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The Students’ Federation of India (SFI), CPI (M)’s student wing, conducted a referendum last week on the widely debated Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) which was implemented at the undergraduate level  this year by the Delhi University. The referendum was conducted through polling stations at 12 major colleges of the varsity. These included Kirori Mal College, Hindu College, Shri Ram College of Commerce, SGTB Khalsa College, Miranda House, Laxmi Bai College, Satyawati College, Satyawati College (Evening), Zakir Hussain College, Zakir Hussain College (Evening), Motilal Nehru College, Ram Lal Anand College, Aryabhatta College, Dyal Singh College, Dyal Singh College (Evening), Aurobindo College and Aurobindo College (Evening).

The students voted in considerable numbers at all the centres leaving the final vote count at 12,769. Out of the number of votes casted, 11,734 voted against the system by selecting the ‘No’ option on the ballot papers while 1,016 voted for it. 19 votes were deemed invalid. The counting was done on Wednesday evening outside the Arts Faculty by a three member teacher panel. 91.89% of the votes were against the system.

SFI, which claims to be constantly battling for a fair higher education system in the country, faced resistance from the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in various colleges as the former was eventually garnering a lot of support during the lead up to the referendum. The Federation now plans to do a nationwide referendum on the nature of higher education in the country and accordingly report the results to the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development.

Image credits: SFI

Sidharth Yadav

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Amidst uproars over the exploitation of employees and claims about the government’s commercialisation project engulfing the University by Left wing Democratic Teachers’ Front (DTF), various teachers associations announced their candidates for the Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) elections slated for the 27th of this month. DTF, in a press release has appealed to the teachers of the University by attacking red tapism.

Nandita Narain, Associate Professor of Mathematics at St. Stephen’s College and the incumbent DUTA President has been nominated by the association for the position of President again this year. For the DUTA Executive, the nominated candidates are Angad Tiwari (Department of Hindi, Sri Aurobindo College- Evening), Bhupinder Chaudhry (Department of History, Maharaja Agrasen College), Vijaya Venkataraman (Department. of GRS, Faculty of Arts, DU) and Vivek Mohan (Department of History, Delhi College of Arts and Commerce). The Congress backed Academics for Action and Development has announced Sanjay Kumar from Zakir Husain College for the position of President. The National Democratic Teachers’ Front, which is led by BJP, has nominated V S Negi (Department of Geography, Shaheed Bhagat Singh College- Evening) for the position of President. For DUTA Executive, Anil Sharma (Department of Hindi, Zakir Hussain PG College – Evening), Ashok Kumar Yadav (Department of Commerce, Shyam Lal College- Evening), Shambhu Nath Dubey ( Department of Political Science, ARSD College) and Sunil Kumar (Department of Political Science, Dyal Singh College) have been nominated.

In another development, the varsity declared that the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) elections will be held on September 11.The elections will decide the office bearers in the union and the central council and will be closely watched by major national political parties. The last date to file nomination is September 2 and the date for withdrawal is September 4. This year will also witness the debut of the Aam Aadmi Party’s Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS).

The varsity on July 28 also announced the names of officials responsible for the fair conduct of DUSU elections. “The Vice Chancellor has appointed DS Rawat of Department of Chemistry as the Chief Election Officer, Satish Kumar, OSD (Examinations) as Chief Returning Officer and Anju Gupta, Director of Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board as the Returning Officer for the conduct of 2015-16 elections,” said an official statement.

Sidharth Yadav

[email protected]

 

Surfing the internet, one would easily find a ‘30 Day Challenge with Trainer Chintu’ to transform fitness or a ‘Get Your Summer Body in just 30 Days’. Anecdotes, on offer by the ‘summer fitness market,’ don’t offer much when practically put to use by a college student who has to balance social media, TV shows and academics. It seems as though Whatsapp has set the lower limit to ‘last seen’ as 2 AM for every collegiate. Alas, it is actually the latter that doesn’t sleep before that. Putting the ‘challenges’ to use therefore doesn’t reap anything. Here are five ways in which a collegiate, whose routine fluctuates with mood and engagements can transform his/her fitness this summer:

1. Water: The primary fat burner

Believe it or not, but water, if consumed sufficiently burns fat at a great speed even when the body is at rest. No matter how much you exercise or don’t exercise at all, dehydration can lead to storage of fat in the body. A study done by the University of Tokyo reveals that a hydrated body burns fat three times faster than a dehydrated body. The best way to check the sufficiency of water in your body is to check the colour of your urine, which if yellow hints at the dehydrated nature of the body and if colourless signifies the sufficiency of water in your body. Remember, the next time someone says that they have been exercising for a while but don’t lose weight or that they are fat although they eat very less, tell them that either it’s genetics or lack of water in the body. The latter can always be mended.

2. Don’t starve yourself, rather eat frequently

Starving is the most imbecile custom to stay fit. Not only will the body lose strength and immunity; you’ll also lose fat at a pace slower than a person who eats frequently but clean. Stupid as it may seem, but researches have revealed that eating clean meals frequently (after every three hours) helps in building a better metabolism and constitution. Eating frequently would help those of you in need of some ‘toning’ and also those who are into bodybuilding.

3. The Rule of input and Output

You are what you eat. But who can let go of those chicken rolls and pizzas. Well who told you too? You can continue eating street food and stay fit by burning the calories you eat. Fitness is all about controlling how much, not what you consume and how much of that your burn. Simple math, if you eat more calories and burn less, you’ll gain weight. If you consume less calories and burn more, you’ll lose weight. Therefore, jump onto all those hamburgers, but remember to burn what you eat.

4. Sleep well

Okay! Sleeping before 2 AM is impossible. But even after that, try sleeping for a minimum of seven hours. As per a study, lack of sleep ages you quickly. So, if you feel lack of strength or get tired easily, then focus on your sleep. If you sleep properly, your body will be repaired adequately, you’ll have less black heads or acne and you’ll have a better memory. Try sleeping properly for a week, you’ll see the difference.

5. Look for long term goals

Want to be fit to attract someone in particular? Want to have a body like that actor or actress in the movie? Well, nothing would work unless you strive to be fit for yourself and not to impress others. When the former is there, the latter automatically follows. Love yourself before expecting someone to love you.

Image Credits- www.beautynfitness.com

Sidharth Yadav
[email protected]

Summer vacations, in this relative world are a good time to get ahead of that person in class, fellow debater in the debating society or you. The learning done behind the curtains and entertainment through books that goes alongside watching Game of Thrones in vacations is, after all the one that makes the actual difference. Here is a list of ideal reads that not only celebrates the private space that we share with books but is sure to add flavour to the season:

1. ‘The Girl on that Train’ by Paula Hawkins

Image Credits- espngrantland.files.wordpress.com
Image Credits- espngrantland.files.wordpress.com

Filled with shocking twists, this book is already being deemed as one of the best psychological thrillers of 2015. Narrated by three characters, metaphorically related to each other, the book revolves around the search for Megan, one of the main characters, who suddenly disappears. Other characters, in quest for finding the truth behind her disappearance, constantly lie to each other, which ultimately makes the truth harder to find.

2. ‘The Boys in the Boat’ by Daniel James Brown

Image Credits- blogcritics.org
Image Credits- blogcritics.org

This book is about how a University of Washington 8-oared crew which represented the United States in the 1936 Olympics Berlin won the gold medal. The book largely focuses on the lives of the crew members, whose low middle class origins in the times of the Great Depression prevent them from entering the university. The book also has the backdrop of Nazism growing in Germany and also reveals the politics that were behind organising the Olympics.

3. ‘The Martian’ by Andy Weir

Image Credits- cne2.com
Image Credits- cne2.com

A science fiction novel, The Martian revolves around an American astronaut who is stranded on Mars and must find ways to survive after his spacecraft had to exit from Mars’ atmosphere due to a dust storm. His hope in life makes him survive all the odds when finally the NASA realises that he is still alive.

4. ‘All the Light We Cannot See’ by Anthony Doerr

 

Image Credits- anniephotosonline.com
Image Credits- anniephotosonline.com

Winner of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, the plot is set in the World War 2 Germany occupied France where the paths of a blind French woman and an orphaned German soldier cross. The book juggles with time as the story oscillates in the progressive movement of the plot.

5. ‘Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking ’ by Susan Cain

Image Credits- simplerpastimes.file.wordpress.com
Image Credits- simplerpastimes.file.wordpress.com

Susan in her book shows how devaluing introverts in the current pandemonium of venerating the extroverts destroys a part of the society. The book has examples of introverts who have made a mark in the world and is sure to change your opinion of the people who love staying ‘quiet’.

Featured Image Credits- asamandlouise.com

Sidharth Yadav

[email protected]

 

IMG_20150602_112246961 The issue has its origin in the fact that the Governing Body of Hindu College has not reimbursed the amount of the fee waived in the last three years. As per an advisory of the University, the Governing Body must meet this expenditure through funds available to the college. Currently, the amount outstanding under this head is Rs. 7,19,313. The HRD minister spent only 20 minutes in the college, during which the administration announced a complete hostel fee waiver and 50 percent reduction in the mess fee for disabled students. The minister arrived at 11 AM and left the college premises by 11:20 AM. She also met the college officiating principal Anju Srivastava, hostel warden Poonam Sethi and Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) president Nandita Narain. The warden claimed that the governing body didn’t allow the implementation of the scheme in the first place. DUTA president Nandita Narain made a representation to Irani on the issue of  victimisation of teachers, teachers’ pension scheme and  the Choice Based Credit System (CBCS). Irani also personally met the teachers who have been on protest for 42 days against their penalisation by the college for writing a letter to the Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung to complain about alleged irregularities in the functioning of the college and certain construction work in the college campus. Irani assured that she will mark the representation regarding Hindu College to the governing body and seek its response. She also said that the DUTA and other teacher associations will be invited before the review committee and that a meeting will be called to discuss controversial Choice Based Credit System. Last week, DU’s Executive Council passed CBCS without discussion.   Image credits: DUTA Sidharth Yadav [email protected]]]>

Every year hundreds of students enrol in various colleges through the Defence and Kashmiri Migrant categories, the process for which is a lot different from the usual procedure for admission to the University. Here are the important guidelines and dates to keep in mind while enrolling through these quotas this year:

 

1. Defence category

 

Children/widows of the officers and men of the armed forces including paramilitary forces killed/disabled in action or those who died/were disabled on duty, gallantry awardees are eligible for admissions to the University which reserves 5% of the seats in each course for the same.

Application forms will be obtainable from Academic Branch- 1, Room no 218, New Administrative Block, University of Delhi, Delhi – 110007 from 5th June 2015 to 15th June 2015 between 10 AM to 1 PM (Excepts Sundays). After attaching the relevant documents, the form is to be submitted at the same address. On 30th June 2015 (1PM) notification of the admission list will be put at the notice board of the New Administrative Block and the university website. Selected candidates will be issued provisional admission slips from 30th June  to 2nd July after which they have to go to the concerned colleges for final admissions.

 

2. Kashmiri migrants category

 

The Academic Branch- 1, Room no 218, New Administrative Block, University of Delhi, Delhi – 110007 would register the wards of Kashmiri migrants from 5th June 2015 to 15th June 2015 between 10.00 AM to 1.00 PM (Excepts Sundays).The Joint Registrar (Academic) will release a list of candidates for admission in various colleges on 13th July 2015 after 9 AM. Admissions will start with the release of the list and will end by 16th July.

A concession of maximum 10% in the last cut- off list for the general category candidates shall be extended to the candidates for admissions to various courses (Reservation not applicable for courses requiring entrance test).  Candidates will have to fulfil the minimum eligible criteria prescribed by the university. Candidates can refer to the Bulletin of Information (Undergraduate Courses) for the year 2015-2016 for the same.

 

Featured image credits: Surbhi Bhatia
Sidharth Yadav

[email protected]

Every year, societies from colleges across the campus compete neck to neck and put up spectacular performances during the fest season. This year too, saw certain teams shine a little brighter than the rest. We bring you a series with college societies that put their heart and soul into their respective fields and took home the top prizes at various cultural fests.

The best college society in each category was selected by creating a tally of the top 3 positions at competitive events held during various cultural fests of this season. Whenever a society won the first prize they were awarded 3 points, for the second position they received 2 points and for the third position, 1 point was added to their tally.

For the Indian Classical Music (Choir) category, Geetanjali (Indian Music Society of Miranda House) scored the maximum points in the tally. Miranda House’s 13 points were followed by Daulat Ram College that scored 9 points. The third position was shared by Kamala Nehru College, Lady Shri Ram College for Women and Kirori Mal College with 5 points each.

The Winning Society at a glance Geetanjali, Miranda House Geetanjali combined both the streams of Indian Classical Music- Hindustani Music and Karnataka Music  in their composition.  Starting their composition with “RAAGA BHAIRAVI”, ‘Bhairavi’ being synonym of Goddess Durga their composition depicted women power while they dedicated the initial part of our composition to Goddess Durga. While singing the “Komal Swaras” of Raaga Bhairavi, they eventually mould their composition in a raaga of “Shudh Swaras”, i.e.  “RAAGA KEDAR” . The end to their composition was with a “TARANA” in “RAAGA BHAIRAVI” that gave an Instrumental touch to their composition.

Ananya Misra, the President of Geetanjali said, “According to me our secret of success lies in this quotation – A soft nature of a person doesn’t mean weakness. Remember, nothing is softer than water, but its force can break the strongest of rocks. Responsibility automatically comes with Authority. So the terms which brought our society to success were patience and hard work. Moreover, a society is not functioned by an individual alone. It is the collective effort of all the members which count at last.”

Performing Members:  Ananya Misra, Sowmya Gurucharan, Ritu Agarwal, Chandrika Dutta, Maanya Arora, Udita Sharma, Anjali Agarwal, Madhulika Pandey, Bhaswati Borthakur, Mansi Bhardwaj, Nidhi Gosain, Ritwija Sinha, Riya Bhattachaarya and Megha Rawoot (Sitar Player)

Winners Tally: Geetanjali (Miranda House)

13 fests were included in our analysis for this series which were Montage, Nexus, Mecca, Crossroads, Reverie, Ullas, Tarang, Shruti, Manjari, Lashkara, Rachnotsav, Surmanjari and Tempest. Out of the considered fests, 9 had conducted a competitive Indian Choir event. Here is the list of winning performances by Geetanjali (Miranda House):

I Position: Confluence 2015 (Hans Raj College), Manjari 2015 (Daulat Ram College) and Montage 2015 (Jesus and Mary College)

II Position: Surmanjari 2015 (Kirori Mal College) and Shruti 2015 (IPCW)

(Hover on the icons below to know more about their victories)

With the exam season just round the corner and every head buried into books, what students look for for is a place to seek academic redemption. The last semester of the academic year, already taking its toll on the students, is extremely crucial and decisive. Under circumstances as dreary as this, every student seeks some peace and quiet so they can prepare for their exams efficiently (or just cry their heart out for not being prepared at all!) But studying becomes difficult when you have exasperating PG mates, noisy neighbours, wedding in the neighbourhood, or all of the above. A calm environment need not necessarily comfort you, but at the very least it can help you focus better. Here’s a list of five places around the city where you can go and study in calm and hopefully accomplish quality preparations:

1. American Centre Library

Situated on Kasturba Gandhi Marg near Connaught Place, the library is part of the American Embassy run American Centre.  A favourite of college students and Civil Services aspirants, the huge reading room in the library offers a quiet and a calm environment. The library’s reading room is open to non members too, however free internet is only accessible to members. Identification cards are necessary to make entry. The timings are from 11 AM to 6 PM. The library remains closed on Sundays and official Indian and American holidays.

2. British Council Library

Located just opposite the American Centre, the British Council library, a second home to many students is open from 10 AM to 6 PM. With a great collection of books on history and political science, many students come here to seek reference material and to study in the reading room. The library remains closed on Sundays and official Indian and British holidays.

3. Kunzum Travel Cafe

Located in Hauz Khas Village, the Cafe boasts of free WiFi and a pleasant environment. Visitors are not obliged to buy anything and if they do, they can pay as much as they like. Students can sit all day long reading, listening to music or browsing Coffee table books. The Cafe remains open from 11 AM to 7:30 PM on all days of the week but Monday.

4. Pita Pit

Located in Greater Kailash 1 and Saket, Pita Pit is famous for pitas and hamburgers apart from providing convenient reading environments. The restaurant provides free WiFi and remains open on all days of the week from 11 AM to midnight.

5. Japan Foundation Library

The library, located near Moolchand, Lajpat Nagar is a host to various south campus students. With free WiFi accessible only to members, the library is convenient for students who wish to stay there for the entire day.

 

 

Image Credits: www.tripadvisor.in

St.Stephen’s principal Valson Thampu banned a student run e-zine following the magazine’s pulication of the principal’s interview without his permission. The e-zine, which was started by four philosophy students of the college, went live on March 7 and registered over 2000 hits on an interview of the principal. The principal, banning the e-zine for not seeking clearance for the issue, has also constituted a one member discipline committee to look into the matter. The publication is to remain suspended till July 2015.

“We had not sought any permission from the administration before starting the weekly but we did inform the principal that we are launching such an e-zine. No objections were raised then. He even agreed for an interview and ‘self-appointed’ himself as the Staff Advisor for the weekly,” one of the founding members of the magazine was quoted by NDTV. The member further claims that a transcript of the interview was sent to the principal for approval, but as a result of no response, the interview was published.

Valson Thampu clarified his stand in detail earlier this month in a post, titled “St. Stephen’s and freedom of thought – What I wish I did not have to write”, on the college’s website. The Principal challenged the statement given by a founder of the weekly by writing that he had emphatically told the founders that printing his interview in the e-zine without his clearance would invite action. Thampu also shared a transcript of an e-mail sent by the founders to him unaffiliating themselves from the act of contacting the media when the student-founders “got cheated” by an alumnus, as the Principal’s post read.

Many members of the ‘Association of Old Stephanians’ call this act an assault on the freedom of expression on the internet, which was recently safeguarded when Section 66A of the IT Act was struck down by the Supreme Court. S Y Quraishi, former Chief Election Commissioner of India and an alumnus of the college, has come up vocally against the move which threatens the essence of the institution which is known for its liberal and conducive environment. He has written a letter to the principal asking him to reconsider his decision. Mr. Quraishi has also forwarded the letter to the Delhi Lokayukta Justice Manmohan Sarin. The founding members say that they are yet to be questioned by the college authorities.

Sidharth Yadav
[email protected]

Image credits: Prato9x, Flickr

The North East Cell of Hindu College hosted its annual North East Festival, NEtym on 26th and 27th March inviting scores of people and reinvigorating the region’s culture. Various events such as football tournament, band performance, fashion show, seminar and dance performance featured at the event. Corroborating the Mecca fever that topped this fest season, NEtym carried the organisational spirit of the college forward by exhibiting convenient arrangements and promising performances.

Students from the North-East states at NEtym
Students from the North-East states at NEtym

Day 1 began with the inauguration in the college auditorium by the Principal followed by the inauguration of the North East graffiti on a designated graffiti wall by Sushant Singh Rajput, one of the actors in the upcoming movie Detective Byomkesh Bakshi . Simultaneously, the food stalls and the photo exhibition near the Virgin Tree opened up.

The seminar on the stereotyping of the north eastern states by senior journalist Kishalay Bhattacharjee followed in the seminar hall of the college and was attended in large numbers. Talks on a career in photography and ‘street photography’ as a form were given by Akhil Singh and Amit Mehra respectively after the seminar. The day ended with cultural performances by various dancers who depicted various dance forms of the region in the college auditorium.

Day 2 commenced with a better attendance as compared to the previous day. Football tournament’s final match between Gimnei FC vs SSPP FC kicked off the day with Gimnei FC emerging as the victors by beating the other side by three goals. The fashion show featuring many college teams judged by eminent fashion designer Robert Naorem then took off in the auditorium which was packed for the event.

The Hip Hop marathon followed by the rock concert concluded the fest. Girish and the Chronicles Live which has performed more than 500 shows and is a famous international band was accompanied by St. Stephen’s Paperboat.

St. Stephen's Paperboat performing at NEtym
St. Stephen’s Paperboat performing at NEtym

 The day ended with much fervor and euphoria among the attendees who witnessed this two day cultural extravaganza.

Girish And The Chronicles

Posted by NEtym- Annual Northeast Fest of Hindu college. on Friday, March 27, 2015

Sidharth Yadav

[email protected]

Images and video from NEtym Official Facebook Page

Feature Image credits: Aman Raj