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Whistleblower

33rd Regd DL(W)9/2052/2009-2011 Year of Publication RNI 37006/81

In This Issue...

Look Who's Pontificating Edit

False Concerns: Jan Lokpal Bill is No Solution

Rise in GDP Rate is Not Helping the Poor

NEHUTA Leads Where DUTA Was Lagging

CIC Deepak Sandhu Wrote New Laws of RTI
Anna Hazare and His Boyscouts: Faked Noises

Vol XXXI, No 8

15 APRIL 2011

Rs 3.00

Fixated with semester DU takes leave of law

DU Working Without Budget for 2 Years; UGC/ MHRD Silent

Special to UT S we go for print on 10 April the latest is that the MHRD is going to advertise the post of UGC Chairman lying vacant since 6 February last when S K Thorat left on completing his 5 years' tenure. Some kind of Search Committee too has been appointed for the purpose but the details remain dormant like always in the past. While Ved Prakash, known to be a Sibal favourite, was made acting Chairman days after Thorat left, it is learnt that Prof Deepak Pental, the outgone tainted VC of Delhi University is likely to be appointed because he is known to be close to Mr Kapil Sibal and has favoured Dr Manmohan Singh also. Pental has a tainted past. His unceremonious exit from TERI in 1992 (not 1993 as he later forged/ changed to give impression of continuity in job ad thus cheated DU) still remains a mystery. People who normally know question the academic credentials of

Special to UT NARCHY is the order of the day in the University of Delhi what with the mental fixation of the authorities on somehow forcing the semester system at undergraduate level down the throats of unwilling teachers on orders from above and unqualified support from the HRD Minister Kapil Sibal duly orchestrated in the recently held UGC-sponsored VCs' Conference on 2516 March last. Sibal doesn't give a dman to teachers' opinion on the subject. It appears that Prof Dinesh Singh, presently Vice-Chancellor of the University of Delhi and a former member of the team of Deepak Pental, is hellbent on carrying out the command of the masters giving lie to his much flaunted collective wisdom kind of hyperbole to UT and other mainline media. Convenience counts. He is answerable to his masters and not the university community. That's the way it has evolved over a period. In the process, it appears, all rules, norms, propriety, even legal niceties have been given goodbye. Apparently Dinesh Singh believes that he has got his abhay (total protection)

from above. Politics, after all, is the name of the game. Rest is rubbish. But in this all everybody forgot that there are laws in place. Everybody conveniently forgot or ignored the fact that, under its Statutes, the University of Delhi, like any other public funded institution, has to have a budget duly approved not just by the Finance Committee but also by the Executive Council and, finally, by the University Court. The pretender that he is Dinesh Singh promised to UT on 14 February last to look into all this apart from many other things that he promised to look into. He is still busy looking!

Criminal
ruth be told. It is absolutely illegal for the University of Delhi to expend any money without a duly approved Budget in place. For this act alone, the ViceChancellor, the Finance Officer, the Treasurer of the University, and, above all, the Chancellor (Vice President of India) can be hauled over the coals. The protection afforded so far by the likes of Kapil Sibal may amount to nothing if someone were to approach a court of law on the suject. Sans a duly approved Budget, salaries cannot be paid. This simply amounts to defalcation. Sec 38 of Delhi University Act 1922 can be quoted with profit here: 38. The Annual Report of the University shall be prepared under the direction of the Executive Council, and shall be submitted to the Court on or before such date as may be prescribed by the Statutes, and shall be considered by the Court at its annual meeting. The Court may pass resolutions thereon and communicate the same to the Executive Council. No such luck here. No meeting of the EC of Delhi University has been held since 25 March 2010 violating all relevant provisions of the law. So, there is no duly approved budget either! Wonder of wonders. The UGC, that haloed and hollow body on the wane, did not even care to question DU on budget. Nor, for that matter, did the MHRD babus who sit on Finance Commmittee of DU. Earlier on, the University of Delhi distributed degrees at the last convocation on 26 February without due approval of the EC required vide Statute VIII(i) of the University. Effectively, thus, the University has no >>Contd on P 5 Col 1

Sibal Planning to Plant Pental as UGC Chief

Deepak Pental including his Master's degree in honours school of Panjab University at Chandigarh which was reportedly a one year course and hence not recognised by the UGC. It is not known if his PhD from Rutgers in New Jersey can compensate. Above all, the Delhi Police have not yet completely exonerated Depak Pental for his constructive responsibility in Cobalt-60 imbroglio that eventually resulted in death of at least one person in Mayapuri area of West Delhi and seriously injured at least 7 persons. The core question to ask is: if Warren Anderson sitting 10,000 kms away in New York is guilty for Bhopal gas leak 26 years ago in 1985 and is being sought to be extradited for his constructive liability how can Deepak Pental, who gave written orders for disposal of radio active material, be allowed to go scot free? Interestingly, the DUTA staged a token march to Delhi Police headquarters and then dumped the matter at someone's command. Who

could that someone be? Knowledgeable people in DU also say that Deepak Pental could well be a plant of some intelligence agency working in India. Or, more likely, of the Govt of India itself. Nothing else can explain the total immunity forhim despite his proven criminal record. The role of Deepak Pental in the ongoing extensive construction in DU also warrants deeper examination. At places heritage site has been disturbed without permission. Pental gave away contracts for construction to PSU agencies like Engineers India, Ircon, etc, at rates much higher than the normal. He reportedly gave away all the money in advance to these companies who put them in banks and FDs and earn pretty penny by way of interest. These companies release 80% to their contractors as the work progresses. Thus they earn interest for 4-5 years. These government companies also charge extra 12.5%. Above all, who ever prescribed that there be no tender if the work is done by government agencies.

2 Editorial

EDIT PAGE

UNIVERSITY TODAY, NEW DELHI 15 APRIL 2011

Readers' Voice

Look Who's Pontificating

VER 200 Vice-Chancellors collected and congregated in Delhi costing more than an estimated Rs 2 crores. And look what this jamboree produced in the name of words of wisdom. That there is political interference in the universities and the governments tend to pack the decision-making bodies with small time politicians or bureaucrats who affect adversely the smooth functioning of the universities. No one will be impressed with this unmitigated nonsense. As is well known by now the Vice-Chancellors of state-funded universities, be they Central, State or even sponsored by local bodies (like the Gautam Buddha University of NOIDA in UP) are purely political appointees. Why should these political animals protest at other, and similar, political appointees, being nominated on the decisionmaking bodies (which again is a nonsense on stilts)? Can these VCs not learn to live in peace with their siblings? What is point of playing holier than thou? See what they did when appointing 15 VCs of newly created or converted into Central Universities in one go! All these gems were ill-equipped to top the universities. They all made up because of total lack of transparency in the selections. Even without politicians being nominated on the ECs have the VCs performed any better even in more known universities like the University of Delhi. Of the 22 odd members of the Executive Council (EC) of the University of Delhi some 13 are just ex-officio (deans, heads of the departments and 3 Principals of colleges) who all have converted the EC into VC's pocketborough. Witness how and ill-disposed Deepak Pental managed to take his sweet personal revenge against Prof Ramesh Chandra for the offence of just filing an affidavit to create a society by the name of Dr Ambedkar Centre for Biomedical Research as per the commands of the statutory governing body of the Centre. Small minded people can do or speak only small things. The other major wisdom that emerged from this mela was that semester system is good and that it must be introduced in places where it is not existing. The obvious reference was to the ongoing struggle in the University of Delhi where teachers are resisting the quick-fix type of semester system on an unsuspecting undergraduates who have entered the university system with dreamy eyes. The (not-so-new now) VC, Prof Dinesh Singh, of the University of Delhi, who was at pains to assert to the UT that collective institutional wisdom would prevail but his command will be last word in the end. The HRD Minister Kapil Sibal, now known to be not so holy, also strengthened the hands of the authorities by lending his weight to the ongoing semesterisation process. And the culture of dialogue be damned. That's how they plan to run the universities under their charge. By now it is well known that it is not so much the domestic wisdom as the command of the higher agencies like IMF-World Bank, etc, who have deigned that semester system is good for India. And who are the Indians to question the bosses? More so when the Minister Sibal says so. Before we forget let's recall that Sibal was at pains to point out in Parliament that only a handful of teachers opposed to semesters who may not have their interests in teaching. Sibal should know. He is surrounded by darbaris all the time who keep an ear to the ground for his benefit. Nearer home, witness how in Gautam Buddha University they replaced the Vice-Chancellor on 4 November last year with an IAS babu who may not even have seen the portals of the university as a student. Witness also how in Awadha University at Faizabad the Chancellor's nominee on the Search Committee of the VC was Mr Madhukar Gupta who retired as Home Secretary of India. Now it is not clear how a Home Secy is equipped ot judge a Vice-Chancellor of a university! Earlier on, a DIG of police was on the Search Committee for VC of Agra University. If the appointees, the VCs, do not protest about who selected them how can they now be heard to say that political interference is not permitting them to perform? Political animals cannot complain about politics determining their placing in the universities. The need therefore is to straighten the system a bit. First thing first. Do away with the nonsense called Search Committee and treat this as a job like any other. This should pave the path for future.

Editorial

Noble Indeed! But what of the apathetic system?

HANK you for publishing news from Tamilnadu. [Retired college teachers on warpath in Tamilnadu and Teaching Shakespeare to hungry stomachs UT,15,March 2011 both by Dr M Ravichandran]. Prof E P Perumal, General Secretary, TANRECTA (Tamilnadu Retired College Teachers Association) thanked UT in our general body meet last month. Teaching Shakespeare is a real analysis of the pathetic conditions of college students in some hostels. When I joined Presidency College, Madras in 1998, just four years before my happy retirement, I donated ` 1000 to an active group of Professors there who distributed free lunch packets to visually challenged hostel students and then of course taught them history and Tamil literature. May their tribe increase! (Dr) S S KUMAR vanmuhill@gmail.com

nothing and even suppressed the vital evidences. ANURAG Samajwadi Jan Parishad Date: 2011/4/8 Forwarded by Dr V N Sharma Cell No.9431102680 Co-ordinator, Jharkhand Shanti Evam Nyaya Yatra (JSNY) Member, Secretariat All India Forum for Right to Education (AIF-RTE) & Working Committee Member Jan Sansad

10 things to learn from Japan

1. THE CALM Not a single visual of chestbeating or wild grief. Sorrow itself has been elevated. 2. THE DIGNITY Disciplined queues for water and groceries. Not a rough word or a crude gesture. 3. THE ABILITY The incredible architects, for instance. Buildings swayed but didn't fall. 4. THE GRACE People bought only what they needed for the present, so everybody could get something. 5. THE ORDER No looting in shops. No honking and no overtaking on the roads. Just understanding. 6. THE SACRIFICE Fifty workers stayed back to pump sea water in the N-reactors. How will they ever be repaid? 7. THE TENDERNESS Restaurants cut prices. An unguarded ATM is left alone. The strong cared for the weak. 8. THE TRAINING The old and the children, everyone knew exactly what to do. And they did just that. 9. THE MEDIA They showed magnificent restraint in the bulletins. No silly reporters. Only calm reportage. 10. THE CONSCIENCE When the power went off in a store, people put things back on the shelves and left quietly! Lastly NO POLITICS, No politicisation, No minorities/castecard playing. [Posted by Prof Ramesh Chandra, arguably the worst victim of dictatorial attitude of the criminal Prof Deepak Pental, the outgone VC of Delhi University]

Unbridled Quackery
large number of advertisements of therapies and remedies of certain incurable diseases and false notions are flooding the nooks and corners of country. Targeted towards the innocent and gullible youth, such ads appear on the walls facing the railway tracks and the roads in cities, and villages, and in university and college campuses, public urinals, railway stations and bus stands, and whatever other place they can find. The pseudo-sexologists create an impression in the minds of the youth that most of them suffer from sexual disorders and venereal and other related diseases. Such quacks are flagrantly violating the legal provisions contained in the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954, which seeks to curb advertisements of drugs and therapies which claim to have magical effects and cure certain incurable diseases, like impotency and sexual disorders. The tern drugs, magic remedies and advertisement are assigned very wide and comprehensive meanings to include all such misleading advertisements , hoardings, hand bills, etc., of gimmicks and fraudulent practices. The Act is intended to serve as a potent tool in the hands of the Central Government to curb the cheating of innocent people by unscrupulous people. The government must put an end to quackery by implementing the relevant legal provisions in letter and spirit. (Professor) D P S VERMA QU-285B, Chitrakoot Pitampura New Delhi - 110 034

Ironic
t is very ironic that as country has resolved to fight against corruption, one of the long time crusader against corruption; Shamim Modi, an activist and TISS Asstt Professor. will be undergoing her 3rd Surgery on 9 April at Hinduja hospital, after the brutal attack on her life on 23 July 2009 at her Mumbai residence. Her petition for CBI investigation and prosecuting the police officer who tempered all the vital evidences is pending at Mumbai HC for past 7 months. The Mumbai CB CID, who was entrusted the investigation by Mumbai HC in earlier petition, has done

May be University TodaY is not the best you can have! But it's the only one you have!! Make the best of it.

UNIVERSITY TODAY, NEW DELHI 15 APRIL 2011

REGIONAL NEWSFILE

False Concerns: Jan Lokpal Bill is No Solution

ACKLING corruption requires economic reforms and a popular re-engagement with electoral politics. We should shun the politics of hunger strikes. The idea of a Jan Lok Pal is flawed and profoundly misunderstands the causes and solutions of corruption in India. It seeks to create another chunk of Government, more processes and rules, to solve a problem that, in part, exists because of too many chunks of Government, too many processes and rules. If the Jan Lok Pal presides over the same system that has corrupted civil servants, politicians, anticorruption watchdogs, judges, media, civil society groups and ordinary citizens, why should we expect that the ombudsman will be incorruptible? Because the person is handpicked by unelected, unaccountable civil society members? Those who propose that Nobel Laureates (of Indian origin, not even of Indian citizenship) and Ramon Magsaysay Award winners should be among those who pick the Great Ombudsman of India who is both policeman and judge insult the hundreds of millions of ordinary Indian voters who regularly exercise their right to franchise. For they are demanding that the Scandinavian grandees in the Nobel Committee and the Filipino members of the Magsaysay foundation should have an indirect role in selecting an allpowerful Indian official. The argument that people should be involved in drafting legislation is fine, even if it misses the point that the Government is not a foreign entity but a representative of the people. It is entirely another thing to demand that the legislation drafted by an selfappointed, unaccountable and unrepresentative set of people be passed at the threat of blackmail. If we must have representatives of the people involved in law-making, we are better off if they are the elected ones, however flawed, as opposed to selfappointed ones, whatever prizes the latter might have won. The Jan Lok Pal will become another logjammed, politicised and ultimately corrupt institution, for the passionate masses who demand new institutions have a poor record of protecting the existing institutions. Where were the holders of candles, wearers of Gandhi topis and hungerstrikers when the offices of the Chief Election Commissioner, the Central

Vigilance Commissioner and even the President of the Republic were handed out to persons with dubious credentials? If you didn't come out to protest the perversion of these institutions, why are you somehow more likely to turn up to protest when a dubious person is sought to be made the Jan Lok Pal? But this is us. Given this reality, the solution for corruption and malgovernance should be one that does not rely on the notoriously apathetic middle classes to come out on the streets. The solution is to take away the powers of discretion, the powers of rent-seeking from the Government and restore it back to the people. This is the idea of economic freedom. Societies with greater economic freedom have lower corruption. I have long argued that we are in this mess because we have been denied Reforms. How can we have Reforms if those politicians are unwilling to implement them? The answer is simple: by voting. Economic reforms are not on anyone's political agenda because those who are most likely to benefit from them do not vote, and do not vote strategically. At this point, it is usual to hear loud protests about how voting does not work, most often by those who do not vote. This flies in the face of empirical evidence when hundreds of millions of people turn up to vote. If it were not working for them, why would they be voting? They might not be demanding Reforms, but something else, and are getting what they want. Instead of ephemeral displays of outrage what happened to those post-26/11 candlelight vigils? it is engagement in the electoral process that is necessary. There are some innovative ideas like that of voters associations that can be attempted. There are no better words than those of B R Ambedkar on the place of satyagraha in India after the Constitution came into force on 26 January 1950: we must abandon the bloody methods of revolution. It means that we must abandon the method of civil disobedience, noncooperation and satyagraha. When there was no way left for constitutional methods for achieving economic and social objectives, there was a great deal of justification for unconstitutional methods. But where constitutional methods are open, there can be no

justification for these unconstitutional methods. These methods are nothing but the Grammar of Anarchy and the sooner they are abandoned, the better for us. Ambedkar was speaking in the Constituent Assembly. In my view civil disobedience in general and hunger strikes in particular must be used in the most exceptional circumstances where constitutional methods are unavailable or denied, and only till the time constitutional methods remain unavailable or denied. Some contend that the system isn't working, or has been so perverted by the incumbent Government that it is necessary to resort to public agitation. This is a dubious argument. Constitutional democracy is an enlightened way to make policy by reconciling to the extent possible the diverse interests, opinions and levels of political empowerments of a diverse population. Any other way amounts to coercion in one form or the other. If we are to allow that hunger strikes and street protests do better than constitutional methods, then how would you decide issues where there are sharp differences? If two Gandhians go on hunger strike asking for polar opposites, do we settle the issue by seeing who gives up first? What if competing groups escalate the agitation to violence against each other?

improved. By us. The anti-defection law must go. India does not have a comprehensive law governing political parties. It needs one. Police reforms have been stalled for decades. There is a substantial reform agenda that must be pursued. By us. However, the inability to implement these reforms is no excuse for resorting to civil disobedience or, as it happens in other countries, calling in a dictatorship of the proletariat, the military or the priesthood. The Jan Lok Pal Bill is not a solution to the problem of corruption. It risks making matters worse. Hunger strikes are not the right means to promote a policy agenda in a constitutional democracy like ours. The promoters and supporters of Jan Lok Pal and the public agitation to achieve it are profoundly misguided. Their popularity stems from having struck a vein of middle class outrage against the UPA Governments misdeeds. That does not mean that the solutions they offer are right. I oppose Jan Lok Pal and the politics of hunger-strikes as much as I oppose corruption and misgovernance. Nitin Pai [The writer, a commentator on public policy and security affairs, is editor of Pragati.] Posted by Bharat Singh, Secretary, Central Secretariat, ABVP; 09320091177; bharatsingh107@gmail.com

Should we condone civil war?

he working of those constitutional mechanisms can and must be

33 Years of UT didn't impress them! What will?

KU Court Elections
From official sources rof Subhash Sharma, a life member of M M Education Society and Honorary Director of its Institutions has been elected as member of the Kurukshetra University Court as a representative of the Managements of Non-Government Colleges for a term of two years (2011-2013). Mr Vijay Sabharwal, Secretary of DAV College Managing Committee, New Delhi is the second member elected to this body of the university. Mr Subhash Sharma polled 43 votes out of a total of 63 votes while Mr Sabharwal secured 34 votes in the election. Mr Pawan Garg, President of Indira Gandhi National College, Ladwa got 20 votes. Mr Vasu Dev Aggarwal of S D Mahila Mahavidyalaya, Hansi received 13 votes whereas Dr Satya Vir Arya of Arya College of Education, Hisar obtained 7 votes. Prof Subhash Sharma has been elected to serve the second consecutive term as managements representative on this university body. Mr Sharma had earlier remained college teachers and college principals elected representative on the Court on four occasions (1980-82, 1992-94, 1996-98 and 2002-04) Mr Sharma had served as General Secretary and President of the state level associations of both teachers and Principals during his tenures in his respective capacities. Mr Sharma is of the view that nongovernment college Managements have been rendering yeoman service in the field of college education in Haryana before and since Independence. But for

Nothing captures the false consciousness of the elite than this cartoon in Mail Today [10 April 2011]

their glorious saga of sterling contribution in this realm, Haryana would have not boasted of the present day educational edifice. At one point of time more than three-fourth of college going student population had been educated by private colleges. Mr Sharma maintains that managing bodies of affiliated colleges are entitled to greater public and government support for their selfless and missionary endeavours. In view of huge need of massive investment in the higher education sector by private players in future, the non-government. colleges and their managing bodies as well as the personnel working there including the Principals, the faculty members and the supporting staff shall be obliged to undertake yet greater role and responsibilities. Prof Subhash Sharma relying on his life long experience in a private college laments about the ambivalent, lukewarm and over-regulative role of the state education department and the universities towards these colleges. He believes that all the stakeholders of nongovernment colleges at the managements, teaching and nonteaching staff levels should formulate and project a commonly agreed agenda to face contemporary challenges and issues concerning these colleges. Mr. Sharma proposes to proactively initiate moves in this regard by taking the representatives of the state level organizations of respective constituents. The members of M M Education Society including the Principals and the staff members of M M Institutions have

REGIONAL NEWSFILE National Conference of Economics at Kurukshetra University

UNIVERSITY TODAY, NEW DELHI 15 APRIL 2011

Rise in GDP Rate is Not Helping the Poor

From our Kurukshetra correspondent 2- day National Conference was organized in the 2nd week of March by the Department of Economics, University College, Kurukshetra University. Theme of the conference was: Poverty, Inclusive Growth in India. The conference was attended by approximately 150 scholars and economists from India and abroad. In the inauguration session many dignitaries were invited viz Prof Minakshi, Thorat, Chhagrappa etc. In her keynote address, Prof J V Minakshi, Delhi School of Economics, dealt with the problem of under-nutrition which, she said, was directly linked to poverty and was a hurdle in inclusive growth. Expressing concern that 40% children were born underweight, she said those weighing less than 2 kg at birth had a higher mortality rate. The increase in income had not resulted in an increase in calories and the nutritional status of the second child was poorer than the first, and so on. Observing that the nutritional status of SC and ST families was dismally poor, she called for a collective and multidimensional intervention by the central government. Former UGC Chairman and President of Indian Economic Federation, Prof Sukhdeo Thorat, who was the guest of honour, said inclusive growth meant increase in the GDP rate leading to a decrease in poverty but this was not happening in India even as the monthly per capita expenditure had raised from 1.2 per cent in 1983 to 1.9 per cent in 2005. This was because income distribution suffered from bias with the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Muslims not getting their due. Observing that the growth of the farm sector had been positive, he said while the small farmers had gained, the farm labour had not and poverty among the Scheduled Tribes was the highest in spite of the fact that 40 per cent of them owned land. Forty-five per cent of tribal are living below the poverty line as no technical guidance on soil and climatic is being given to them to increase production, He said 95% of

Scheduled Castes did not possess land and those working in urban areas were uneducated and unskilled. The Muslims, mainly concentrated in urban areas, were not getting jobs due to discrimination and 52 per cent were engaged in petty businesses. Rampant corruption and an indifferent delivery system that resulted in disparities were the main hurdles in the way of inclusive growth. Escalated violence and crime were the result of these disparities, observed Raj Chengappa, Editor-in-Chief, The Tribune, at a conference at Kurukshetra University here today. Inaugurating the UGC-sponsored National conference on poverty and inclusive growth in India: measurement, policy, issues and regional studies, he said: The problem lies in delivery, governance and implementation and the larger issue is equitable distribution of resources. We can pump in money but the problem is about equitable distribution with corruption the main hindrance to growth as 85 paise out of a rupee go into corrupt hands. Voicing concern at the indifference of the well-to-do people to the plight of the poor, he cautioned that there could be a violent revolution if inclusive growth was not ensured. Kurukshetra University Vice Chancellor Dr DDS Sandhu said the

people were over dependent on the state. He called for active private participation in the growth process as the government could not be the sole delivering agency. A book entitled Fiscal Policies, Decentralization and Economic Growth in India by Pradeep Chauhan was released by Chengappa and Thorat on the occasion. The valedictory function was attended by Professor Shahani of Punjab University, Dr Raghvender Tanwar, Registrar KU, Dr S C Sharma Principal University College Dr Pradeep Chauhan, Convener of the Conference and Dr R K Soodan, HoD Economics of University College and Co-convener of the Conference. An over view of the conference was present by Dr S P Gupta, HoD Physics University College. He emphasized the need of interdisciplinary research. He recalled to the people the role of physics in development of economics theory. He

has presented a paper entitled Econophysics As Solid Science. In his remark he indicated that first laureates for the Economics Prize were Jan Tinbergen and Ragnar Frisch for having developed and applied dynamic models for the analysis of economic processes Tinbergen studied mathematics and Physics at the University of Leiden under Ehrnfest a noted professor of Physics. He earned his PhD degree with his thesis entitled Minimization Problems in Physics and Economics. Rangnar Frisch published outlining his view that economics should follow the same path towards theoretical and empirical quantization that other sciences, especially physics. The seminar was sponsored by UGC, New Delhi. Pradeep Chauhan read out the vote of thanks to all participants of the conference and the university administration for their generous help to make this event a success.

NIT-K Still Waiting for Regular Director

From our Kurukshetra correspondent HE National Institute of Technology (NIT) Kurukshetra is waiting for a regular Director alongwith 12 other NITs. Selection process is being conducted by Ministry of Human Resources Development (MHRD) Government of India since for the last 6 months. The interviews were held at Banglore during 22-24 February last. The MHRD sources have revealed that the new regular Director is likely to be in place by the end of April this year. Though MHRD has taken all the care that the selected Director be academically sound and may take care of research and academic environment well, yet the job does not look so easy for him. In last five years, the academic and administrative system of the institute which has received many setbacks as a result of arbitrary style of working of the former Institute exDirector M N Bandyopadhyay and Registrar R P S Lohchab. The functioning of institute construction cell has always been marred by controversies. It is interesting to note fact that Bandyopadhyay and Lohchab always appreciated the functioning of this cell everywhere for reasons not hard to guess. This too is interesting that still baseless rumours are being spread in the NIT campus that Bandyopadhyay will join as regular Director again in the institute soon for a period of 5 years. The regular Director will have to understand the institute environment and people in a careful manner if he really wants to deliver. He will have to ensure rational functioning of its top administrative and academic bodies. It is apprehended that there will be efforts of manipulations from institute dons which may violate government rules and their spirit. It may be noted that several such manipulators are presently dominating the administrative system. The new incumbent is lucky enough that one of the main manipulators, R P S Lohchab, has been ousted by Punjab and Haryana high court at Chandigarh. However,

MPhil Candidates Resent Haryana Govt Decision

From our Kurukshetra correspondent

Lohchab is still enjoying many institute facilities such as telephone, security etc. Curiously, Lohchab has not yet handed over charge of his office as Registrar of the Institute till now. The new incumbent Director is likely to make decision on many controversial issues. If he did not work carefully in the beginning, he may invite many problems for himself in future.

Promila Gupta Appointedon Juvenile Justice Board

s Pramila Gupta has been appointed as the Member Juvenile Justice Board, Haryana at District Kurukshetra by the Governor of Haryana on the recommendations of Haryana Government wef January 2011 for a period of 5 years. Pramila Gupta is associated with teaching and educational administration over last 25 years. She started her career as a Lecturer in English from a Girls college of Meerut. Later, she worked as a Principal in a number of Sr Secondary Schools and colleges in Haryana and Punjab. She is a well known contributr and columnist numerous newspapers of North India. She has written a number of thought provoking articles and reports in University Today.

NLY NET qualified or PhD holders or those registered till 30 June 2009 for PhD programme are eligible for the post of Assistant Professor in colleges and universities of the state. In the bargain, MPhil degree holding candidates have been hit hard by the state government notification. In 2006, the UGC had exempted MPhil candidates from qualifying NET. From 2006 to 2009, MPhil degree holders were selected in different colleges and universities of the state and were appointed assistant professor. Parents of a number of researchers said they had spent a huge amount of loan taken from banks and financiers for the education of their wards and were in debt. Surinder Singh and Gurjit Kaur, residents of Jagadhari, and parents of one of the candidates rued the fact that borrowing a huge amount from banks on a high rate of interest just to let their daughters get MPhil degree would not now help their daughters cause after this notification. They demanded that MPhil degrees till June 2009 be considered for the post. They further said the present notification was in contravention of the UGC notification of 2006. The aspiring lecturers and researchers expressed resentment against the government as the notification deprived them of their right to equality as enshrined in the Constitution. The parents of the aspirants said an age bar of 40 years for college lectureship was unjustified as there was no such age limit for appointment in the university system

780 Awarded Degrees at NIT-K

HE Governor of Haryana, Mr Jagannath Pahadia, has called upon students to explore their full potential and become active contributors to the nations development if they desire that India should emerge as a world leader.The Governor was addressing the 8th annual convocation of the National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra(NIT-K). Pahadia said within a short span of time, Haryana had become the education hub of northern India, with many universities and many educational institutes have been set up in the state. Haryana was contributing immensely towards promoting technological, engineering and allied technical education for the youth of the entire country Prof J K Palit, Chairman, Board of Governors, NIT, read out the annual report while Prof Krishan Gopal, acting Director and Chairman, Senate, NIT, awarded degrees to scholars. As many as 780 scholars were awarded degrees in various streams at the convocation. They included 21 PhD scholars.

We are not into Archives! Demand your replacement copy of UT within 3 months or lose it.

UNIVERSITY TODAY, NEW DELHI 15 APRIL 2011

REGIONAL NEWSFILE

DU has No Use for Its Own Laws

>> From P 1 Col 4 use for Ordinances, Statutes or even the Act. Personal whims of VC and his cohorts can ran the affairs of the University without anyone batting an eyelid. In fact the Convocation held on 26 February saw Kapil Sibal distribute degrees which, in the absence of requisite approvals from AC/EC of Delhi University were not valid. Such was the hurry to please the boss the Minister that the VC forgot to secure necessary statutory approvals as required which may warrant immediate ouster of the Vice-Chancellor on this ground alone if someone were to approach the Visitor on this lapse. No one knows if the Chancellor was even invited to this spurious conovocation. Statute 4 of DU Calendar enjoins upon the Treasurer to present the Budget to the Court and seek its approval. It states: 4. A report of the working of the University during the previous year, together with a statement of the receipts and expenditure, the balance sheet, as audited, and the financial estimates shall be presented to the Court at its annual meeting. Court meeting has not been held. Nor have the 3 vacancies in the Court filled as per requirements of law. Thus the entire expenditure incurred by the University of Delhi can be called into question any day by anybody. Further the Statute 10(A)(7) states: (7) The annual accounts and the financial estimates of the University prepared by the Treasurer shall be laid before the Finance Committee for consideration and comments and thereafter submitted to the Executive Council for approval. Nothing of sort has seemingly been done thus far. In fact, the Court remains hopelessly ignorant about the Budget of the University of Delhi. Statute 4 of Delhi University Calendar states: 4. A report of the working of the University during the previous year, together with a statement of the receipts and expenditure, the balance sheet, as audited, and the financial estimates shall be presented to the Court at its annual meeting. Nothing of the sort. Dinesh Singh obviously is following Deepak Pental in his criminal footprints. After all, he was a team mate of Deepak Pental! An e-mail sent to VC of Delhi University on 8 April has remained unanswered thus far. How can there be a reply to transgression of laws? This despite the fact that flagrant violatons were pointed out to the VC. The ever alert Left group on the campus, DTF, which never misses a single opportunity to beat the VC with the stick of press releases never found it necessary to question him on this count leading to the suspicion that there is a conspiracy of quietitude. Ditto for DUTA which is as good as dead as evident by its mysterious quiet on teachers' issues. After making noises at the police headquarters for arrest of Deepak Pental in Cobalt-60 imbroglio resulting in death and maiming the DUTA is quiet and appears to have conspired to the detriment of teachers despite the fact that this year is election year and DUTA elections are due on or around 31 August.

NEHUTA Leads Where DUTA Was Lagging

From NEHUTA sources T appears that North Eastern Hill University Teachers Association (NEHUTA) has stolen a march over DUTA not only in teachers' movement but also social movement. Whereas DUTA has remained mum thus far on the Anna Hazare kind of carnival that kept Delhi busy for more than 4 days the NEHUTA and students of NEHU staged a rally and adopted a resolution lending support to the fasting Anna Hazare. The rally ended in a resolution signed by more than 450 teachers and students according to Prof Prasad, President of NEHUTA [see fascimile alongside]. This may be debatable if and when Anna Hazare move will result in eradication of corruption in India [see Counterpoint on the backpage] but when it comes to social consciousness the NEHUTA has certainly stolen a march over DUTA. In fact, and of late, teachers of Delhi University and its colleges have found DUTA leadership wanting on many fronts. And this Anna Hazare front is as good as any. If DUTA has done anything concrete on this issue it remains a closely guarded secret from UT thus far. No wonder DUTA is fast losing ground even in matters more serious like semesterisation of undergraduate courses in which a divided DUTA is facing an imminent failure what with Delhi High Court having passed strictures against DUTA last year leaving the organisation with no face to even present a token opposition to the sinister move of the ViceChancellor Dinesh Singh who is hellbent on advancing the agenda of the HRD Minister Kapil Sibal who leant his weight to semesterisation at the VCs' conference held in New Delhi on 25-26 March last as if all the VCs assembled in the jamboree had nothing more serious to discuss. It fact the DUTA has degenerated over the years so much and to the extent that it has failed to take a principled position on many issues including the raise in retirement age of teachers to 65 years. Whereas the same hukamnana of the MHRD

stated in para 2 that teachers retired at 65 years be recalled to teach. DUTA simply grabbed the opportunity without so much as the courtesy of an EC meeting which alone is the competent body to take such decisions and raise the retirement age etc and every teacher who was on the

verge of completing 62 years jumped with joy. Everyone, including DUTA, forgot the 319 odd teachers who were victimised and denied reemployment. Clearly, DUTA acts selectively and is emerging as an opportunist organisation.

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, ALLAHABAD

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Name of Program M.B.A. in Information Technology Qualifying Degrees/ Examination Graduates from any discipline with valid CAT score (GMAT score for FN/NRI's) Last date of submission of Entrance Exam fill in application form (in Dates person) or at IIIT-A counter 30th April, 2011 14th-15th May, 2011

Candidates appearing in Qualifying Degree Examinations may also apply. [If final result is likely to be declared by 14th July 2011]. The forms may be obtained both in person or can be downloaded from the URL www.iiita.ac.in/pub/MBA_MS_2011_FORM.pdf. *The application form can be obtained for a fees of Rs. 1200/- (Rs. 600/- for SC/ST/OBC candidates) to be paid in cash or through DD of MICR type from any nationalized bank drawn in favour of 'IIIT-Allahabad' payable at Allahabad. For more details visit URL www.iiita.ac.in/pub/Infonrochure.pdf lIlT-A's MBA Program RANKED FIRST Amongst All Government Institutes/Universities IIIT-A Counters to collect the Application Form IIIT-A Jhalwa Campus Deoghat, Jhalwa Allahabad - 211012, Phone: +91-532-2922032/33 Nehru Science Centre Allahabad, Kamala Nehru Road, Allahabad - 211002, Phone: +91-532-2461377 IIIT-A Delhi Guest House, 564, Sachin Nag Block, Khelghoan, New Delhi, Phone: +91-11-26494595 Professor In-charge Exam Cell

REGIONAL NEWSFILE

UNIVERSITY TODAY, NEW DELHI 15 APRIL 2011

CIC Deepak Sandhu Wrote New Laws of RTI

Special to UT HIS Central Information Commissioner, despite her high falutin officious status, sure is either innocent of Right to Information Act, 2005 and related rules and its nuances or, more likely, suffers from the arrogance so very generally associated with inflated egos that bureaucrats are, that she can say or do anything and get away with it. In a recent decision dated 25 February 2011 while deciding an appeal by Dr Rajinder K Singla of Chandigarh the CIC concerned, Ms Deepak Sandhu, crossed all limits and has apparently decided in a fit of vituperation rather than with a cool calculating mind. In the bargain she has taken leave of relevant RTI laws and ended up casting personal aspersions on the Appellant Dr Singla on counts which do not even form part of the RTI Act or rules. First the decision dated 25 February 2011 which reads:

Facts:1. Dr Rajinder K Singla preferred RTI request dated 20.8.2009 before the CPIO o/o Director Higher Education, Chandigarh Administration, seeking information regarding grant-in-aid given to DAV College etc through four points enclosed herewith an Annexure A. 2. The CPIO, vide his letter dated 16.10.2009, offered opportunity of inspection of all records to the appellant and asked him to visit the office of the Principal. Appellant, however, did not take up this opportunity and instead preferred

second appeal before the Commission. The matter was heard today. Respondents were present as above. Appellant did not appear. 3. Respondents stated that the appellant was in the habit of preferring RTI applications (This fact is also confirmed by the appellant in his written submissions), through which he seeks volluminous and old information. Usually, the appellant does not appear before the First Appellate Authority when his appeal comes up for hearing and has also provided an address at which he does not live for receiving the information. They submitted that the appellant who is former contractual employee of DAV College has already been provided information under the present RTI application running into over 200 pages and have so far provided him thousands of pages of information against his other RTI applications, thereby causing disruption in normal work and strain on their resources.

Decision
4. After hearing the averments of the respondents and on perusal of the facts on record the Commission concludes that undoubtedly the appellant is misusing the RTI Act to settle personal scores with his former employer. The Commission rules that such vexatious applicatons can be summarily dismissed at the level of the CPIO since it is obvious that these applications are not being preferred in public interest and are in fact

adversely impacting the functioning of the public authority instead of strengthening it which is contrary to the letter and spirit of the RTI Act. sd/- Smt Deepak Sandhu, Information Commissioner (DS) Now what got the goat of Deepak Sandhu who probably retired from IIS (Indian Information Services) and is married to a former IAS officer? This is explosive enough a material to feed the inflated ego. And, then, to top the fact that, post retirement, she is holding a cushy job (yes, like it or not, job it is ) as a Central Information Commissioner which, she deludes herself in thinking and believing that it gives her powers to make personal observations on conduct, if not character, of appellants who may have the ill luck to be adjudicated upon by her. This swollen head, it appears, is completely innocent of the laws she is currently called upon to deal with. She sure has crossed all limits not only of decency and propriety but also of impropriety probably because she has direct contact with Punjab and may have had some kind of personal knowledge about the Appellant concerned Dr Rajinder K Singla. Or, more likely, may have been purchased or influenced by powers that be. Incidentally, the immunity enjoyed by judicial officers under Section 77 of the IPC to the comments and observations they may make in the course of dispensing justice is not available to a CIC despite the high sounding designation. Dr Rajinder Singla certainly has a cause of action against her. Whether or not he chooses to haul Deepak Sandhu over the coals is his decision which is not known to us.

INFORMATION INDIAN INSTITUTE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, ALLAHABAD TECHNOLOGY ALLAHABAD OGY,

Deoghat Jhalwa, Allahabad 211012 (U.P.), Uttar Pradesh, India
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Ph: 0532-2922025, 2922040, 2922137, 2922029, 2922027; Fax: 0532-2922144, 2922163, 2922164

FOURTH FOURTH SCIENCE CONCLAVE

An Interaction with Nobel Laureates November 26- December 2, 2011
(Supported by MHRD & DST, GoI)
Indian Institute of Information Technology, Allahabad (IIIT-A) is organizing the Fourth Science Conclave: An interaction program of Students, Young Teachers and Scientists with Nobel Laureates and eminent National and International Academicians, Scientists, Technologists and Industrialists during 26 November-2 December, 2011. The objective of the Interactive Sessions is to inspire and motivate the bright students to take up studies, researches and professional research careers in Basic Sciences in order to promote the scientific developments and innovations in the country. The Toppers of Undergraduate/Postgraduate Courses, Research Scholars and Young Teachers/Scientists who have not attended the 1st, 2nd & 3rd Science Conclaves and are desirous to participate in the Fourth Science Conclave may contact their Institutional Heads and get their applications sponsored and mailed by September 15, 2011 to the Science Conclave Secretariat, IIIT-Allahabad on the prescribed format available at our website: http:/ /scienceconclave2010.iiita.ac.in; E-mail: scienceconclave2010@iiita.ac.in. Secretariat Science Conclave 2011

Let us see how this superego called Deepak Sandhu has transgressed her limits. Comment that Dr Rajinder K Singla, the Appellant, habitual information seeker and that he has filed more than 250 applications thus far. He better be. Persons like Dr Singla are the torch bearers of the society and are helping advance the cause of Right to Information (now a Fundamental Right under 19 of the Constitution of India for the information of Deepak Sandhu). Which law in India prescribes that one can file only that many and not more applications under RTI? Is Deepak Sandhu writing a new law an thereby attempting to replace the Parliament of India? Just because she worked as some kind of press adviser in the PMO! This officious but ignorant lady should know that RTI is a borrowed copy of the similar law in England wherein the motive of the information seeker cannot under any circumstances be questioned. If Deepak Sandhu is allowed to have her way most public servants will get away from disclosures simply by pleading that the motive is suspect. Above all, who is D e e p a k Sandhu to call into question the motive of an Applicant under RTI. Yes, it is an application under RTI and not a request as adjudicated by Ms Sandhu. Whereas a request may or may not be entertained an Application under RTI has to be answered and it matters little if Deepak Sandhu doesn't like it. As for seeking information to secure personal benefits there is absolutely no prohibition in RTI Act on that count too. In fact, there is a special section in RTI which prescribed that if there is a risk of jail etc the information has to supplied within 48 hours! Has Deepak Sandhu read that part of RTI? Lets say for the sake of argument that the information (or series of informations) sought by Dr Rajinder Singla are designed to seek personal benefits. Even then he is very much entitled to seek those very informations and Deepak Sandhu is nobody to question him on that count. A given law be better misused than not be applied at all. Order comes from anarchy said Maharshi Aurobindo. The beat-all silly argument advanced by Deepak Sandhu is that Dr Rajinder Singla is not living at the given address. How did she find out? Did she put surveillance? Can homeless people not be allowed to query under RTI? Which law of the land says that the person must live at the address given for the sake of receiving letters and communications? What takes the cake is the last para of the decision that a PIO may summarily dismiss the Application. Well, ignorance was never a penal offence in any country of the world. But this kind of ignorance has dangerous portends. This is just the height. Deepak Sandhu must operate within the four walls of law or not at all notwithstanding her wide contacts. She may have had an agenda of her own: to protect DAV authorities. Others are not obliged to obey this agenda for the information of Deepak Sandhu. And to think that she was Registrar of Newspapers India (RNI)! How must she be working is not hard to guess. Going by this uninformed decision which amounts to denial of information itself the minimum Deepak Sandhu can do is join a refresher course for Central Information Commissioners if they have provided for one or just leave things as they are and live on cushy pension she gets from her employer. But, then, will she? The lucre and power are a heady substance.

UNIVERSITY TODAY, NEW DELHI 15 APRIL 2011

FEATURE

March to Kleptocracy
by Piyush Pant
HE revelations by WikiLeaks and Neera Radia tapes, though done on different planes, have a common thread running through them. Both have done the yeoman service of exposing the duplicity of behaviour, secret dealings and lobbying which the governments and corporate houses indulge in. Both have exposed the levels of corruption and ethical violations rampant in the corridors of power and the corporate world. Julian Assange says that the WikiLeaks mission is to lay bare the full ecosystem of corruption, the internal executive ethos, and all the supporting little decisions that enabled the flagrant ethical violations. While WikiLeaks has exposed the big brother countries that tell one thing and do the opposite; Radia tapes have exposed the way Corporate do lobbying to even fix the appointment of Ministers so that they could reap the fruits of dictated and manipulated government policies. These tapes have also exposed how the ministers and bureaucrats function as cronies of the corporate sector and influence the actions and policies of the government in their interest. What to talk about Ambanies, Mittals and Anil Aggarwals, even top industrialist Ratan Tata, hitherto much praised for his clean and honest dealings, has been exposed for taking the help of lobbyist Neera Radia to bend the spectrum allotment in his favour. Thus Radia episode makes it quite clear that the real power centre in democracy under capitalist system exist outside the formal and legal structures of the State, while the elected organs are rendered more and more powerless and corrupted by the money, with each passing day. A kind of feeling is setting in that we are moving from Democracy to Kleptocracy i.e. a system of non-governance characterized by injustice, rampant greed and corruption. Kleptocracy is a Greek-derived term. It means rule by thieves. It is used for an establishment that takes the advantage of the corruption rampant in government echelons to increase the personal wealth and political power of the government officials and the ruling class through the embezzlement of government funds at the expense of the wider populace, sometimes without even

the pretence of honest service. Once democracy yields to kleptocracy, good governance is given a silent burial. The vacuum thus created is filled by a vicious nexus among politicians, bureaucrats and the corporate who companioning together change the laws of the land to serve their respective interests. Over a course of time, the corporate interests take over the other interests and corporate start dictating terms to the politicians and the bureaucrats. For this they take recourse to greasing their palm or taking the help of lobbyists who, acting on behalf of corporates, influence the policy decisions of the governments, even trying to influence the appointment of ministers to the ministries which are of particular interests to them. Revelations by Neera Radia tapes are clear pointers to this direction. Similarly in the case of Korean giant corporate POSCO, the somersault done by Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh is testimony to how influential these multinational corporate have become. As they try to enter the vast untapped Indian market to woo more than a billion customers, they need to extricate tax breaks and contracts in their favour from Indian babudom. Some companies get these by corrupt means, covering their tracks by middlemen, as some foreign managers acknowledge in private. But a number of companies are turning to lobbyists who use subtler tools of influence, partly out of fear of anti-bribery laws in their respective countries which threaten jail term even for chief executives if they let workers pay bribes overseas. This trend of lobbying has started showing in India too as the business groups are beginning to wield a disproportionate influence on the policy environment as compared to civil society organizations lobbying for public good. The fact is that globally the corporations bankroll the electoral process and also spend large sums in lobbying governments to defend their markets and further their interests. According to a UKbased consultancy named SustainAbility, over 3 billion dollars were spent in lobbying in the US in 2004 while 90 million Euros were spent in the EU in the same year. Matt Miller, a senior fellow at the Centre for American Progress, points out

that big business in US wield immense clout in US public policy making through lobbying. He gives the example of Lockheed Martin who spent 55 million dollars in the early years of 2010 during which period it bagged defence contracts worth 90 billion dollars for a ROPI (Return on Political Investments) of 163,00%. Similarly Boeing spent 57 million dollars for contracts over 81 billion dollars resulting in a ROPI of 142,000%. Miller is of the view that it is impossible to conclude a deal without a political salesforce backing the deal. But in the US, a degree of openness is ensured by the Lobbying Act which compels corporations to reveal their perambulation around the Senate, Congress, Pentagon and other public institutions. On the contrary, there is no mechanism in India to bring accountability to lobbying and publicly reveal the lobbying positions of companies and the money spent. The secretive deals on spectrum allocation in the telecom sector are fine example of lobbying without any pretence to accountability. The power, mining, airline, oil and gas sectors have also been hotbeds of intense lobbying in India. What is startling is that when the government takes any move on corporate responsibility norms it is taken as restrictive and anti-liberalisation by the Indian industry which often proposes selfregulation in lieu of legislation. But it doesnt happen. What is really happening is that these multinational as well as national companies are making their lobbying arms stronger by recruiting retired Indian bureaucrats to do the dirty job by making them use their connections and relations with former junior colleagues to clinch the

issue. Thus ex-bureaucrats are now playing a major role for their corporate bosses in crucial infrastructure sectors like telecom, power, roads and ports where large-scale deregulation has taken place. Now with areas such as banking, insurance and coal mining opening up, the flow of former bureaucrats will certainly increase. Already this has started taking place. Naren Joshi, managing director of General Insurance Corporation left the organization to join multinational ING Insurance. Steel baron Laxmi Mittal has managed to woo and hire many top ranking employees from SAIL for ISPATs commercial marketing operations. Among them are MRR Nair, former SAIL chairman, and its executive director Mr. Malai Mukherjee. In 2007, it was reported that a lady IAS officer, retiring from Ministry of Defence, joined Tata Industries when the Tatas, among others, were being considered for being declared as a Raksha Utpadan Ratna. Similarly a retiring finance secretary was picked up by Hyundai India for a whopping salary of Rs. 1.37 crore. Few years back Gopi Arora, the principal secretary to late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had joined ANZ Grindlays after retirement. Wayback in 1998, several former IAS officers opened up polyclinics to sell their services. One such association was named Management & Economic Advisers in Delhi. It comprised of Suresh Mathur, former industry secretary, R Vasudevan, former power secretary, and Sanjeev Sunder, former surface transport secretary. Mathurs portfolio included telecom giant AT&T, and General Electric, while Sunder became consultant for Bharat Forge. Everybody remembers the controversy surrounding former I&B secretary Rathikanta Basu who joined media tycoon Rupert Murdochs Star TV

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Bhagat Singh remembered in UWI-Trinidad

lecture to mark the 80 years of martyrdom of Indian revolutionary hero, considered to be the Che Guevara of the east, was delivered by Prof Chaman Lal, Visiting Professor from JNU, India and also editor of Documents of Bhagat Singh at The University of the West Indies (UWI), Trinidad campus on 8 April last. It was for the first time in the history of UWI and perhaps in Trinidad itself that Bhagat Singh was remembered. Introducing the speaker Prof Brinsely Samaroo, eminent historian of Indian Diaspora in Trinidad, former Dean of UWI and former minister in Trinidad &Tobago Government, spoke about different approaches of Gandhi and Bhagat Singh towards Indian freedom struggle. A student of eminent Indian historian Prof. Bipan Chandra in Hindu College Delhi long ago, Prof. Samaroo opined that the combination of two streams led to Indian freedom. Professor Chaman Lal narrated the development of Bhagat Singhs personality through pictures and text and

compared the personalities of Che Guevara in South America/Caribbean and Bhagat Singh in India and South Asia, common aspect being total commitment to socialist revolution and renunciation of all worldly comforts, which were available to both. Both faced death in most daring and challenging manner, putting their killers-British and American colonialist/ imperialists to shame at international level. Prof Lal underlined the fact that though Trinidad & Tobago has large Indian descent population, yet few know about the role of revolutionary movement and Bhagat Singh. He referred to Bhagat Singhs uncle and freedom fighter Ajit Singh spending 38 years(1909-1947) of his exiled life in South American countries, more in Argentina and Brazil, the fact which is not known even in this region. Venezuelan ambassador to Trinidad, Maria Eugenia Marcano Casado came especially for the lecture. At this occasion The Legend of Bhagat Singh, a Hindi feature film with English sub-titles, made by Rajkumar Santoshi, which presents Bhagat Singhs life in a more objective manner, was shown, which was liked by the audience. Short discussion followed the lecture.

Essential Qualifications: A) A Masters Degree with at least 55% of the marks OR it's equivalent grade of B in the 7 point scale with latter grade O, A, B, C, D, E, & F. B) Ph.D. or equivalent published work. C) A. Professors Grade (Rs. 16400-450-20900-500-22400) (Minimum to be fixed at 17300/-) Total experience of 15 years of teaching/research in Universities/Colleges & other institutions of higher education. B. Readers Grade : (Rs. 12000-420-18300) (Minimum to be fixed at 12840/-) Total experience of 10 years of teaching/research in Universities/ Colleges & other institutions of higher education. Pay Scale: Pay scales and other allowances are as per the Rules of U.G.C., State Governmentt and Swami Ramanand Teerth Marathwada University, Nanded. Notes: 1. Eligible candidates should submit their Applications through the proper channel. 2. No T.A., D.A. will be paid for attending the Interview. 3. Attested xerox copies of S.S.C. certificates, Degree Marksheets etc. should be attached to the application. 4. The condition of 55% marks is not applicable to those candidates who were appointed before 27-02-1979 as a Lecturer. Applications complete in all respects should be reached to the following address. To The President/Secretary, Devanagari Bahuddeshiya Shikshan Prasarak Mandal Deoni Tq. Deoni Dt. Latur PIN 413519. Mob 9923952048

COUNTERPOINT

UNIVERSITY TODAY, NEW DELHI 15 APRIL 2011

Anna Hazare and His Boyscouts: Faked Noises

C S Kalra argues that sans systemic changes this too will pass end end up as a fiasco
AZARDING outcome of such sporadic, bubble-like flash movements is fraught with danger at best of times and the recent 4-day fast-unto-death of Anna Hazare broken on 9 April last is no exception. The saving grace is that the whole thing has blown over peacefully with some palliatives and lots of promises. The rest can wait. One must concede, even if grudgingly, that Anna Hazare has created an unusual kind of false consciousness of the middle classes against corruption. It was there. But it never got so crystallised, so consolidated. Perhaps, post-Independence, the country is witnessing such a massive movement for the first time after Jayprakash Narayan. But that precisely is the fear. Anna Hazare may become another Jayprakash Narayan and also go his way (kidney failure real or induced) and the janata, that unknown collectivity on whose behalf

they all appear to hold sole power of attorney may eventually be relegated to becoming more of the same again: the victim. Individuals may gain. Some have. But people will lose. The unprecedented unity demonstrated by high and mighty with big names, including of the Bollywood not to mention Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Baba Ramdev, even Ram Jethmalani, et al, lending support may result in something concrete. Perhaps the Jan Lokpal Bill, as proposed by Anna Hazare supporters, may become law. But it is highly unlikely that anything major or revolutionary will happen at the end of the day. Witness what the governments did to CVC the haloed institution hailed at one point of time hailed as a revolutionary step. Show me one man satisfied with the working of CVC and Ill show you a unicorn! Ditto for the RTI Act. For every Arvind Kejriwal created by RTI there are thousands who are struggling to save their personal

honour in the contemptuous hands of Information Commissioners who think of themselves as taller than Napoleon Bonaparte (who, incidentally, was a shorty). The CIC office in Delhi has become something of a Tees Hazari! They do not even care to acknowledge!!

Self Seekers Galore

ar from fulfilling the aspirations of many who are currently cooking the Anna Hazare broth, one fears, the 4-day fast and agitations throughout the country may end up as some kind of exercise in the style of boy scouts of the system. Like boyscouts since they must do one good deed a day it matters little to them if they have to make (force?) an elderly blind woman cross the road even if she does not want to and wants to remain only on this side of the road! While it is impossible to not take sides with Anna Hazare what with political sentiment and present scam-ridden climate, the danger is real that eventually the whole thing will end up as a major fiasco with only a handful of beneficiaries left to reap the rich harvest: of corruption. Imagine having 2 persons from the same family: Prashant Bhushan and his father Shanti Bhushan. As if these two are the only virtuosos left in the country! I have difficulty with the company Anna Hazare is keeping. The myriad pictures, footages on TV channels of Anna Hazare fasting at Jantar Mantar (because he couldnt be allowed to fast at India Gate!) and thousands of sentimental fools surrounding Anna Hazare clapping their way into revolution do not realise that they are being taken for a ride. Not by Anna Hazare but by his accompanists, the people around him. Take, for example, Kiran Bedi. The first woman IPS officer of India had to take premature retirement because she was bypassed for a promotion. This much is known. Even if I were to ignore the rough and tough, if not abusive, language Kiran Bedi used as a police official it is difficult to forget how, as chief of Mizoram Police, she managed a backdoor admission for her daughter Sukriti Bedi to Lady Hardinge Medical College of New Delhi under the special quota for Mizoram. Incidentally, there are two seats reserved for Mizoram in medical schools of Delhi under a system whereby states not having any medical college get some seats in government run medical colleges. So Sukriti, having passed her +2 exam from Modern School, Barakhamba Road of New Delhi, suddenlybecame eligible for Mizoram quota admission! The other Mizoram seat went to the Editor: C S Kalra Regd Regional Editors: 1. Dr I Venkateswarlu C/o Dr Sharma Hospital Near Hingoli Gate Nanded 431602 2. Prof CBSR Sharma 7, Airport Road, Puducherry 605008 3. Dr Rajinder K Singla 2106, Sector 15, Chandigarh 160015

For Your INFORMATION

APPOINTED: Prof S K Thorat, who left as UGC Chairman on completing his 5-year term on 6 February last, has been appointed Chairman of ICSSR (Indian Council of Social Science Research) till recently headed by Prof Javed Alam. TAKEN PLACE: The Search Committee for appointment of VC of Hyderabad Central University met in the 1st week of Aptil. The details are not known. Such is the veil of secrecy on this public appointment. This also indicates hostility to UT. STARTED: The process of appointing a new VC of BHU has kickstarted with MHRD having sent names of Search Committee to the Visitor. The present VC of BHU, Prof D P Singh, is completing his 2nd term on 5 May. APPOINTED: Deviating from its decalred intentions to do away with UGC to be replaced by the proposed NCHER a Search Committee for new Chairman of UGC has been appointed but the details are not yet been disclosed. Currently, Prof Ved Prakash, Vice-Chairman of UGC is officiating as Chairman who, because of proximity to Kapil Sibal, is likely to be elevated as Chairman. However, another informed source had it that Prof Deepak Pental, former VC of Delhi University, is also a hot favourite. RAISED: Govt of Assam, days before the model code of conduct, raised the retirement age of college teachers to 65 years creating a unique situation whereby the university teachers in state universities of Assam retire at 60 whereas college teachers will now retire at 65 years. RESIGNED: Prof B P Sahu of the Deptt of History resigned as Controller of Examinations of the University of Delhi within weeks of his joining citing personal reasons but reportedly on account of acute corruption. Prof R C Sharma of the Deptt of Linguistics is the new Controller of Examinations of DU. HONOURED: Prof P B Mangla, earlier from the University of Delhi, has recently been honoured with Tagore National Fellowship by the Govt.of India Ministry of Culture for a period of 2 years. This Fellowship Scheme has been instituted this year in connection with the 150th Birth Anniversary of Rabinder Nath Tagore. Prof Mangla is the first person in the field of Library & Information Science to be so honoured. About 10 others who have been thus honoured are in different fields.

son of one Mr Arora, an IAS officer hailing from Patiala (Punjab), who was Registrar, Cooperative Societies, Mizoram. With both the seats gone to the bureaucrats the people of Mizoram naturally protested. There were violent protests and Kiran Bedi simply fled from Mizoram. Some kind of disciplinary action was initiated against her for deserting her place without permission of the authorities. People of Mizoram got cheated of (the only) two seats they had in that year in the medical schools! As for Shanti Bhushan one recalls that Prof S N Singh had declared her admission in LLB in DU as a backdoor one. So, there! They are now the sole attorney holders on corruption. With this in mind I never feel inspired when they pontificate the people. Or even sit next to Anna Hazare on the dias. The hard truth is that the Anna Hazare episode has given a good enough gift to the fashion frats belonging to upper middle classes who, after getting tired of cricket, wanted something different. Anna Hazare is as good of the different as any. Soon they will be bored to the bone and will shift to something else. May be the upcoming IPL matches or whatever. Commitment deficit of sorts you know. Each one of the media barons, including the channels are a byproduct of acutely corrupted system. Witness how the leaders in mainline newspapers get more than 60% of their ad revenue from state or sources traceable to state. These fat purses and monopoly Press cannot be trusted upon to take principled positions on subjects impacting their ad revenues. The dilemma is that Anna Hazare, Arvind Kejriwal and Swami Agnivesh will not be there without them!

Corruption
oming to the larger question of corruption it is a byproduct of the inverted social value whereby people are identified not by what they are but by what they possess. As long as one is going to be known for ones acquisitions and possessions like cars, air-conditioners, expensive carpets, palatial houses and things like that any hope of eradicating corruption is just a pipedream. I do not perceive the ongoing fight of Anna Hazare any more than the fight of Baba Ramdev. Both appear equally spurious and superficial. Both suffer from lack of inherent truth and philosophy if not a total lack of understanding of corruption. Yet, I wish them luck. After all they have made a beginning where there was none. All those empty noises in both houses of Parliament convinced none.

Do you have it in u? To take the bull by the horn! If yes, then we need u. Contact for details. Stop being anonymous & be counted.

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