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THE INQUIRER Inside A Students Pracce Journal of the Centre for Electronic Media and Mass Communicaon, Pondicherry University Vol. 1 No. 1 January, 2009 www.pondiuni.edu.in Union Home Minister on Campus Puducherry: Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram visited Pondicherry Univer- sity on Dec. 27, 2008. He was accompanied by Mr. V. Narayanasamy, Union Min- ister of State for Planning and Parliamentary Affairs and Prof. M. Ramadoss, member of Parliament. Mr. P. Chidambaram inaugu- rated the School of Manage- ment building and went on to address the faculty mem- bers and students in the Jawaharlal Nehru audito- rium. The Pondicherry Uni- versity FM Community Radio Station, “Puduvai Vaani” was also inaugurated by Mr. V. Narayanasamy on this occasion with a live broadcast from the audito- rium. Mr. P. Chidambaram congratulated the university for recognizing the synergy between economics, civil society and public service. He urged the students to apply management skills not only towards earning money and building careers, but also towards various fields of public service. Emphasizing this he said, “I do hope that many of you will join our public services and add value to nation build- ing through managing our traffic, health and education systems, space programmes and infrastructure devel- opment. The years to come will be better than the years that have gone by. The 21st century will belong to India and Asia. You have the great opportu- nity to make India a bright star in the firmament.” He credited India’s stability during the recent global economic downturn to her resilience as a tough player in the global market. “India’s economic policies were strong and Indian banks were strong, so we were able to hold through the economic crisis,” he said in affirmation. He attributed the 9% economic growth to the hard work of the people in the agricultural, service and industrial sectors. Speaking about the current onslaught of terrorism, he voiced the government’s position on this to spare no efforts to curb this menace, adding that this duty can only be discharged with the willing cooperation and support of the general public as well. Mr. V. Narayanswamy in his address appealed for the need for social unity in these trying times. He echoed the Prime Minister’s vision for Pondicherry University to become a world class institution. Prof. M. Ramadoss also hoped that the univer- sity would be recognised as a centre for excellence. Curtain Raiser Wishing a fulfiling year ahead to all our readers. May this year be a harbinger of wellbeing, peace, creativity and achievement for you. An increasingly vibrant campus has yet another new entrant this year. We are happy to bring to you the first issue of The Inquirer a newspaper brought out by the students of M.A. Mass Communication, Pondicherry University. e spirit of commitment to the larger community by the university is also the raison d’etre of The Inquirer . It aspires to connect academia with the world of happenings that impact and reflect issues and concerns confronting humanity today. Over the last few months, the students have engaged in several discussions and practical exer- cises on reporting and feature writing. ey have stepped out of the classroom into the field – with their pens, microphones and cameras – and endeavoured to bring you stories from the campus and the community. Envisioned as a multi lingual venture, we begin with stories in English and Tamil and hope to bring you content in other regional languages in the future. In this issue, we bring you a round-up of important events that enriched campus life in “Campus Buzz 2008”. “e Wings of the Muse” bring culture and arts on the centrestage. We report on two renowned visitors to our neighbourhood - His Holiness the Dalai Lama and avant-garde dancer - choreographer Astad Deboo. While “Expres- sions” showcases the creative writing skills of the students, “Humanscape” brings you their attempts to explore social concerns related to human development. We sign off with “Potpourri” – a mix of columns to inform, educate and entertain you. is publication is a result of the team work of students, faculty and guest faculty. We invite you to write in and participate in the efforts towards community jour- nalism. Do send us your views, feedback and suggestions at [email protected] so that we can serve you better. The Inquirer is also available online at www.pondiuni.edu.in Finally, we wish to thank our Vice-Chancellor, Prof. J.A.K. Tareen and Director of Culture and Cultural Relations, Prof. A. Balasubramanian for their encouragement. Radhika Khanna Faculty “You have the great opportunity to make India a bright star in the firmament” Clockwise: Union Home Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram. Pondicherry University Vice-Chancellor Prof. J.A.K.Tareen, Mr. P. Chidambaram, Mr. V. Narayanasamy, Prof. M. Ramadoss, Mr. S. Loganathan at the inauguration of the School of Management building. Prof. J.A.K. Tareen, Mr. P. Chidambaram, Mr. V. Narayanasamy, Prof. M. Ramadoss as the University anthem plays. On the Wings of the Muse Pages 4-5 Spotlighting cultural values and the arts Campus Buzz 2008 Pages 2-3 A retrospective of activities in the university Potpourri Page 8 A mixed bag of opinions and observations Humanscape Page 7 Looking at society and trends in development Expressions Page 6 Tamil fiction, poems, a feature and Cartoonscape For private circulaon I have pleasure in presenting the first issue of "The Inquirer" - a students practice journal brought out by the Department of Mass Communica- tion and Electronic Media, created in 2007 with the support of the University Grants Commission. is is the first step in a journey of a thousand miles. With the expert train- ing and exposure that these students receive, I am sure that they will be able to secure rewarding niches for them- selves in the world of media and journalism. I wish this venture every success. May "The Inquirer" symbolise journalistic teaching and training at its best. V.C.'s Message Prof. J.A.K. Tareen STOP PRESS : Vice-Chancellor, Prof. J. A. K. Tareen receives Padma Shri Award on the 60th Republic Day.

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THE INQUIRERInside

A Students Prac&ce Journal of the Centre for Electronic Media and Mass Communica&on, Pondicherry University

Vol. 1 No. 1 January, 2009 www. pond i u n i . e d u . i n

Union Home Minister on CampusPuducherry: Union HomeMinister P. Chidambaramvisited Pondicherry Univer-sity on Dec. 27, 2008. Hewas accompanied by Mr. V.Narayanasamy, Union Min-ister of State for Planningand Parliamentary Affairsand Prof. M. Ramadoss,member of Parliament. Mr.P. Chidambaram inaugu-rated the School of Manage-ment building and went onto address the faculty mem-bers and students in theJawaharlal Nehru audito-rium.

The Pondicherry Uni-versity FM CommunityRadio Station, “PuduvaiVaani” was also inauguratedby Mr. V. Narayanasamy onthis occasion with a livebroadcast from the audito-rium.

Mr. P. Chidambaramcongratulated the universityfor recognizing the synergybetween economics, civilsociety and public service.He urged the students toapply management skillsnot only towards earningmoney and buildingcareers, but also towardsvarious fields of public service.Emphasizing this he said, “I do hopethat many of you will join our publicservices and add value to nation build-ing through managing our traffic,health and education systems, spaceprogrammes and infrastructure devel-opment. The years to come will bebetter than the years that have gone by.The 21st century will belong to India

and Asia. You have the great opportu-nity to make India a bright star in thefirmament.”

He credited India’s stability duringthe recent global economic downturnto her resilience as a tough player inthe global market. “India’s economicpolicies were strong and Indian bankswere strong, so we were able to holdthrough the economic crisis,” he said

in affirmation. He attributed the 9%economic growth to the hard work ofthe people in the agricultural, serviceand industrial sectors.

Speaking about the currentonslaught of terrorism, he voiced thegovernment’s position on this to spareno efforts to curb this menace, addingthat this duty can only be dischargedwith the willing cooperation and

support of the general public as well.Mr. V. Narayanswamy in his

address appealed for the need forsocial unity in these trying times. Heechoed the Prime Minister’s vision forPondicherry University to become aworld class institution. Prof. M.Ramadoss also hoped that the univer-sity would be recognised as a centrefor excellence.

Curtain RaiserWishing a fulfiling year ahead to allour readers. May this year be aharbinger of wellbeing, peace,creativity and achievement for you.

An increasingly vibrant campushas yet another new entrant thisyear. We are happy to bring to youthe first issue of TheInquirer – a newspaperbrought out by the students ofM.A. Mass Communication,Pondicherry University. e spiritof commitment to the largercommunity by the university isalso the raison d’etre of TheInquirer . It aspires toconnect academia with the worldof happenings that impact andreflect issues and concernsconfronting humanity today.

Over the last few months, thestudents have engaged in severaldiscussions and practical exer-cises on reporting and featurewriting. ey have stepped out of

the classroom into the field – withtheir pens, microphones andcameras – and endeavoured tobring you stories from thecampus and the community.

Envisioned as a multi lingualventure, we begin with stories inEnglish and Tamil and hope tobring you content in otherregional languages in the future.In this issue, we bring you around-up of important eventsthat enriched campus life in“Campus Buzz 2008”. “eWings of the Muse” bring cultureand arts on the centrestage. Wereport on two renowned visitorsto our neighbourhood - HisHoliness the Dalai Lama andavant-garde dancer-choreographerAstad Deboo. While “Expres-sions” showcases the creativewriting skills of the students,“Humanscape” brings you theirattempts to explore social

concerns related to humandevelopment. We sign off with“Potpourri” – a mix of columns toinform, educate and entertainyou.is publication is a result of the

team work of students, facultyand guest faculty. We invite youto write in and participate in theefforts towards community jour-nalism.

Do send us your views,feedback and suggestions [email protected] so thatwe can serve you better. TheInquirer is also availableonline at www.pondiuni.edu.inFinally, we wish to thank our

Vice-Chancellor, Prof. J.A.K.Tareen and Director of Cultureand Cultural Relations, Prof.A. Balasubramanian for theirencouragement.

Radhika KhannaFaculty

“You have the great opportunity to make India a bright star in the firmament”

Clockwise: Union Home Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram.Pondicherry University Vice-Chancellor Prof. J.A.K.Tareen, Mr. P. Chidambaram, Mr. V. Narayanasamy, Prof. M. Ramadoss,Mr. S. Loganathan at the inauguration of the School of Management building.Prof. J.A.K. Tareen, Mr. P. Chidambaram, Mr. V. Narayanasamy, Prof. M. Ramadoss as the University anthem plays.

OOnn tthhee WWiinnggss ooff tthhee MMuusseePages 4-5Spotlighting cultural values and the arts

CCaammppuuss BBuuzzzz 22000088Pages 2-3A retrospective of activities in the university

PPoottppoouurrrriiPage 8A mixed bag of opinionsand observations

HHuummaannssccaappeePage 7Looking at society andtrends in development

EExxpprreessssiioonnssPage 6Tamil fiction, poems, afeature and Cartoonscape

For private circula&on

I have pleasure in presenting the firstissue of "The Inquirer" - a students practice journal brought out bythe Department of Mass Communica-tion and Electronic Media, created in2007 with the support of the UniversityGrants Commission.

is is the first step in a journey of athousand miles. With the expert train-ing and exposure that these students receive, I am sure that they will be ableto secure rewarding niches for them-selves in the world of media and journalism.

I wish this venture every success.May "The Inquirer" symbolisejournalistic teaching and training at itsbest.

V.C.'s Message

Prof. J.A.K. Tareen

STOP PRESS : Vice-Chancellor, Prof. J. A. K. Tareen receives Padma Shri Award on the 60th Republic Day.

2

Puducherry: Prakriti 2008, a festi-val of Indian documentary filmson environment, development andhuman rights was held from Oct.15-17, 2008. It was organised bythe Pondicherry University in collaboration with Consortium forEducational Communication(CEC) of the University GrantsCommission (UGC).

Union Minister of State forHuman Resource Development,M.A.A. Fatimi inaugurated the festival. He said that the educa-tional channels might soon become part of the direct to homebouquet of Doordarshan. Headded that the Ministry of HumanResource Development had intro-duced several educational channelsto provide knowledge to students,teachers and common people.

In the 11th five year plan, prior-ity was given to enhance higher education from 10% to 15%. “Wehave to expand capacities to accommodate seven million morestudents at tertiary level. e Consortium for Educational Com-munication (CEC) has an impor-tant role in achieving this target.e UGC, the CEC and its 17media centres were geared-up tomake available courseware in e-content format to the targetedgroup with the help of multimedia.ese courses will help significantly

to overcome inadequacy of humanresources and teachers in variousparts of the country,” he said.

Dr. Talik R. Kem, Director of CECspoke briefly about CEC and itsnationwide network of EducationMedia Centre. CEC is the apex institution of countrywide classroom television. It has been promoting indigenously producededucation enrichment pro-grammes, which upgrade, update

and enrich the quality of informa-tion and knowledge available to theyouth of the country and the audi-ence at large, for more than 24years now, he said.

Dr. Rajendra Mishra, research scientist of CEC said, “Prakritimeans Nature. Guided by our belief in reorienting education towards sustainable development,Prakriti indicates our strong emphasis on establishing directlinkages between youth, develop-ment awareness and people’s participation.”

Vice-Chancellor of PondicherryUniversity, Prof. J.A.K. Tareen saidthat a university should have connectivity with society and

surroundings. “Media is an impor-tant tool in helping in this connec-tivity. We have converted agodown into a media centre at theuniversity. is is only a temporaryarrangement and we will come upwith a huge building for the centre,” he added.

e films screened at the festivalwere Hollow Cylinder and eHomecoming produced by Nan-dan Saxena and Kavita Bahl,Morachi Chincholi by BalakrishnaDamle, Broken Hearth and We ePeople by Supurna Sarkar, OurFamily by Anjali Monteiro and K.P.Jayasankar, Anant Kalakar by Sudheer Gupta, Miller Of Haipi byEMMRC, Manipur, to name afew. e films dealt with environ-mental issues, development andhuman rights.

Our Family received a standingovation by the audience. e producers of the film who werepresent at the festival interactedwith the students giving them important ideas on film produc-tion and details on the various issues they had covered throughtheir films. ey also received thefeedback of the audience whichhad many comments and ques-tions following the screenings.

Puducherry: A mega job fair fromWipro for BPO sector was held onSept. 18-19, 2008 at PondicherryUniversity. e event was for immediate requirements at WiproBPO. Various students ofPondicherry University and otheraffiliated colleges attended the jobfair.

Speaking about the eligibilityfor BPO jobs, Mr. Praveen Kamath, Associate Vice-Presidentof Talent Acquisition and Employee Branding, Wipro BPOsaid, “ose who have commandover English, who have ability toshowcase right attitude and com-mon sense, willing to groom andinterested to work in shis canwalk in. Since the competitionvenue is the entire globe one needsto adapt to the environment, unlearn old things and relearnnew things.”

He also cited the achievementsof their company in recent years.Wipro BPO has approximately22,000 employees across 12 loca-tions, seven in India and five out-side the country. “We recruit10,000 to 12,000 employees on ayearly basis. is year we are visit-ing cities and places where peopledo not normally visit,” he said. Healso expressed his wish tostrengthen ties with various

Pondicherry institutions so as tomeet the rapidly growing need forfresh talent.

Mr. Kamath also extended hiswarm gratitude to Prof. A. Bala-subramanian, Director of Cultureand Cultural Relations,Pondicherry University for his active participation in organizingsuch a programme which hasopened more avenues of employ-ment for the youth.

Prof. A. Balasubramanian, saidin the inaugural speech that theglobal employment opportunitiesdepend upon the competenciesand skills that one acquires over aperiod of time. He stressed gradu-ates and postgraduates should acquire the competencies andskills required in the InformationCommunication Technology(ICT) and Information Technol-ogy (IT) industries.

“You need to prepare a checklistof where you will be aer twoyears or what you should do aertwo years and how you are goingto reach the destination. Trainingis an investment and is of greathelp in the job market. In the workculture, the talent, skillful andknowledgeable persons will nothave tension. You need to mouldyour life to work at ease,” hepointed out. He also assured thestudents of further job fairs in thenear future.

Mr. S.K.V. Jayakumar, Place-ment Coordinator of the Univer-sity said that 1,100 candidates wereplaced in different companies inthe previous year. “With regard tothe departments of the university,we have been achieving cent percent placement in the last tenyears,” he said.

Films for Educational Communication Cycle rally onWorldTourism Day

Puducherry: On Sept. 27, 2008 acycle rally on eco-awareness was organized by the Department ofTourism Studies in collaborationwith Pondicherry Tourism Develop-ment Corporation to celebrateWorld Tourism Day.

Students joined in large numbersin the cycle rally. It started fromHotel Ashoka at Kalapet. It wasflagged off by Mr. Malladi KrishnaRao, Honourable Minister ofTourism, in the presence of Mr. S. Loganathan, Registrar ofPondicherry University.

A workshop was also organized on“Tourism Responding to the Chal-lenges of Climate Change” whichdiscussed measures to save the environment in order to enhance thetourism sector.

Rinoy BasumataryMass Communication

Monalisha BasumataryMass Communication

Jitendriya Jena Mass Communication

Puducherry: e Ananda Rangapil-lai Library of Pondicherry Univer-sity and UGC INFLIBNET Centre,Ahmedabad organized a two dayUGC INFONET Digital LibraryConsortium User Awareness Programme for faculty, researchscholars and students of the univer-sity on Sept. 25-26, 2008.

Inaugurating the programme,Vice-Chancellor of the UniversityProf. J.A.K. Tareen spoke on his vision of making the institution aworld class university and appealedto every research scholar and facultyto have the capability and intellec-tual calibre to compete with otherscholars in institutions of excellence.

He said that the ongoing project ofmaking the campus Wi-Fi would allowany student or faculty to do research at leisure working on one’slaptop at the canteen or on the lawnsof the campus.

Prof. J.A.K. Tareen hoped that thissort of research culture would enable the University’s score of access of UGC-INFONET e-re-sources to move consortia, facilitat-ing research with the maximumreturn of investment for the fundingauthorities.

Displaying usage statistics of

e-resources by the University, hesaid it ranked seventh in position incomparison to over 150 Universitiesin the country. e University hadmoved from the eighth rank in 2006to seventh in 2007 with nearly a lakhdownloads of full text research arti-cles. It had contributed about 846 research papers since 1987, with3,926 citations at an average of 4.64citations per article, he added.

Pondicherry University was amember of the consortia of over 150universities in the country for accessto over 5,000 e-resources includingelectronic journals and electronicdatabases for major publishers. eUGC INFONET consortium was established three years ago.

Around 15 international publish-ers made presentations on enhan-cing search skills on this occasion.

INFONET WORKSHOP

Rinoy BasumataryMass Communication

PondicherryPondicherryUUniversityniversity

Campus Buzz 2008

“We have to expand capacities toaccommodate seven millionmore students at tertiary level.CEC has an important role inachieving this target.”

The partnering of industry and academia – a future in the making !

Tejas JosephGuest Faculty

Talent hunting for BPO Jobs

THE INQUIRER January, 2009

University-Industry Council Meets at PU

For long has the association betweenindustry and the world of academiaremained distinct and separated.Whilst the academic world providedtalent to industry through the market, there was little active collaboration between them in pursuit of common objectives.However, the coming of a globalmarketplace and the rapid shi towards a knowledge based economy the world over is now beginning to blur the divide between the hitherto separatedworlds of academia and industry.

Today the world of industry is beginning to wake up to the realitythat our universities can be used tostimulate, incubate and fulfil a widevariety of research goals. ey arecatchments of great talent, which

can be used for the benefit of indus-try, academia, the economy and society at large. Many governmentsin developing nations are realizingthe potential inherent in such an association and are beginning to actively encourage it.

e 3rd University-IndustryCouncil Symposium was held at thePondicherry University on Nov. 21-22, 2008. It was an evolving step inthis new and emerging partnershipbetween Indian industry and Indianacademic institutions. Titled “FutureStrategies: Action Now,” this sympo-sium, sponsored by the Confedera-tion of Indian Industry, put thefocus on the benefits that could accrue from such an exchange. efour sessions of the symposium weredevoted to the key elements that

defined such partnering and how torealize it in practice. ey were anchored by eminent resource people from India and abroadknown for their expertise and deepunderstanding of this emergingtrend. e symposium overviewedthose factors needed for a successfulmarriage between institutions oflearning and industry, along withthe difficulties and challenges thatsuch an encounter could generate.

e roles of Government, univer-sities and industrial associationswere analysed along with the policies, incentives and initiativesneeded to foster and strengthensuch partnerships.

3

Puducherry: e Association ofIndian Universities andPondicherry University jointly organized a two-day South ZoneVice-Chancellors Conference atPondicherry University on Sept.11-13, 2008.

Eminent academician Prof.Anandha Krishnan delivered thekeynote address. e central themeof the conference was ‘Basic ScienceEducation and Research: Constraints and Challenges of Universities’. Vice–Chancellorsfrom the South discussed variousissues concerning the declining interest in basic sciences and waysand means to create a sustained interest in research in scienceamong students.

Inaugurating the conference, thePresident of Association of IndianUniversities, Prof. A.M. Pathansaid, “e declining interest inbasic sciences is a universal trendand is not new to India. We needto find out ways to address the chal-lenges.”

Pondicherry University Vice-Chancellor, Prof. J.A.K. Tareen saidthat there are different factors contributing to the declining inter-est in basic sciences. “One of thefactors is the drive of the job market. Students prefer to look foropenings immediately aer completing their graduation. eyare pulled towards areas like bio-informatics, biotechnology, man-

agement and information technol-ogy sector. ere is no good investment in science education.e bulk of grants are going to IITs.Regular universities have been producing manpower for the suste-nance of the country’s industriesfor the last 50 years. ey get lowerfunding,” he added.

D. Purandeswari, Union Minis-ter of State for Higher Education, inher presidential address said thatthe government has also come outwith a task force which would lookinto the matter regarding the decline in science education.

Prof. A. Gnanam, former Vice-Chancellor of the university andChairman of National Assessmentand Accreditation Council saidthat the declining interest in funda-mental sciences is not only restricted to subjects such asphysics and chemistry but also forelectrical and mechanical engineer-

ing disciplines.Academicians

however cameout with anumber of solutions tosolve the crisis.Dr. ArunaS i v a g a m i ,Vice-Chancel-lor, Mother e r e s aWomen Uni-versity said

that there should be wide spreademphasis on encouraging studentsto take up basic science coursesfrom the school level, to create sustained interest in students.

Prof. J.A.K. Tareen suggestedthat the attention of studentsshould be drawn towards scienceswith an assurance of a career in theparticular stream. ere is also aneed for change in policy of thegovernment for sustained grants foruniversities rather than one-timegrants. “Government should try toimprove funding and initiate devel-opment of basic science educationand science laboratories,” he added.

At the end of the conference, acultural extravaganza was performed by the students of theuniversity in the evening.

South Zone Vice-Chancellors Conference in Pondicherry UniversityPuducherry: On Sept. 17, 2008, theDepartment of International Busi-ness organized the industry-insti-tute interface on Global EconomicDownturn.

Dr. Mohan K. Pillai, Professor andHead, Department of InternationalBusiness welcomed the gathering.Mr. M. Manoharan, faculty member highlighted the scope ofthe seminar.

Vice-Chancellor, Prof. J. A. K.Tareen, in his presidential addresslaid emphasis on mass momentumand steady government economicpolicies to counter global economicdownturn.

Mr. D. Sampath Kumar, AssociateEditor, Business Line, in hiskeynote address, gave a statisticalreview of rate of growth and economic activities in USA. “If theU.S.A. suffers from any economicgrowth, its effect is felt throughoutthe globe. One percent of reductionof growth in USA is 0.5% in Europe and 0.75% in India. ecrude oil rate increased from 45$ to70$ per barrel and India struggledto cope with this international scenario. Current micro policies, oilsector, rise of per capita income in

U.S.A have all led to a crisis inglobal finance,” he said.

He also urged for steady govern-ment policies to tackle the presenteconomic crisis which is nowprevalent and gave a surprisinglook towards our policy makersciting the example of Singur.

Dr. Panneerselvam, Dean, Schoolof Management, and Mr. S. Kaund-heya, Chief Executive Officer, i-Horse BPO Solutions Pvt. Ltd., intheir felicitation address addedsome fuel to the discussion askingto focus on the local markets.

In the panel discussion, Dr. K.Jaffer, Chairperson, ETA Ascon,West Asia Exports Ltd., gave importance to the political and social stability in the world to address this problem.“Unemployment, insecurity, infla-

tion are to blamed for this crisis,”said Mr. B. Nedumaran, Head, Corporate Affairs, Ma Foi. He alsogave importance to employability,multi-skill personality, and use ofhuman resources to tackle the current situation.

The Global Economic DownturnNo need for panic

Arathi KrishnakumarRinoy BasumatarySuja DasMass Communication

Puducherry: Pondicherry Univer-sity will soon have Wi-Fi facilitiesenabled in the entire campus. euniversity has plans to approachlaptop manufacturers to offer students and partial bank supportto buy them.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited(BSNL), Puducherry entered into aformal agreement to establish anintegrated communication networkat the campus. Vice-Chancellor ofthe university Prof. J.A.K. Tareensaid, “We are making the entirecampus Wi-Fi enabled so that thestudents will be in a position to access information anywhere in thecampus. At a cost of Rs. 2 crore,the work has commenced and theproject will be completed soon.BSNL would look aer the projectfor the next three years,” he said.“BSNL has started to lay optical

fibre connecting 44 buildings in theuniversity campus including hostels. ey are using 25 km of optical fibre for the work, ” GeneralManager of BSNL, Puducherry, R. Marshal Antony Leo said.

Once the project is completed theuniversity will have all the communication infrastructures likeoptical fibre connectivity to allbuildings, IP voice telephones to allfaculty and officers, wireless inter-net throughout the campus andstructured calling network for allbuildings.

Deputy General Manager Telcom, BSNL, A. Robert J. Ravi,said that there will be a in-built security system and only systemsauthenticated by nodal inchargecould enter the network.

Wi-Fi enabled campus soon

Jitendriya JenaMass Communication

Monalisha BasumataryMass Communication

Puducherry: A seminar onhigher studies in UnitedKingdom was organized bythe British Council and theDean of Students Welfare onSept. 19, 2008. Dr. K.M.Tamizhmani, Dean of Students Welfare deliveredthe welcome address.

L. Dhansekaran, Head, Education UK, gave a briefintroduction about the BritishCouncil. He said that theBritish Council is UK’s inter-national organization for educational opportunitiesand cultural relations and itspurpose is to build mutuallybeneficial relationships between people in UK andIndia through collaborationsin arts, culture, education,science and technology.

“e International EnglishLanguage Testing System(IELTS) was a must for Masters in Business Adminis-

tration. We advise that students take the IELTS as itwill help in getting admis-sions and at the time of getting visa. In case studentshave any difficulty in Englishcommunication skills, thenIELTS gives an opportunityfor them to get additionalsupport from universities before the starting of thecourse through pre-sessionEnglish programmes,” hesaid.

The British council is actively functioning in 109countries and 227 towns andcities worldwide. “We are currently working in the areasof English language teaching,building education and research collaborationsthrough the UK India Educa-tion and Research Initiative,”he added.

R. Nim Bahadur, Managerof Education UK, gave a brief

introduction on scholarshipsfor students pursuing theirhigher studies in UK. eycan apply for scholarshipssuch as CommonwealthShared Scholarships Scheme,Dorothy Hodgkin Postgradu-ate Awards and other fellowship plans. Britishscholarships include reim-bursement of tuition fees andboarding expenses.Regarding selection of universities, he said a Quality Assurance Agency in UK visits individual departmentsof universities and checks oncategories such as course content, curriculum, teachersexperience, research activi-ties, projects, percentage ofstudents who pass and howsoon students get employ-ment.

Puducherry: Different sportsevents were organized by the Dept.of Physical Education, PondicherryUniversity.

Inter-collegiate Cricket Tourna-ment was held from Sept. 22-30,2008 in which 32 teams partici-pated. Tagore Arts College won thetrophy defeating Pondicherry University Community College.

e Kabadi competition was heldfrom Sept. 18-20 at Karaikal inwhich 15 teams participated.Pondicherry University won thechampionship defeating AAGSACollege, Karaikal.

e badminton competition washeld at Yenam from Sept. 29-30.e Rajiv Gandhi Engineering

College won the trophy and thePondicherry Engineering Collegewas the runners up.

Dr. P.K Subramanian, Head,Dept. of Physical Education spoketo The Inquirer. He said, “eDept. of Physical Education selectsthe best players every year for various tournaments held at differ-ent parts of the country. e department needs good coachesand more infrastructure like acricket stadium, and floodlightcourts. We expect to have these inthe near future.”

Jitendriya JenaMass Communication

Opportunities to study abroad

The Sports Pavilion

Rinoy BasumataryMass Communication

Puduchery: ‘Know your University’, amonthly programme organized by theUniversity was held at J.N. auditorium ofPondicherry University on Dec. 22, 2008.Coordinator of the Programme, Prof. S.Murali, Dept. of English gave the welcomeaddress.

The Dept. of Anthropology, Biotechnol-ogy, Subramania Bharathi School of TamilLanguage and Literature shared the working of their departments. Dr. A. Chellaperumal, Reader and Head of Anthropology Department spoke on theprogrammes offered, thrust areas of research and the achievements of the department. The department focuses on“giving voice to the voiceless” and has stud-ied the tribal communities of AndhraPradesh, Andaman and Tamil Nadu andalso has done extension work to get recog-nition for tribals in Puducherry. In the future, the department plans to strengthenvisual anthropology and establish an anthropology museum.The Biotechnology Department’s activi-

ties were summarized by the Head of thedepartment, Dr. M. Sakthivel. He shared

that though established in 1992 as a centre, it was upgraded to a department in1999. The department has recently got thefirst U.S. patent to protect findings on“Dimer of phenazine-1-carboxylic acid.” Thedepartment has completed 12 researches andhas 8 ongoing projects. Their research collaborators include Kansas State Univer-sity, USA and Danish Government Institute,Denmark.

The audience next got to know the Subra-mania Bharathi School of Tamil Languageand Literature. Prof. S. Arokiyanathan said,“The department was established in 1986 inKaraikal and later transferred in 1987 toPuducherry.” The department has got a Kam-ban chair to do research on the Ramayana epic.They have done several UGC research proj-ects which include the dictionary of Siddhaliterature and dictionary of Tamil folklore. Athematic volume is also brought out eachyear by the department.

In his concluding address, the Vice-Chan-cellor, Prof. J.A.K. Tareen said that the pro-gramme effectively contributed to sharingwith each other.

Know your University

Arathi KrishnakumarMass Communication

Campus Buzz 2008

Departmental exchanges: Anthropology, Biotechnology,Subramania Bharathi School of Tamil Language and Literature

THE INQUIRER January, 2009

Seminar on higher education in UK

THE INQUIRER January, 20094

Hola Mohalla Festival, Anandpur Sahib -Nilay Jyoti Talukdar

Five Rathas, Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu - Nilay Jyoti Talukdar

Mall Road, Shimla - Kiranjit Baruah

Bike Rickshaw, Gujarat - Tanul Trivedy

Students of SAIMC (Sri Aurobindo Institute of MassCommunication), New Delhiexhibited their work inPuducherry from Dec. 23-28,2008. ey started their jour-ney from New Delhi on June14th 2008, and exhibited their photographs at AllianceFrançaise (New Delhi); Exhibi-tion House, Sri AurobindoAshram (Puducherry); GallerySquare Circle, Kala Kendra(Auroville) and ended on Jan.11, 2009 at Lalit Kala Academy(Chennai).

Nitin Rai, Head, Creative Photography, SAIMC says,“Learning photography doesnot mean just becoming tech-nically good; utmost impor-tance is given to evolve theinner vision. Photographers

must see things that a lay person can’t see. ey must develop the sensitivity and discipline of the medium tocapture the right moment in itsrightful space. ey should beobservant of the smallest detailsaround them.” e works of hisstudents evokes the varied waysin which people relate to situa-tions and environments. Reflecting myriad moods andexpressions of the people, thephotographs communicatetheir ways of seeing.An exhibition such as this show-casing the work of students inspires and encourages youthpeople to come out and expresstheir talents and share them withthe larger community.

1st ANNUAL EXHIBITION( PHOTOGRAPHY STUDENTS 2007-08, SAIMC ) Call for

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[email protected]

Human unity and Universal amity: a timeless message for a globalizing world societyThe Dalai Lama in our neighbourhood!!

A decade into the new millenniumhas already borne witness to a star-tling number of changes and devel-opments. e phenomenal growthof the Asian economy, the unsettlingspectre of terrorism and the shrink-ing of time and space due to the internet are some of these. Also onrecord is the growing awareness fora more sustainable way of life by theworld community and the deeplonging for harmony and under-standing amongst the different nations of the world in a rapidlyglobalizing environment.

We went to hear the charismaticand renowned spiritual and politi-cal leader of Tibet, the Dalai Lama,on Jan. 20 when he visited Aurovilleto inaugurate the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture. Perhaps it was ordained that this event to celebratehuman unity coincided with another significant one in the west-ern world – that of the swearing inof Barack Obama, America’s firstcoloured president – that bespeaksof new times to come in world poli-tics!

Tibetan culture, according to HisHoliness, is representative of compassion, non-violence andgoodwill to all. ese qualities aresorely needed in today’s world. Material development alone is not aguarantee for peace. As life dependson a compassionate cultural her-itage, it is important to make effortsfor its preservation wherever it may

be found, he noted.In the address that followed, he

requested the services of a transla-tor so that he could convey his respect and greetings along with histhoughts and ideas to the local people present. Buddhism was oneof ancient India’s foremost examplesof radical thinking and philosophi-cal sophistication, he expounded.“We always consider Indians our

gurus, while we are the chelas”, hequipped. He expressed his deepestadmiration and regard for old Indian Buddhist masters, logicians,and thinkers such as Nagarjuna andBodhidharma (the founder of Zen),both of whom hailed from southIndia. With his characteristic humility he asserted, “I am just an ordinary and ignorant humanbeing. I am like a messenger andcommunicator of ancient Indianthought; the real owners of that

thought are you.”Speaking about the various crises

that gripped the world in its relent-less grasp presently, he pointed outthat an extremely self-centered atti-tude was at the source of much personal and collective sufferingthat humankind experienced. Disdain for the culture and ways oflife of others generated a harmfulviewpoint that led to war and

conflict. Emotional attachments – toone’s own thinking and preferredway of life - are mostly mental projections which limit our worldview and obstruct our vision for ahappier and better world for all. Heassured us that if we learnt to consider ‘the other’ as being moreimportant than ourselves, then wecould develop genuine empathy.Such an expansive feeling for ourfellow beings would be one that was‘being oriented” rather than “action-

oriented” and capable of transcend-ing prejudice and reaction. Devel-oping a sense of concern for the wellbeing of all will not come sponta-neously and requires training and anew type of reasoning, he stressed.is is the role of the education oftomorrow. Its responsibility is agreat one as it will have to changeold patterns of thought and behav-iour to create a new world where

human unity and universal responsibil-ity is on everyone’sagenda.

Turning his atten-tion to health, hestated that the physicalwellbeing of the bodyis affected by our mental and emotionalstates. Positive mentalattitudes help bodilyhealth. To illustratethis he shared with ushis experience aer a

recent surgery he underwent for theremoval of his gall bladder. oughit was a complicated surgery lastingalmost three hours, he recovered ina week’s time. He attributed hisquick recovery to his genial, jovialand calm mental state. e pursuitof peace and happiness can also betreated as a secular scientific enter-prise. Just like secular medicine wasused to treat disease, the practice ofmindfulness and whole-heartednesswere tools that could be employed

in the service of individual and societal health and happiness, hestrongly felt.

e concept of ‘universal respon-sibility’ has become the core of hispolitical thought and philosophytoday. He has repeated time andagain that this is his “first commit-ment”; the others being inter-reli-gious dialogue and the cause ofTibet. During the past years, HisHoliness has talked extensivelyabout ethics and the ethical life asbeing the only ways to save theplanet and humankind from chaosand destruction. is approach applied not only to the fields of environmental protection, business,administration or education, but toall fields of life equally. For him,ethics are fundamental and deephuman values that help to put humankind, not only man, at thecentre of our thoughts.

is is the first step towards whathe calls ‘universal responsibility’ – anew world order in the making andone that we will all have to learn topartake in. He ended the sessionwith a heart warming salute andplea to the young, both in the audience and in the world at large, saying , “You are the 21st generationand hope lies with you.”

Radhika KhannaRinoy BasumatoryTejas JosephV. Nathy

The Dalai Lama inaugurates the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture, AurovillePhoto: Olivier, Auroville

Young Aurovillians in Tibetan attire with the Dalai LamaPhoto: Ireno Guerci, Auroville

The Dalai Lama visits the Matri Mandir, Auroville. Photo: Ireno Guerci, AurovilleIn conversation with the Dalai Lama. Photo: Olivier, Auroville

5

Astad Deboo is a uniquedancer. Though classicallytrained, he is by definition apractitioner of moderndance. Astad Deboo can besingle handedly credited withbringing experimentalistmodern dance forms to theIndian stage.

He is known for his workwith small creative groupswith whom he takes two elements of dance - improvi-sation and experiment - tonew and untried heights.Blending and fusing diversemovements – from gymnas-tics, martial arts and classicaldance – within a theatricalformat in support of abstractthemes is his forte.

Astad trained in Kathakwith Prahlad Das in Kolkattaand with E.K. Panicker inKathakali in Kerala. Both

these dance forms are distinctfrom each other. One givesimportance to whole bodymovements (particularly thelimbs), whilst the other concentrates on facial expressions and delicate handgestures. To this native reper-toire he has added his experi-ences from modern dance inAmerica and Europe, study-ing under renowned dancerslike Martha Graham, PinaBausch and Alison Chase.Armed with this eclectic bagof skills he has experimentedwith a variety of forms,themes, concepts and performance spaces and has collaborated with otherdancers, composers and designers to create innovativeworks of aesthetic value allover the world.

Recipient of the Sangeet

Natak Akademi Award forCreative Dance in 1995,Astad Deboo has performedat the Great Wall of China,with the cult rock band fromthe 70’s, Pink Floyd, in London and at the 50th anniversary of the AmericanDance Festival. Deboo wascommissioned by fashion designer Pierre Cardin tochoreograph a dance for MaiaPlissetskaia, prima ballerinaof the Bolshoi Ballet.

He has given commandperformances for the royalfamilies of Japan and Thailand. He was the first contemporary dancer to perform at the Elephanta andKhajuraho festivals and hasconducted workshops at theLondon School of Contem-porary Dance and the ChinaAkademy of Arts, Beijing.

Apart from his various collaborations with groupsand individuals abroad, he isknown for his commitmentto working with the ActionPlayers of Kolkata. Alsoknown as the “Deaf Group”,this is a group of theatre anddance professionals who arehearing impaired. He alsoworks with the Hula group ofManipur known for theirhighly gymnastic/martial artsoriented movements.

Artistic performances affect audiences in differentways – from entertaining andinforming to provoking andinspiring. Astad Deboo seemsto situate his audience in anew category altogether, thatof speechless wonder!

The Poetry of Human Motion

Photos courtesy: Astad Deboo Dance Company and Kala Kendra, Auroville.

Art Gallery

Radhika Khanna Faculty

Tejas Joseph Guest Faculty

The Dance form of Astad Deboo

K. Vasanth. M.A. Mass Communication

Iyappan. E M.A. Mass Communication

Pondicherry University launches community FM Puduvai Vaani 107.8 MHz. The new Community Radio Service (CRS), initiated and imple-mented by Pondicherry University is now on air with its transmission from 6- 10 a.m., 1 - 2 p.m., 5 - 9 p.m. on weekdays (Programmes in Tamil) and 6 a.m.to 6 p.m. on saturdays and sundays (Programmes in Tamil, English and other languages). The FM reaches a distance of about 20 km radius from the university campus. Besides the faculty and students of the university, programmes are also presented by the people of the community. The language of broadcasting primarily includes Tamil and English.Puduvai Vaani has been started with an aim to create awareness among people to improve the quality of their lives. Puduvai Vaaniis the public broadcaster to awaken, inform, enlighten, educate and entertain. Including programmes on women empowerment,communal harmony, health and education, it aspires to voice various developmental issues and concerns. It brings out the hidden talents of the students in and around the University campus and also offers opportunities for the practical sessions forstudents of the Centre for Electronic Media and Mass Communication.

Listeners feedback and suggestions for programming are invited at [email protected]

THE INQUIRER January, 2009

Pondicherry University in Community ServiceOnly

forYou

On the Wings of the Muse

Auroville: On Dec. 29, 2008, AstadDeboo performed “Rhythm Divine” accompanied by the Hula group. Astadwalked the parameter with eight Manipuri dancers at the Bharat Nivas auditorium.

e one and a half hour show witnessed a collage of flying, catapultingand pirouetting human forms to the incredulity and delight of the audience.e movements drawn from the whirlingdervishes of sufism evoked a mood ofsurrender and wonder. One could onlymarvel at the phenomenal control overthe body and its exact movements chore-ographed to great precision yet affordingflexibility and scope for improvisation.e performance provoked various questions in the audience - what we see,is that a symbol or a drum; tradition ormodernity; choreography or philosophy?What are the connotations that we bringto the rhythmic images? Helping us to transcend normal human

experience, Rhythm Divine it was.

HHoorrddeess oonn oouurr rrooaaddss!!

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6

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K a v i d h a i K e l u n g a l . . .

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nt.mwpTf;fdpMass Communication

gj;k= [.m..fh.. jhPd;fy;tpg; gzpapy; rpwe;J tpsq;fpaikf;fhf ,e;jpa murpd; gj;k= tpUJ ngw;w GJit gy;fiyf;fofJizNte;jh;> Nguhrphpah; [.m.fh. jhPd; mth;fis Nguhrphpah;fs;> khzt> khztpah;fs; kw;Wk;mYtyf Copah;fs; rhh;ghf tho;j;JfpNwhk;. JizNte;jh; Nguhrphpah; [.m.fh. jhPd; jyikapy;vq;fspd; fy;tpapid njhlh;e;J tsh;j;Jf; nfhs;tjpy; khzth;fshfpa ehq;fs; kpfTk; ngUkpjk;

nfhs;fpNwhk;.

Mw;wpy;

Child labour is a menace thatthreatens the future of a society, particularly in de-

veloping nations that have not beenable to modernize many of its traditional institutions. Its predom-inance as a social problem over others is reflected inthe high child workparticipation rates inIndia, which is higherthan any other devel-oping country currently.

Child labour contributes signifi-cantly to a poor family’s income. Thelogic (and the mathe-matics) is a simpleone. By keeping chil-dren away fromschool and out atwork – in a variety ofunskilled and casualoccupations – the income of poor fami-lies is considerablyaugmented. However,few understand thelong term losses incurred here. Young children deprived of education lose the abil-ity to widen their horizons andskills, which curtails their growth asindividuals and limits their socialand economic participation as theydevelop into adulthood eventually.This is the ultimate price ( a veryheavy one indeed!) of missing education in the critical years of achild’s development.

I try to illustrate the widespreadnature of this problem with an example (one of many that almostall of us have experienced in Indiancities) from real life that I encoun-tered. I used to take my motorbikefor repairs to a certain workshop,where a boy aged 12 was working. Icalled him over one day and askedhim why he chose to work ratherthan go to school. He revealed tome that his family was very poor(capable of earning only one meal aday at best) and needed his income.

He could not go to school eventhough primary education was provided for free in Tamil Nadualong with a free lunch designed

specifically to upgrade the nutri-tional needs of children from poorhouseholds. Statistics, however, reveal a high dropout rate despitethis “incentive”. The urgency oftheir need, unfortunately, maskedthe importance and value that

education could bring their son oneday. Many are such stories acrossour country.

Until the dawning of the indus-trial revolution, children workedalong with parents and family onfarms. Education had not been institutionalized and children were“schooled” in the ways of life andtrained to meet the social and economic demands of their societies naturally by parents andother family members. The comingof the school as an institution in the industrial era changed this naturallearning rhythm. Children wererecognized as future citizens whowould one day run the political, social and economic institutions ofa nation or society. Formal school-ing prepared them for this.

“Child labour”, which until thenwas natural and routine, now became a human rights issue. Theconstitutions of democratic nationsenshrined the importance and necessity of child education makingit compulsory and legal. However,developing nations, like India, have

found it hard to enforce compul-sory child education upon itsmasses either through lack of polit-ical will or a vision for the future.Indian society (unlike many of itswestern counterparts) is not a homogenous one. It is made up of

many classesand sub groupswith their own social and eco-nomic back-g r o u n d sdiffering fromone another,which makes ithard for a government tocome up with aunifying policyon education.

Poverty andchild labour gotogether. Theywill have to beaddressed intandem.

The childrenof poor fami-lies are forcedto work to pro-

vide economic support (howevermeagre) to their families. Poor families are also large ones withmany mouths to feed. To these people survival is more importantthan the projected “future benefits”of education or social mobility. Outlawing child labour is not thesolution for a country like India.

Our political masters and institu-tions will have to find creative waysto address this problem. Nightschools and support for innovativeNGO programmes is one way.Mandating corporate responsibility(in the various commercial sectorsthat children work in) through providing “valuable educational interventions” is one other. The internet and mobile communica-tions can be levereged to great advantage in helping to bring abouta fully educated Indian societysomeday. To these can be added ahost of dynamic and modular education initiatives(both individ-ual and collective).

New approaches to an old problemChild labour and an emerging Indian society

7

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Sandosh Kumar J. M.Mass Communication

md;gurpMass Communication

Humanscape

Just a few centuries ago therewere no modes of transportation.One finds it hard to believe butthat is the fact. People used towalk to their destination. Evenbullock carts were considered aluxury. And you thought that justwalking to that nearest shopwould be like conquering theEverest.

Over the years many changeshave taken place. Many means oftransportation which have comeinto existence have turned out tobe both a boon and bane tohuman beings. e greatest evidence to this is the growth inthe accident statistics. Pollution isthe other adverse effect known toall.

Anybody who lives in a metrofaces a major challenge on theroads and that is the traffic jam.But have you ever considered why

this occurs? e millions of motorvehicles on the roads of manycountries are the main cause. Butwe turn a blind eye to it. emornings and evenings are therush hours where one is not comfortable even if driving a car.Busy streets are oen jammedwith the “gleaming” cars. Mainroads linking the cities are oentoo crowded.

ey are constantly beingmaintained and improved to relieve crowded conditions. Butthe main streets of many smalltowns are even now clogged withtwo wheelers, buses, cars and evenbicycles. For the commuters, themost hectic part of their scheduleis not when they work but it’s thetime when they have to travel toand fro. What adds more to the increase in crowded traffic condi-tions are the banks which offer

huge two and four wheeler loans.Along with a good number of

increase in vehicles, there is also ahuge rise in accidents. More thanfive thousand accidents are beingfiled in courts every year inPuducherry alone. Knowing this,one can analyse the death toll thathappens each year.

Above all, what contributesmore to our traffic problems arethe small roads which are not extended according to the increase of vehicles and popula-tion. Heavy vehicles find it diffi-cult to pass through the congestedroads which creates more andmore hours of traffic delay.

People are seen standing on thefootboard of crowded buses. It isdue to the inadequate transportsystem that they are literallyforced to do this. e only thingthe people find ironic, is that there

are many buses to the route towhich the number of passengersare less. Don’t believe it? en justthink about how much time youhave wasted just to board thatcrowded bus from Pondy (town)to the university. Your experiencewill tell you that what is said aboveis true. But for some people whotake this as an adventure, just onepiece of advice. ink whetherthis is necessary. Putting your lifein such danger will bring younothing.

However, one thing is for surethat India may be shining but theroad and transport system is not.Its our duty to make our road systems sufficient along with ourgovernment.

(Illustration on facing page)V. ArivoucanyMass Communication

H o r d e s o n o u r r o a d s !The problem of crowding on our roads and streets

Jitendriya Jena Mass Communication

Rinoy BasumataryMass Communication

Tejas JosephGuest Faculty

THE INQUIRER January, 2009

Are you getting enoughsleep? To a large extent, wecan control the quantity

and quality of our sleep. Here aresome tips to help you:

Stick to a sleep schedule. Go tobed and wake up at the same timeeach day - even on the weekends.

Exercise is great but not too latein the day. Avoid exercising closerthan 5 or 6 hours before bedtime. Avoid caffeine and nicotine. e

stimulating effects of caffeine incoffee, colas, teas, and chocolatecan take as long as 8 hours to wearoff fully. Nicotine is also a stimu-lant.

Avoid alcoholic drinks beforebed. A “nightcap” might help youget to sleep, but alcohol keeps youin the lights stages of sleep. Youalso tend to wake up in the mid-dle of the night when the sedatingeffects have worn off.

Avoid large meals and beverageslate at night. A large meal cancause indigestion that interfereswith sleep.

Drinking too many fluids atnight can cause you to awakenfrequently to urinate.

Avoid medicines that delay ordisrupt your sleep, if possible.Some commonly prescribedheart, blood pressure, or asthmamedications, as well as some over-the-counter herbal remedies forcoughs, colds, or allergies, can dis-rupt sleep patterns.

Don’t take naps aer 3 p.m. Napscan boost your brain power, butlate aernoon naps can make itharder to fall asleep at night. Alsokeep naps to under an hour.Relax before bed. Take time to un-wind.

A relaxing activity, such as read-ing or listening to music, shouldbe part of your bedtime ritual.

Take a hot bath before bed. edrop in body temperature aerthe bath may help you feel sleepy,

and the bath can help relax you. Don’t lie in bed awake. If you

find yourself still awake aer stay-ing in bed for more than 20 min-utes, get up and do some relaxingactivity until you feel sleepy. eanxiety of not being able to sleepcan make it harder to fall asleep.Ten foods that help you to get

solid 8 hours of sleep. ey areBananas, Chamomile tea, Warmmilk, Honey, Potatoes, Oatmeal,Almonds, Flaxseeds, Whole-wheat bread and Turkey. e mosteasiest ones are warm milk andwhole-wheat bread.

Warm milk. It’s not a myth. Milkhas some tryptophan, an aminoacid that has a sedative-like effect,and calcium, which helps thebrain use tryptophan. Plus there’sthe psychological throw-back toinfancy, when a warm bottlemeant “relax, everything’s fine.”

Whole-wheat bread. A slice oftoast with your tea and honey willrelease insulin, which helps tryp-tophan get to your brain, whereit’s converted to serotonin andquietly murmurs “time to sleep.”

To have a Good Night’s Sleep

Language is a medium of commu-nication. It reveals the culture andgives an identity to a person. So inorder to communicate with peoplewe need better language.

In India, people follow diverse languages and dialects, out of thesetwenty two are official. It is not possible for everyone to learn all thelanguages for communicating withothers. English is considered as the

universal language, link languageand also an official language. Wecan develop our English skills forbetter means of communication.In this column, we are introducing

some simple tips. ese tips if followed will help improve yourEnglish. Introduction to primary and auxiliary verbs:Primary verbs are:For past tense: was, wereFor present tense: is, am, areFor future tense: will beAuxiliary verbs corresponding to:Was: I, he, she, itWere: we, you, theyIs: he, she, itAm: IAre: they, we, youWill be: I, she, he, it, they, you, we

ere are specific formulas to formsentences using primary and auxiliary verbs:Formula I: Noun - auxiliary - verb -preposition - article - noun

Example: I - am - going - to - the -market.

In the given sentence, I is a noun,am is an auxiliary verb, going is averb, to is a preposition, the is an article, and market is the other nounor object. If you follow this formula,it will help you to form correct sentences. (To be continued…)

The EnglishClassroom

• e largest frog in the world is called Goliath frog. Frogs start their lives as ‘eggs’oen laid in or near fresh water. Frogs liveon all continents except Antarctica. • Apart from humans, baboons are the mostadaptable of the ground-dwelling primatesand live in a wide variety of habitats. Whenwater is readily available, baboons drinkevery day or two, but they can survive for

long periods by licking the night dew fromtheir fur. Baboons use over 30 vocalizationsranging from grunts to barks to screams.Nonvocal gestures include yawns, lipsmacking and shoulder shrugging• Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds,dogs only have about ten.• A rat can last longer without water thana camel can.

• A chameleon’s tongue is twice the lengthof its body.• Snails can sleep for 3 years without eating. • At birth, a panda is smaller than a mouseand weighs about four ounces. • A woodpecker can peck twenty times a second.• Coca-Cola is better at cleaning your drainpipes than products like Drainex.

•Your stomach has to produce a new layerof mucus every two weeks or it will digest itself. •Lightning strikes about 6,000 times perminute on this planet!•Dentists have recommended that a tooth-brush be kept at least 6 feet away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles from theflush.

Random Bytes

8

Pondicherry, now revertedto its old name‘Puducherry’, is a part of

India in the south, quite differ-ent as it carries an aura of aunique past – its 300 year affairwith France.

Being a former colony ofFrance, it experienced the expressions of French culture inmyriad forms, from architectureand town planning to languageand cuisine. Happily for us, anaura of this erstwhile Frenchpresence still lingers in thestreets and sights ofPondicherry.

Pondicherry (affectionately alluded to as Pondy by its resi-dents and visitors alike) was thecapital of French India for almost three centuries before itbecame independent, at aboutthe same time that India becamefree of British sovereignty.

Pondicherry has changed considerably over the years fromits independence. Today it is likeany modern and developed Indian metro with its share ofbusy shopping centers, crowdedeateries and bars, splendid hotels, guest houses and resorts.However, there is a part ofPondicherry that is distinct anddifferent from the rest of it. Thisis the famed French quarter withits colonial mansions, criss-crossing roads, gardens, histori-cal monuments and thepromenade by the sea – all remnants of a time when theFrench were here and sought tobuild a home for themselves

away from their homeland. Today, Pondicherry is a

bustling tourist town visited bylarge number of people fromIndia and abroad. Apart from itsmany amenities, it is the simplecharm of Pondy that draws people to it time and again. Visitors come here to relax before returning to their routineand stress filled lives. Alternativehealth, yoga, meditation,ashrams, temples and samadhisare the main stay of Pondy, giving it the reputation of a spir-itual tourist center. In additionthere are many institutions of repute like L’Institut Français dePondicherry (French Institute ofPondicherry), L’ Ecole Françaised’Exterme Orient (The Frenchschool of Far-Eastern studies),Alliance Française and theLycees Française –the only insti-tution in Puducherry preparingstudents for the Baccalaureateoutside of France.

There are of course some fine

monuments that include theMairie building that presently houses the Pondicherry Munic-ipality, the spirited and restoredLe Café, which used to be theport office at one time, theFrench war memorial in Goubert Avenue, the Frenchconsulate building, the old lighthouse, the Aayi Mandapam,built during the time ofNapoleon III and the RomainRolland Library, The Church ofOur Lady of the Angels and thestatue of Joan of Arc at DumasStreet and so on.

In addition to the monumentsthere are a few other socio-cultural leftovers that are popu-lar even today. One is the Masquerade, held in March-April, a popular mask festival atwhich brilliantly costumed andmasked townspeople ofPondicherry dance down itsstreets to the music of trumpetsand accordions. During the Eveof the Bastille Day, retired

soldiers parade the streets in warfinery, singing the French andIndian Nat ional anthems.

The French Food festival inPondicherry is a keenly lookedforward to event with restaura-teurs offering a wide and delec-table spread of Creole, Europeanand native cuisine.

Traditional arts and craftsflourished in the time of theFrench and are still a flourishingactivity in Pondicherry. Thereare numerous cottage and private enterprises producing agreat variety of handicrafts, pottery, incense and leatheritems that are a shoppers or collectors delight.

The next time you feel theneed to have a taste of France inIndia, look no farther thanPondicherry, the ‘Rivera of theEast’, truly a toast to cultural diversity!

See a little bit of France in India!

V. NathyMass Communication

Potpourri

Wellbeing

Advisory BoardProf. A. Balasubramanian

Gopinath. S Tejas Joseph

The Inquirer is a labjournal of the students of theCentre for Electronic Mediaand Mass Communication,Pondicherry University. It is also available online at www. pondiuni.edu.inSuggestions and inputs are welcome [email protected]

Aayi MandapamThe Church of Our Lady of the Angels

Photos courtesy: Pondicherry Tourism

Source: Internet

Suja DasMass Communication

THE INQUIRER January, 2009

EditorRadhika Khanna

Sub EditorsArathi KrishnakumarIyappan. EK. AnbarassiKandan. CSandosh Kumar. J.M.Suja Das V. NathyPage Design & LayoutIyappan. E.K. AnbarasiKandan. CSandosh Kumar. J.M.Vasanth. VVasanthy. KCartoons & Illustra�onsIyappan. E.Reports & FeaturesA. PrabakaranJitendriya JenaMonalisha BasumataryRinoy BasumataryV. ArivoucanyResearchAnandarasu.TMunnadiayan. ASankara RaoSrinath. GVijayakumar. A