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Ankita Mukhopadhyay

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Gear up everybody, elections are here!

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Lady Shri Ram College is one of the first colleges in DU to hold its college elections, and this year, the elections began in a hurry as the date for the college day was declared late. The department elections began on Monday, 1st April with the candidates submitting their nomination forms. Elections for some departments were held on 2nd; whereas other departments had their election on 3rd. Strict rules for elections were laid down. According to the rules, any candidate found campaigning through internet or SMS would be immediately disqualified from the elections. On the 2nd History Department held their elections, whereas other departments like Political Science, Statistics, Philosophy, Economics, etc. held their elections the next day. All candidates needed a third year and a second year to nominate them, and one could see frantic first years running around asking seniors to nominate them and read their agenda. According to a first year candidate running for the post of Department Treasurer, ‘contesting the elections has been a whole new experience for me altogether. I have learnt through my research about so many problems that the students are facing, especially when it comes to accounts, and I hope I can create a more transparent accounts system for my department in case I get elected.’ The following candidates were declared Presidents of their respective department Unions: Amanjit Kaur: Sociology Vaishnavi Singh: History Srujana Yadav: Political Science Prerna Kannan: Statistics Charvi Kain: Economics Gurman Bhatia: Journalism Image: Sapna Mathur ([email protected])   ]]>

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Do Animals Need Rights? – A Rendezvous With Maneka Gandhi

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We live our lives with so much ease, with little consideration for the creatures around us, who make our living system balanced and worth living. Prominent politician, animal rights activist and environmentalist Maneka Gandhi gave the students of LSR a reality check about their lives and exposed such horrific facts about humankind, that forced students to re- think their moral values and the way they view their daily life. Organized by the Dhyana society of LSR, Maneka Gandhi gave a one and a half hour lecture on Animal Rights, the situation of animals in our country, and the need for a more intense understanding of the protection each and every living being on the earth. Maneka Ma’am began the talk by asking the students a really basic question, ‘Who loves cockroaches?’ To this question no hands rose up! She wasn’t surprised and went on to explain the utility of cockroaches in cleaning up faeces, and how without their existence today, the earth would be a barren land with no life. She also gave the classic example of Mauritius, which lost its teak wood because of the extinction of dodos, and also lost its distinctive Creole culture because of the migration of Bihari labour as the country began to grow other plantation crops after the extinction of the teak tree. It is necessary to realize the need for living in harmony with all creatures, and when human beings exist to fulfil more enlightened activities, they don’t need to indulge in criminal activities like killing animals for leather, polluting river bodies, torturing cows and buffaloes for milk, etc. Maneka Ma’am dispelled many popular myths like chicken soup being good for one’s health, and cow’s milk being the primary source for calcium in the human body. In fact, chicken soup increases the germ count in the body, and cow’s milk breaks down the calcium in our body! Cows and buffaloes were chosen over other animals for providing milk for humans as they are slow, and passive. Daily, hundreds of cows are injected with oxytocin, to stimulate more milk flow, which in fact sends the cow into labour pain twice a day, and the milk derived from the cow actually contains her blood, so the milk we drink daily contains the plasma and red blood cells of the cow it is derived from. Maneka Gandhi also pointed out the loopholes in the Indian judicial system, that allowed criminal offenders to escape. She cited an example of a particular leather factory under the name ‘Moonlight industry’ that was shut down by her when she was the Minister, but it promptly opened the next day under a new name, ‘Sunlight industries.’ Maneka Gandhi’s talk forced all students to re- think their approach towards animals and other beings, and stimulated an active discussion amongst the students regarding vegetarianism, corruption, etc.   Ankita Mukhopadhyay [email protected]]]>

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Technology with a Heart: A Rendezvour with Jeff Lieberman

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Jeff Lieberman needs little introduction. He is the host of Discovery Channel’s “Time Warp”, who holds four degrees (two B.S. degrees, in Mathematics and Physics, two M.S. degrees, in Mechanical Engineering and Media Arts & Sciences and is currently pursuing a doctorate at MIT’s Media Lab) behind him. He has headed the design of the Cyberflora installation, a robotic flower garden that senses and responds to people in a lifelike manner, and the Motor Learning Robotic Wearable Suit, a robotic suit that teaches motor skills (dance, sports, rehab, etc). One of the most successful roboticists in the world, Lieberman is currently on an India tour that he kick- started with a lecture at Tryst, the Technical festival of IIT Delhi, on Sunday 3rd March.

Lieberman spoke about the intersection of art, science, technology, human perception, learning, passion and consciousness, enlightening students through the use of numerous videos from his show. Most of us tend to overlook the most subtle aspects of our humanity, as we are what our mind makes us believe. The human brain is the most malleable as well as the most important aspect of our being, and Lieberman made this complex theory appear so simple that students were left in awe.

Lieberman talked about some really interesting experiments, for example, if one wears glasses in which the world appears upside down, after a few days when one removes the glasses, the world actually appears upside down to our eyes! Lieberman also showed some clippings of the effect that a drop of water makes on water, the effect of sound waves on drums, and many more. Using expensive cameras and high speed technology, Lieberman and his team have managed to show the world how beautiful waves are, since they are mostly overlooked by us as we do not have the infrared vision that would have enabled us to see them. Lieberman encouraged all students to follow their passion and pursue their weirdest dreams. He managed to show the students how they could strike a balance between art and technology, by creatively employing their technological expertise to come up with wacky ideas.

It was a wonderful session, with students staying engrossed till the end. Lieberman truly managed to make most students change their perception about technology, and those students belonging to a non- engineering background too marvelled at the spectacular inventions of Jeff Lieberman. This year, Tryst had some amazing guest lecturers with scholars like Kazutaka Kurihara speaking on acoustics and Chittaranjan Andrade speaking on the habit of nose- picking! However, Lieberman’s lecture was the most awaited event of Tryst, with the seminar hall of IIT seeing a packed audience. Tryst ’13 indeed inspired students to bring out their innovative and wackier side, and students are eagerly awaiting the next years’ fest!

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Campus Central

Antiquity’13:Celebrating Myths and Legends

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Antiquity, the annual Academic meet of the History Department of Lady Shri Ram College was held on 16th February, 2013. One of the most awaited History fests in Delhi University, Antiquity truly lived up to its hype this year, with some brilliant lectures and academically intriguing competitions. The History Department President, Vidushi Singh, inaugurated the fest, and her inspiring speech left students truly questioning the true meaning of myths and legends in their life and their reliability as intangible sources of heritage. According to Vidushi, “As students of History, the one thing that we have come to realize is that it is important to question our identities and the myths and legends that create it. Only then can we stop reigning in our curiosity and enquire about the blind acceptance of certain myths that govern our lives. This is one of the prime reasons that made us choose Myths and Legends this year as a theme for Antiquity.”

Dr. Shireen Moosvi, renowned Professor of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) spoke about ‘The age of Akbar and the legend of Anarkali’. Her talk transported students to the reign of Akbar, and was immensely beneficial for the third year students who are currently studying Mughal India. Indeed, a ruler is truly defined by the supporters he keeps, and Dr. Moosvi clearly highlighted it during her lecture about Akbar. Her hypothesis about Anarkali also left the students spellbound. The second lecture was delivered by Dr. Narayani Gupta, renowned Professor of History at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Dr. Gupta spoke on the legends surrounding Delhi. With a dash of humour and a couple of eye opening facts, she received a thunderous applause at the end of her speech.

The Quiz, which was the highlight of the fest, was one of the most challenging events. Sudarshana Chanda, the quiz master, one of the best quizzing students of LSR conducted the quiz. She has been conducting the quiz for the past three years, each year making it even more challenging and interesting than the previous one.  The Paper Presentation competition was held in the afternoon, and saw participation from students of LSR as well as other colleges, and departments other than History. The competition was won by students of Miranda House, whose presentation on ‘Bengal folk paintings’ left the audience spellbound. Some really intense and thought provoking presentations were presented, one of them by Flavy Sen Sharma, on ‘Women  in the Jatakas’. Flavy came second.

According to Diksha Jhalani, the Secretary of the History Union, “I feel Antiquity is the best platform for undergraduate students belonging to any and every field to come and display their talents as well as learn more about the subject. It is definitely by far the biggest event I have worked for.” Diksha has been actively contributing throughout the year to the Union activities, and the hard work showed in the excellent organization of every event in Antiquity. Madhurima, the treasurer of the Union, also echoed the same view, and was seen throughout the fest actively working with all the volunteers to ensure all technical glitches and other problems were solved.

Antiquity ended on a bright note, with all participants going back to their respective colleges learning something new about the discipline of history, and re- instating their love for the subject. The all- inclusive atmosphere truly makes Antiquity a unique experience for every student and it is hoped that Antiquity returns next year bigger and better!

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Campus Central

Antiquity'13:Celebrating Myths and Legends

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Antiquity, the annual Academic meet of the History Department of Lady Shri Ram College was held on 16th February, 2013. One of the most awaited History fests in Delhi University, Antiquity truly lived up to its hype this year, with some brilliant lectures and academically intriguing competitions. The History Department President, Vidushi Singh, inaugurated the fest, and her inspiring speech left students truly questioning the true meaning of myths and legends in their life and their reliability as intangible sources of heritage. According to Vidushi, “As students of History, the one thing that we have come to realize is that it is important to question our identities and the myths and legends that create it. Only then can we stop reigning in our curiosity and enquire about the blind acceptance of certain myths that govern our lives. This is one of the prime reasons that made us choose Myths and Legends this year as a theme for Antiquity.” Dr. Shireen Moosvi, renowned Professor of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) spoke about ‘The age of Akbar and the legend of Anarkali’. Her talk transported students to the reign of Akbar, and was immensely beneficial for the third year students who are currently studying Mughal India. Indeed, a ruler is truly defined by the supporters he keeps, and Dr. Moosvi clearly highlighted it during her lecture about Akbar. Her hypothesis about Anarkali also left the students spellbound. The second lecture was delivered by Dr. Narayani Gupta, renowned Professor of History at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Dr. Gupta spoke on the legends surrounding Delhi. With a dash of humour and a couple of eye opening facts, she received a thunderous applause at the end of her speech. The Quiz, which was the highlight of the fest, was one of the most challenging events. Sudarshana Chanda, the quiz master, one of the best quizzing students of LSR conducted the quiz. She has been conducting the quiz for the past three years, each year making it even more challenging and interesting than the previous one.  The Paper Presentation competition was held in the afternoon, and saw participation from students of LSR as well as other colleges, and departments other than History. The competition was won by students of Miranda House, whose presentation on ‘Bengal folk paintings’ left the audience spellbound. Some really intense and thought provoking presentations were presented, one of them by Flavy Sen Sharma, on ‘Women  in the Jatakas’. Flavy came second. According to Diksha Jhalani, the Secretary of the History Union, “I feel Antiquity is the best platform for undergraduate students belonging to any and every field to come and display their talents as well as learn more about the subject. It is definitely by far the biggest event I have worked for.” Diksha has been actively contributing throughout the year to the Union activities, and the hard work showed in the excellent organization of every event in Antiquity. Madhurima, the treasurer of the Union, also echoed the same view, and was seen throughout the fest actively working with all the volunteers to ensure all technical glitches and other problems were solved. Antiquity ended on a bright note, with all participants going back to their respective colleges learning something new about the discipline of history, and re- instating their love for the subject. The all- inclusive atmosphere truly makes Antiquity a unique experience for every student and it is hoped that Antiquity returns next year bigger and better!]]>

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Vapp And Chehel In LSR: Exemplary Examples Of Reselience

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Social work is an activity most of us believe in, are vocal about, but find difficult to engage in. A step to create a change was taken by Vrinda Dalmia of LSR (then a second year psychology student), in 2010, who started Chehel, a community project, which aims at empowering underprivileged students through education. Chehel is a voluntary organization, open to every person interested in making a difference to the lives of underprivileged children, from students to housewives. Students from nursery to class 9 are taught by the volunteers, and children have already made immense progress in maths, for which they have very strong aptitude. The students are mostly from the slum area of Zamrudpur. Subjects ranging from English, Maths and Hindi are taught to the children, and Fridays are an ‘extra- curricular activity day’ for them. The children are currently preparing a play which the Chehel volunteers plan to showcase in February. “One of the main objectives of Chehel is to give quality education to children for free which is not received by them in government schools. We are an alternative for parents, who have to send their children to tuitions costing 600 Rs a month, as they don’t find good teachers for their children. The parents of the children are extremely eager to empower their children with education, and we are helping them realize their dream. Anybody with a passion to teach can be a part of Chehel, we have volunteers who are professionals, as well as college students. We teach the children in a park and are really approachable,” says Deepika, one of current co-ordinators of Chehel. Chehel’s founder, Vrinda is currently a Gandhi fellow working in Rajasthan and her initiative is being taken forward by Deepika, Mohika and Pooja, the current co-ordinators of Chehel. In a field like rural development, ground level work is extremely important, and Lady Shri Ram College (LSR) is quite unique in having a society specifically dedicated to engage students in social, economic and political issues. The Voluntary Agency Placement Program (VAPP) was begun in 1995 with a vision to provide students a grass root level forum. The society acts like a bridge between NGO’s like Students for Free Tibet (SFI), Satark Nagrik Sangathan (SNS), Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), etc. With the help of VAPP, LSR students have worked with these various organizations, working in rural areas of Jharkhand, Bihar, Chattisgarh, etc and engaging in activities like social auditing and legal documentation. Recently, VAPP also had an informal trip to the site of the Narmada Bachao Andolan, where students engaged with legal documentation with the locals. Students who have been an active part of VAPP have gone on to work with organizations like the National Council for People’s Right to Information (NCPRI). In fact, one of the very active members of NCPRI, Anjali Bharadwaj is an LSR alumnae! However, it’s sad to see that LSR does not encourage any collaboration between an organization like Chehel and VAPP, nor is Chehel allowed to carve a niche for itself in college due to stringent rules. A career in the field of social work and rural development is not only socially rewarding, but it also gives one an opportunity to innovate and become a better person!]]>

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Re-Living and Re-Cherishing One's Memories: The Alumna Cell of Lady Shri Ram College

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Revisiting your alma mater after many years is a dream come true for anybody and the Alumna Cell of Lady Shri Ram College acts as a facilitator between the alumna and the college, years after they pass out. The Alumna Cell is one of the most active societies of the college and every week they organize the Alumna Bazaar, a platform for the alumna to showcase their skills. Numerous alumnae, ranging from the batch of 1956 to 2008, visit LSR every week to set up stalls and exhibitions. The items range from chocolates, kurtas, flowers, candles, diyas and Tihar jail cosmetic products! “The Alumna Bazaar is a platform for showcasing the talent of the alumna. It is really fascinating to see our alumna pursuing their hobbies as their passion and setting up such innovative stalls. Ours is one of the most active alumna cells of Delhi University and we also have a grand home coming in the form of ‘Nostalgia’, our annual alumna meet. Once, one of our alumna’s came all the way from Thailand just to re-visit her college!” said Kajal Kalsi, one of the co-ordinators of Alumna Cell. The Alumna Cell does indeed provide a wonderful opportunity for the alumna to re-live their LSR days, and the current co-ordinators, Kajal, Vatsala, Meghna and Jaya are working really hard to make each and every day memorable for every alumna that visits college. It is hoped that Nostalgia continues to be a grand success and the Alumna Cell continues reaching great heights!  ]]>

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Re-Living and Re-Cherishing One’s Memories: The Alumna Cell of Lady Shri Ram College

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Revisiting your alma mater after many years is a dream come true for anybody and the Alumna Cell of Lady Shri Ram College acts as a facilitator between the alumna and the college, years after they pass out. The Alumna Cell is one of the most active societies of the college and every week they organize the Alumna Bazaar, a platform for the alumna to showcase their skills. Numerous alumnae, ranging from the batch of 1956 to 2008, visit LSR every week to set up stalls and exhibitions. The items range from chocolates, kurtas, flowers, candles, diyas and Tihar jail cosmetic products!

“The Alumna Bazaar is a platform for showcasing the talent of the alumna. It is really fascinating to see our alumna pursuing their hobbies as their passion and setting up such innovative stalls. Ours is one of the most active alumna cells of Delhi University and we also have a grand home coming in the form of ‘Nostalgia’, our annual alumna meet. Once, one of our alumna’s came all the way from Thailand just to re-visit her college!” said Kajal Kalsi, one of the co-ordinators of Alumna Cell. The Alumna Cell does indeed provide a wonderful opportunity for the alumna to re-live their LSR days, and the current co-ordinators, Kajal, Vatsala, Meghna and Jaya are working really hard to make each and every day memorable for every alumna that visits college.

It is hoped that Nostalgia continues to be a grand success and the Alumna Cell continues reaching great heights!

 

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Ready- Steady- Go Against Violence: The Annual Cross Country Run of LSR

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The National Sports Organization (NSO) of LSR organized its Annual Cross Country run on September 21, 2012 under the theme, ‘Run for solidarity with the people of North East’, in light of the recent violence in Assam between the Boro community and the Muslim community. The registration for the run began at 5.30 am, with hundreds of girls huddling around the Union members and other team members for attendance. One could feel the enthusiasm in the air, with excited girls all around looking forward to running for a cause. “The Cross Country run is a special event for it is one of the very few occasions when the entire LSR community comes together, and participates for a cause”, stated Ms. Meenakshi Pahuja, Head of the Department of Physical Education of LSR. The sponsor for the event was UniStyle Image, an eminent clothing brand that has been associated with the LSR NSO for almost ten years. All the participants were given t- shirts from USI before the run, and one could see enthusiastic participants in colourful t- shirts, waiting for the event to flag off.

 

The event began with a speech by the guest of honour, Ms. Shweta Choudhary, who is an international level shooter, and won a silver medal at the Doha Asian Games, 2006. She is also an ex- alumnus of LSR, belonging to the 2007 batch of B.A program. Accompanying her was Mr. Abhijit Bhattacharya, captain of the Indian volleyball team, who is also a very ardent promoter of sports in his home state, Assam. Both of them urged the students to work hard towards their goals to achieve success, and have an unfailing determination. After their speech, Suparna Sinha, a third year Sociology student of LSR, addressed the crowd, and spoke to them about the situation in Assam. Suparna, who originally hails from Assam decreed the massacre of innocent people in Assam as not a political issue, but a breach of solidarity. “We should help overcome this imbalance. This is a cause I really feel about, and it is something that the youth should tackle with in order to bridge the gap between different communities”, stated Suparna, whose words set the crowd thinking about the true cause of their desire to run in a marathon, thousands of kilometres away from North East India, yet bound by sentiment and understanding.

The run was flagged off by the Vice Principal of LSR, Dr. Priti Dhawan. Within less than ten minutes of the run being flagged off, the first winner, Aanchal Bohra came to the finishing point effortlessly and her win wasn’t a surprise for anybody for Aanchal is a national level runner, a silver medallist at the CBSE championships, and the pride of the Athletics team of LSR. An Economics student, Aanchal described her win as a step towards her goal of running for India at the international level in the future. “I wish to represent LSR in the Commonwealth Games in the future, and I dream of competing in the Olympics too someday,” stated the enthusiastic second year student. The run was highly successful and enjoyable for all the

students, and one could see the really satisfied students at the refreshment counter. The run went off without any glitches, all thanks to a brilliant Union, comprising of Pratibha the President, Shivangi, the Vice President, Saumya, the Secretary, and Somya the treasurer. They were assisted by a huge volunteer team that provided water and first aid to all the participants, diligently waiting at different locations to help.

‘It is our privilege to be associated with the LSR NSO, and we wish to see the Cross country run bigger and better in the future,” said Mr. Ashwinder, part of the sponsorship team of USI. The Cross country run ended on a bright note, with all participants and volunteers receiving refreshments, and enthusiastically clicking photographs. It is hoped that the LSR NSO continues conducting such events which bind the LSR community together, and create such a vibrant atmosphere.

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Do Cool Things That Matter: Google at LSR

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On 18th September, Google organized its pre-placement talk in LSR. Being one of the most sought after and innovative companies, Google had ‘do cool things that matter’ as its theme this year to attract prospective applicants in their pre- placement talk. The talk was led by Ms. Shwetambari, a senior executive at Google, India, and the talk began with a little quiz on Google and its products, to see how ‘Googly’ the LSR girls were. The ones who gave the correct answers received goodies from Google, and with a brilliant start, Google managed to capture the attention of all the girls from the various departments of LSR, sitting in that small room, dreaming about working for a company like Google in the future. Apart from departments like Economics and B.com, which are standard departments sitting for placements, the Google pre-placement talk saw students ranging from departments like English to Political science. The job profile offered was the business analyst program, which entailed tasks like reviewing Google advertisements, servicing global small and medium business customers, etc. Apart from these, the program also trained the employee in selling skills and business management. The employee would also learn how to use the Google Adwords product. The pay package offered was good, considering the fact that a company like Google was employing fresh graduates. The employees would have to work and learn with Google for two years, before they could move on to other job profiles. One thing extremely special about Google was- its emphasis on employee satisfaction, and Ms. Shwetambari kept stating throughout the presentation that Google did not believe in binding unhappy employees to the company, and if an employee wished to leave, they could do so, without facing any penalty. In fact, they could also keep the ‘gift’ stocks that they are given at the beginning of their tenure in office (considering the fact that Google stocks currently value at around 270$!). Google also seemed like a really ‘cool’ place to work in, with parties being thrown at the end of every week, and guest speakers like Lady Gaga coming to sing and speak to the employees. The office would be located in Hyderabad and Gurgaon, and Google also offered free accommodation for two weeks in a guesthouse, to give time to the employee to settle in the new city. The facilities and bonuses offered by Google were also very lucrative, and after the talk, the first round of the placement process was held. It was a written round, in which all the candidates had to complete a quantitative and verbal analysis test in 40 minutes, and a writing test in 30 minutes. The test by and large tested the aptitude of the students, and there was a round of positive feedback after the entire session got over. The results are now eagerly awaited for the girls who managed to crack the test and move towards the next round of placement in the ‘cool’ place to be: Google. Do cool things that matter.  ]]>

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