Monday, November 07, 2022
UGC, AICTE asks institutions to celebrate ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’ on November 15
The University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) on Saturday asked the affiliatedinstitutions to celebrate November 15 as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’. November 15 is the birth anniversary of tribal leader Birsa Munda and the Government of India has declared it as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’.
The UGC in the notice said that they want education institutions to carry out activities like debate competitions among students on the theme ‘Contribution of Janjati Heroes in Freedom Struggle’. Students shall be felicitated for their work. Spread the legacy of tribal leaders like Birsa Munda and other personalities and unsung tribal heroes
“All the universities and their affiliated colleges/institutions are requested to encourage their faculty, staff, and students to carry out activities and celebrate ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas’ on November 15 with zeal and enthusiasm. Events / programmes organised on this day may also be promoted through social media platforms for wider outreach,” read the notification.Birsa Munda was a tribal leader and freedom fighter from Ulihatu in Jharkhand. He belonged to the Munda tribe. He was born on November 15, 1875 and died on June 9, 1900 in the Ranchi Central Jail.
Source: Indian Express, 7/11/22
What is AQI, the number that signifies how polluted the air is?
Over the past few days, as the problem of air pollution in Delhi-NCR and surrounding areas has made its annual November-December appearance in policy debates and public discussion, the Air Quality Index (AQI) has been mentioned repeatedly.
AQI is a number, which is a measure of air quality. The higher the AQI, the worse the air. After staying above 450 for a couple of days, the AQI in Delhi on Sunday had come down to around 320.
The colour-coded AQI index was launched in India in 2014, and it helps the public and the government understand the condition of the air and what subsequent measures are to be taken to combat the situation, based on its severity. There are six categories of AQI, namely ‘Good’ (0-50), ‘Satisfactory’ (50-100), ‘Moderately polluted’ (100-200), ‘Poor’ (200-300), ‘Very Poor’ (300-400), and ‘Severe’ (400-500).
What is the AQI and how does it calculate pollution?
Launched by the central government in 2014 as part of the Swachh Bharat campaign, the AQI was to help simplify the common understanding of pollution. An expert group comprising medical professionals, air quality experts, academia, advocacy groups, and others was constituted and a technical study was awarded to IIT Kanpur. IIT Kanpur and the Expert Group recommended an AQI scheme.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board, part of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, the AQI transforms complex air quality data of various pollutants into a single number (index value), nomenclature and colour. The pollutants measured include PM 10, PM 2.5, Nitrogen Dioxide, Ozone, Carbon, etc.
There is a calculation that goes behind the index. There are six or eight pollutants in the affected air and each of these pollutants is given a weight based on a formula. That weight depends on the kind of impact it has on human health. The worst of these weights is given as composite air quality, so instead of giving you six different numbers, and six different colours, it throws up one single colour, one single number to denote the overall impact. Monitoring stations across the country assess these levels.
What is the impact of these pollutants?
Among the more harmful pollutants are those of a smaller size, such as particulate matter (PM) 2.5, which is an atmospheric particulate matter of diameter smaller than 2.5 micrometres (or around 3 per cent of the diameter of a human hair). It causes respiratory problems and reduces visibility. The particles can only be detected with the help of an electron microscope because they are so small.
Due to their size, the PM 2.5 particles can easily bypass the nose and throat and can easily enter the circulatory system. The particles can also lead to cause chronic diseases such as asthma, heart attack, bronchitis and other respiratory problems.
How does the AQI influence government policy?
Based on the levels, the governments in areas like Delhi announce measures. As the AQI in NCR dipped to the ‘severe’ category on Thursday, stage 4 of the Graded Response Action Plan was set in motion. The GRAP has specifically been instituted for emergency measures that kick in to prevent further deterioration of air quality in Delhi-NCR. A central panel directed authorities to prohibit the use of diesel four-wheelers that are not BS-VI compliant, as well as the entry of trucks in Delhi. Petrol cars can continue to ply as usual.
Source: Indian Express, 6/11/22
Friday, November 04, 2022
Quote of the Day November 4, 2022
“You can tell the size of your God by looking at the size of your worry list. The longer your list, the smaller your God.”
Anonymous
“आप अपने à¤à¤—वान के सामर्थ्य को अपनी चिंताओं की सूची के आकार को देखकर बता सकते हैं। जितनी लंबी सूची होगी, उतना ही आपके à¤à¤—वान का साम
OCSI Scholarship: Perks, Eligibility Criteria & How to Apply
Are you considering studying abroad but wondering about the course fees? Know about the OCSI scholarship and how it can help you study at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge if you’re planning to take up courses there.
The Oxford and Cambridge Society of India (OCSI) Scholarships are given for undergraduate, post graduate and research courses in any subject/ course or field of study available at the Universities of Cambridge and the University of Oxford, UK. It is a part-cost scholarship offered to Indian students wishing to study abroad and aids them financially as well as academically. The selection of this scholarship is based on the academic excellence of the candidate.
OCSI Scholarship: About the awards
- There is no discrimination in the OCSI scholarship selection process on the basis of race, colour, age, sex or ancestry. It is an equal and fair opportunity provided to all.
- 3 separate OCSI scholarships scholarships, each worth INR 200,000 are awarded each year to Indian students enrolled at either the University of Cambridge or the University of Oxford, UK. These are:
- OCSI K.K. Luthra Memorial Scholarship
- OCSI Anita Banerji Memorial Scholarship
- OCSI Nirmal Luthra Memorial Scholarship
- One scholarship worth INR 100,000 is only awarded to a student from Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge. This award is given by the Emmanuel College Cambridge (India) Trust.
- One scholarship worth INR 100,000 is only awarded to students wanting to study at St. Hilda’s College, Oxford
- Students who win the scholarships also receive complimentary life membership of the Oxford and Cambridge Society of India
- A letter of support from OCSI for other scholarship-awarding bodies is also furnished
- On request, a member of OCSI may also play the role of a mentor and provide guidance to the awardee if needed.
OCSI Scholarship: Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible for the OCSI scholarship, the candidate must note the following eligibility criteria:
- Candidate must be a citizen of India
- He or she must be not more than 30 years of age on 1 September of the year of application for the award
- If applying to a second undergraduate or a postgraduate course, then the candidate must have graduated from an Indian university. For undergraduate degrees, they must have passed out from a recognised school in India.
- The candidate must secure admission to a full-time course at the University of Cambridge or the University of Oxford.
- Also, the applicants are required to submit proof of admission before being granted scholarship, and provide proof of residence at Cambridge or Oxford before the scholarship funds are released.
Candidates must follow the usual admission procedure of the concerned University. They should also note that the OCSI will not take any responsibility for assisting students' admission. Also, relatives of the Executive Committee of the Oxford and Cambridge Society of India are not eligible for these scholarships.
OCSI Scholarship Parameters:
The scholarship is awarded to a candidate based on three factors which are:
- Soft Skills: Good presentation skills, should possess a vision and clarity of thought and be confident
- Hard Skills: high academic performance, must have engaged in extracurricular activities, and a unique proposition in the field of study or social work
- Financial Resource: Candidates might be asked to provide the details of resources available to them along with supporting documents.
Application Process:
Here’s a look at a few important points to note for the application process for the OCSI Scholarship.
- Students will be required to possess an offer letter from the University of Oxford or Cambridge or any other affiliated colleges.
- The application form for the OCSI scholarships is available from March every year on the official website.
- The applications must be completed and should reach the Oxford and Cambridge Society of India as early as possible.
- Candidates shortlisted will be required to attend an interview with the OCSI scholarship committee. Details of the interviews are shared in due course.
- Scholarship awards are usually awarded to the selected candidates by the end of July.
So what are you waiting for? Apply at your earliest for the scholarship and get your dream of studying at the top colleges of the UK fulfilled.
Source: The Telegraph, 31/10/22
Viewing growth
The word, ‘development’, is usually associated with a change for the better, a progression towards an improved state of affairs. When used in the context of an economy, it usually means material enhancements in the standard of living of some, if not all, members of that economy. The essence of the matter revolves around the word, ‘change’, towards something more desirable or preferred. There are many difficulties that arise when we use the word, development, in a loose fashion. A number of questions crop up. When we say that, for instance, the economy of the United States of America is more developed than that of India, do we merely compare national incomes or national wealth? In most instances, we do so. However, the deeper question is this: why should we always take material wealth or consumption of goods as the ultimate criterion of economic development?
A simple example will suffice. Consider the two economies, China and India. If we are to compare the state of affairs at a point of time in the two countries, can we say that China is more developed than India? Has it progressed more than India? Towards what end? Consider an alternative situation — India in 1947 and India in 2022. Can we say India has developed during this period of time? We are comparing China and India now, or we are comparing India circa 1947 and India now? The points of comparison show differences. How do we evaluate these changes? The changes can constitute progression, stagnation or regression. Hence development, as change, is dynamic, and requires an evaluating criterion (or a set of criteria).
There are many ways in which socio-economic change can be viewed and evaluated. There are a number of economists who argue that development is about growth in the availability of goods and services. To produce more, industrialisation and the use of science-based technology are considered the best instruments of change. The institutional apparatus that facilitates this growth is usually assumed to be parliamentary democracy and free markets with voluntary exchange. Hence, according to this view, the end state of development is a materially rich country with free markets and democracy. The future is best handled by keeping these quantitative changes going: more goods, more incomes, and more consumption. Progress is purely quantitative and material.
There are other economists who believe that an end state will arrive in the process of economic development, but there will be substantial qualitative changes leading to transformations in the market economy and the distribution of political power. For instance, Marxists would tend to believe that the current structure of market economies is inherently unfair and unstable. A classless worker’s state would be the end result of economic development. There are other scholars who tend to argue that development is uneven, unpredictable, and changes occur in a non-linear fashion over time and geographies. Hence, there is no predictable end state of development, and there is no progression to a better or more desirable world that humans could create.
There are problems associated with each of these intellectual positions. Consider the belief that the market economy and its wealth creation apparatus are the ultimate economic structures in human history. It is now clearly evident that such an economy cannot progress and develop in a purely quantitative way without bringing about its own collapse. The inability to factor in natural resource constraints and the failure to control waste emissions would bring about a downfall in the economy. The capitalist market economy, the way it functions now, is patently unsustainable.
The ideas of radicals and other scholars who dreamt of some utopia different from the capitalist order have been unable to demonstrate that such worlds could be actually sought after and created by human agency. Indeed, some of the efforts to create such worlds, like the twentieth-century experiments to create socialism, have failed resoundingly. Those who believe that history has no meaning and development is a kaleidoscopic pattern of endless variations of the same components might have difficulty in explaining the massive changes that human societies have witnessed since the recorded history of humankind. Substantial change has occurred over time, and that change cannot be captured by mere material improvements or some convergence towards a predictable end state.
A number of scholars have emphasised the expansion of freedom and liberties in a society as the hallmark of development — more freedom to do things an individual or society chooses as well as greater freedom from constraints to a good life, such as freedom from hunger or ignorance. This view is the most acceptable in terms of justice and fairness and does not talk about a final end state of development. However, this view, too, has some limitations when we consider the sustainability of the process of expanding spaces of freedoms. This worldview does clarify that individual and social freedoms cannot restrict the space of freedom of other individuals or other societies. However, it does not clarify that freedoms and liberties cannot encroach on natural processes so as to damage them in irreversible ways.
Human history started when change was perceptible in society and was different from nature, which was considered to be changeless, static. Humans began to perceive time through a series of social events with broad consequences. In most of these cases of momentous change, human knowledge about the planet and about themselves increased significantly. Humans were able to bring about substantial changes within small periods of time because they were able to transmit accumulated knowledge from one generation to the next. This was the real well-spring of human development. This helped tear asunder human history from the larger planetary history of evolution. Biological development is about transmission of genetic inheritance and occurs over millennia. Economic development is about the social acquisition of characteristics that can occur within a generation. For instance, the human brain of modern humans is about the same size as that of humans 5,000 years ago. But the effectiveness of human thinking has multiplied manifold.
One might argue, then, that human development is the accumulation and transmission of knowledge over generations. This cannot be measured through material progress alone. Human beings are part of the biological evolution story too, and they are just another (albeit smart) species in the animal kingdom. Hence the history of humanity cannot be completely independent of the planetary story of evolution. If history, in this bigger framework of the planet, is a journey, then the accumulated human knowledge must sustain this journey. Changes brought about in economy and society ought not to lead to a series of crises and disruptions in the forces of nature and natural processes.
One can view history as a voyage of development of knowledge that makes humans free from debilitating constraints of hunger and disease and provides freedom to do things of their choice, such as leading a preferred lifestyle. No story of economic development can be meaningful if it is inconsistent with the planetary history of evolution. Hence, development must be sustainable — the use of human knowledge must do no harm to destroy nature. Yet, the human ability to cause harm to nature is much more than the ability to conserve and create. Economic development must be viewed as a progression of ideas and understandings that protect and preserve nature in its entirety, yet making human life easier and more enriching. Achieving it is not easy even though we are a clever species. The big question remains: are we clever enough?
Anup Sinha is former Professor of Economics, IIM Calcutta
Source: The Telegraph, 4/11/22
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