Special Academy for Training Teachers of Differently-Abled Students

 Given the unique challenges that need to be addressed when it comes to imparting education to differently-abled children, HRD Minister Smriti Irani has revealed that a separate academy would be established for training teachers to address the issues.

On the role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), which can help differently-abled students, Irani said at a UNESCO conference, “The academy and institutions will be developed so that teachers can be specially trained for those who are differently able and their challenges and needs are addressed within the educational system.”

The minister shared plans to engage the best of practices the world has to offer in the field of ICT and education in order to adapt to these technologies and methodologies to help citizens in the best possible way.

In this year’s general budget, there was the Madan Mohan Malviya teaching mission that acknowledges the need to train teachers to address challenges of specially-abled children. Rs 500 crore has been allocated toward this initiative by the government.

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Smriti Irani Interfering, Assertive: UGC member

When it comes to political popularity, HRD Minister Smriti Irani is getting more than she bargained for as serving UGC member, M M Ansari, has slammed the minister for being too interfering in the functioning of the commission and for taking in arbitrary decisions. Ansari has also questioned Irani’s capabilities to lead the crucial education sector as he feels that Irani is entirely dependent on a ‘well-planted bureaucracy’ and the RSS for running the ministry.

This statement has come at a time when she recently scrapped the German language to be taught as the third language in Kendriya Vidyalayas. Ansari, who has been UGC member since 2012, criticised this move as he is of the opinion that in the present scheme of things, it is important to give children the choice to pick what language they want to study.

Ansari stated, “There is excessive interference from the minister in the UGC. One saw it in the FYUP issue, or in the way the ministry first decided on the Swachh Bharat implementation in the education sector and then informed us and asked us to send a circular to universities, or in how she announced the Swami Vivekanand scholarship programme for a single girl child without consulting us. The ministry has been simply imposing decisions. Any decision of the UGC should emerge from an exercise within the UGC.”

The UGC member also slammed the appointment of Ram Shankar Katheria as Minister of State for HRD. Katheria has been in the midst of controversy over allegations that his graduation mark sheet was forged.

NSDC, DU Collaborate for Skilling Undergraduate Students 

Enhanced employment opportunities may soon be on the cards for 4 lakh undergraduate students at Delhi University. The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and DU have joined hands to introduce skill-based training programmes to improve their employability in the increasingly competitive market.

NSDC and DU have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to bring skill-based training for the undergraduate students in DU, including the School of Open Learning (SOL) and Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board (NCWEB). The MoU was signed by Dilip Chenoy, Managing Director & CEO, NSDC and Dr. Tarun, Registrar, University of Delhi.

This programme would include systematic training, certificates of competency, and placement assistance. The programmes offered will be aligned to Qualification Packs (QP) and National Occupational Standards (NOS) developed by NSDC through Sector Skill Councils. The skills provided during the training will be measured by facilitating employment to the students post achieving certification.

The students will be given a choice to select any one skill-based course from the identified sectors in addition to the regular academic subjects. This course will be a part of applied course offered to the students and will be integrated into the time table of the participating colleges.

Post achieving certification, NSDC will ensure that its Sector Skill Councils and Training Partners who will be participating in the implementation of the program agree to 70 percent post training placement of students desiring the same.

Commenting on the partnership, Dilip Chenoy said, “The University of Delhi is one of the premier universities in the country known for its standards of education and research. NSDC is pleased and honoured to partner with DU in this initiative. This is a big opportunity for students who wish to supplement their theoretical knowledge with practical hands-on training that will improve their employability in the increasingly competitive job market in the country and transform their lives.”

With mutual understanding between DU and NSDC, up to 6 sectors per college will be introduced initially which include IT/ITES, BFSI, telecom, healthcare, automotive and media & entertainment. DU will create awareness among the students to promote and encourage enrolment in skill based courses by sharing information on its website, mass e-mailing students and actively promoting it on other social media platforms.

Every student will be awarded a joint certificate on successfully undergoing assessment as per the guidelines issued by DU and NSDC. Prior to the start of a new academic year, DU and NSDC will jointly review introducing new sectors and courses based on the demand of the industry.

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PhD Positions at the International Center for Development and Decent Work (ICDD) in Social and Agricultural Sciences

PhD Positions at the International Center for Development and Decent Work (ICDD) in Social and Agricultural Sciences

PHD POSITIONS AT THE INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR DEVELOPMENT AND DECENT WORK (ICDD) IN SOCIAL AND AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES

Call for applications

Application Deadline: 15 February 2015.
Scholarship Start: 1 May 2015.

The ICDD is an interdisciplinary and international scientific network of excellence with the head office located at the University of Kassel (Germany) and partner universities in Latin America, Africa and Asia. It co-operates closely with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and various NGOs. The ICDD is funded by the programme “ex)/(ceed – Higher Education Excellence in Development Cooperation” launched by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). In the framework of its Graduate School of Socio-Ecological Research for Development, the ICDD invites students from ODA recipient countries (countries eligible for Official Development Assistance of the OECD) to apply for a PhD scholarship position in a particular academic field at an ICDD partner university:

• Universidade Estadual de Campinas (Unicamp), Brazil, in economics,
• University of Cape Coast (UCC), Ghana, in development studies,
• Egerton University (EGU), Kenya, in agricultural science,
• University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF), Pakistan, in agricultural science, 
• University of Kassel, Germany, in agricultural science,
• University of Kassel, Germany, in the social sciences,
• Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), India, in labour studies,
• University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), South Africa, in sociology.

The ICDD supports research in four main thematic areas to which PhD projects must relate:

1. Decent work along agricultural value chains
2. Organizing the informal economy
3. Extractivism and rural welfare
4. Rural-urban linkages: transformation processes, livelihoods, and social protection

SCHOLARSHIP: PHD STUDENTS OF THE ICDD GRADUATE SCHOOL WILL BE BASED AT THE PARTNER UNIVERSITY THEY CHOSE (SEE ABOVE) AND ENROLLED IN ITS PHD TRAINING PROGRAMME. MOREOVER, SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES PARTICIPATE IN THE ANNUAL PHD WORKSHOPS OF THE ICDD GRADUATE SCHOOL AND GET INVOLVED IN THE LIVELY ACADEMIC EXCHANGE AND ACTIVITIES WITHIN THE ICDD NETWORK.

The PhD scholarship will be awarded for three years. An extension for a fourth year is possible under certain conditions. The scholarships will cover a country-specific monthly allowance, tuition fees (if applicable), the participation in ICDD Graduate School activities as well as the opportunity to apply for field research funding. Final admission to the ICDD Graduate School is conditioned on the admittance to the PhD programme of the chosen ICDD partner university and a positive progress evaluation by the ICDD in the first scholarship year.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

• A completed or almost completed MA/MSc degree, with excellent results, in a discipline related to the above topics; the applicant’s last academic degree should not be more than six years ago; if an applicant already started with his/her PhD project, it should have started not more than three years ago
• A high proficiency of English (CEFR level: C1 or above), demonstrated by one of the following language certificates: TOEFL, with a minimum score of 550 PBT (paper-based test) / 80 IBT (Internet-based test); IELTS 6.5 or above; the Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English or an equivalent (native speakers and applicants who have completed their first degree fully in English do not have to provide an English proficiency certificate)
• Academic or vocational experience in one of the disciplines related to the thematic field of development and decent work
• Citizenship of an ODA recipient country (countries eligible for Official Development Assistance of the OECD)

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

1.) Online Application

Applications can only be submitted online: Click here to access the online application form

Apart from providing some personal information, information on your academic background etc., the following documents must be uploaded as PDF or WORD files at the end of the online application process:

• A detailed curriculum vitae (including the academic background, the list of publications [if applicable], professional experience, language skills, voluntary work)
• A preliminary PhD project proposal (about 2000 words, including topic, research question, short overview of the relevant literature, theoretical approach, research design and methodology)
• A summary of the Master thesis (about 1500 words)
• Scanned copy of an English proficiency certificate, if required
• Scanned copies of the following documents in the original language with translations attached, if the language of these documents is not German, English, French, Spanish or Portuguese:
  • The certificate and transcript of records of your recognised Master degree, listing all subjects and grades (if you have not yet completed your Master degree, please provide only the transcript and substitute the certificate with a letter from the programme coordinator testifying the date and likelihood of the successful completion of the course)
  • The certificate and transcript of records of your recognised Bachelor degree, listing all subjects and grades
  • Certificates for the completion of additional studies, listing all subjects and grades, if applicable
  • Scanned copies of certificates of previous professional/vocational experience, if applicable.

Please submit your complete application no later than 15 February 2015, 12:00 pm (GMT + 01:00).  

Applications submitted after this deadline cannot be processed.

2.)Two letters of recommendation: Apart from your application, two recent letters of recommendation must be provided from professors or course instructors qualified to assess your academic achievements. The referees must sign the letter and send it as a scanned copy from the referee´s email account to:

• phdreference[at]icdd.uni-kassel.de 

Alternatively, the letters of reference can be sent in a sealed envelope by post directly to:

Executive Director of the International Center for Development and Decent Work (ICDD), University of Kassel, Kleine Rosenstr. 1-3, 34109 Kassel, Germany.

The letter of recommendation must also arrive at the ICDD no later than 15 February 2015.

If you are selected for admission, officially authenticated photocopies of all the documents and translations will have to be presented.

For further information contact the ICDD Graduate School staff

Phone: + 49 (0)561 804 7395

Email: phdapplication@icdd.uni-kassel.de

Dec 01 2014 : The Economic Times (Delhi)

Don't Wait for WTO to Reform Food Subsidy





It is highly significant that all 160 member countries of the World Trade Organisation have reached consensus on what would be the first global agreement on trade liberalisation in two whole decades, that on trade facilitation and easier customs procedures. The deal would reduce transactions costs, red tape, and corruption at sea ports and cargo airports, by standardising norms, improving logistics and reducing delays in the movement of goods. Trade experts estimates that global incomes could rise by as much as $2 trillion.India did succeed in stalling the deal by several months on the issue of subsidy expenditure on food security; it has now been agreed that food stockholding programmes in the devel oping world will not be subject to WTO dispute procedures, until a permanent agreement is arrived at a later date. Note that in the Bali ministerial last December it was decided that there would be a four year window for the purpose, but there would now be no such deadline. Yet the Modi government needs to promptly reform our high cost food subsidy regime and the effective nationalisation of grain stockholding and attendant trade, with its cost-plus padding and routine inefficiencies. One recent report mentioned how FCI loaders earned up to Rs 4 lakh per month thanks to generous overtime payments. What is desirable is higher stockings for private trade, and streamlining of public grain procurement to avoid distress sales.
In tandem, we need to purposefully boost trade in both goods and services, to realise huge economic gains. It would be extremely costly to be trade-myopic. The WTO, instead of always seeking unanimity , should actually be seeking more pluri-lateral agreements among like-minded nations, with others welcome to sign on at a later date.

Dec 01 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

50% drop in new cases in three years





Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu account for 3.6 lakh HIV patients -around 50% of the country's 7.7 lakh cases reported as of May 2014. Around 1.7 lakh patients hail from Andhra and Telangana alone.Karnataka has a little over one lakh HIV patients, and Tamil Nadu, 80,685.
Maharashtra follows Andhra Pradesh, with 1.43 lakh patients. Andhra, Te langana, Maharashtra and Karnataka are the only states with HIV-infected population exceeding 1 lakh, according to the Union health ministry .
Health experts said the rising numbers in the south were due to increasingly efficient screening over the past few years. Besides, while cumulative numbers are high, the number of fresh cases reported every year has plunged since 2010. According to the health ministry , the number of new HIV cases reduced by almost 50% across the country in three years -from 3.1 lakh fresh cases in 2010-11 to 1.5 lakh cases in 2013-14.
Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka saw a sharp fall in the number of fresh cases reported every year.
The drop in fresh cases is due to increasing awareness among the public, especially the risk-prone communities of sex workers, homosexuals and transgenders, said Bakthavatchalam A, deputy director of Association for Rural Mass India.
After Tamil Nadu's 80,000-odd cases, Gujarat is listed with 40,121 cases.States such as UP, Rajasthan and MP, which are larger in area and population, have not recorded many cases, according to data from the Union health ministry .





Dec 01 2014 : The Times of India (Delhi)

UP, MP, Assam fail to stem infant mortality

Himanshi Dhawan

New Delhi





Disparity In States Performances Despite Funding

A decade after India committed to a national health policy to provide improved access to healthcare, there is growing inequality in infant health across India. Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Maharashtra have improved on their already superior health outcomes while poorer performing states like Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Madhya Pradesh have slid, a study has found.Lowering of infant mortality rate is a priority of the National Rural Health Mission and part of the UN millennium development goals that India has committed to. In India, IMR has declined from 57 per 1,000 live births in 2006 to 42 per 1,000 live births in 2012.
Think tank Swaniti Initiative's analysis of state-level IMR data from 2006-2012 suggests that despite huge infusion of funds in NRHM, there is growing national disparity in infant health. None of the poorly performing states were able to achieve a rate of decline close to what the best performing states have achieved. The interstate inequity grew between 2006 and 2012, despite NRHM providing additional funding to such states. Out of the seven states with the lowest IMR in 2006, four achieved a de crease of 29% or more.
According to Swaniti “Infant mortality is impacted by access to nutritional food and sanitation. Improving healthcare is insufficient to address the structural causes of high infant mortality .“
For the full report, log on to http:www.timesofindia.com