the same. In this way, you are not only focussing your energies, but also streamlining the improvements that you have to make in your life.

2. Make realistic standards
One of the reasons we never come around to taking action is that the goals we set are so far-fetched that they scare us. Here is a simple analogy: An average human being would be less inclined to climb a building with ten storeys than a building with five storeys. Therefore, it is imperative to make humble resolutions that can be attained. It’s good to have high expectations from yourself. But then, these expectations need to be placed within a reasonable time frame. This will ensure a greater resolution realisation rate.

3. Plan for the short term and revise
Short term goals are always better than long term goals. Or rather, it is advisable to make several short term goals within a broader, long term framework. Short term goals are flexible and can be changed to reflect changes in the immediate environment. Making short term resolutions will help you constantly review and revise your plans too. This will help you attain your goals, inspiring you to stick to your resolutions.

4. Work in synergy
Team work is a proven motivator. When you work with and along someone, you get the benefit of synergy. Not only do you feel more positive and enthusiastic about work, but you also feel inspired to strive harder. Therefore, try making and exercising your resolutions with a close companion. Each of you can ensure that the other sticks to his goals and achieves them.

5. Reward yourself
Every time you achieve a particular goal, make sure you check it off your list and reward yourself. It could be something as small as a chocolate, or as big as a dinner treat. But make sure you do something that gives you pleasure. This will increase your sense of satisfaction and will encourage you to work towards other goals on your list of resolutions.
What are you waiting for now, dear friend? Grab a notepad and get jotting! Here is wishing you a fruitful year ahead!

Kriti Sharma
[email protected]

Featured image: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2004-02-29_Ball_point_pen_writing.jpg

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