Monday, August 13, 2012

Talk away pain? Now you’re talking!

Your low-back ache can be considerably aggravated by your thoughts and notions. Try a bit of CBT, and you might just be talked out of causing debilitating pain to yourself

Roughly 80% of the world suffers from this at some point in their life. It is singularly responsible for more sick leaves and disability than any other disorder in the world. Popularly characterised by a lady whimpering ‘ooh, aah, ouch!’ on the telly, lumbago or low-back pain is what we’re talking about, and talking about the pain is exactly what the doctors are advising to its victims! The study was conducted by Professor Sarah E Lamb and her colleagues from The University of Warwick and the University of Oxford, and their findings were published in the peer-reviewed medical journal The Lancet. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), a short-term treatment that challenges and reframes negative beliefs, has been judged as an economical option to aid recovery by this study. While back pain is a physical problem, a person’s mental make-up affects the way he/she manages their health, which can significantly benefit or deteriorate the patient’s condition. The study found that people who were provided with CBT group-support sessions experienced greater physical fitness and enjoyed a better quality of life than those who were given a one-off advice session.

CBT sessions involve talking about beliefs relating to physical activity, helping resolve negativity and teaching patients to relax and be less fearful about their situation. Most people’s reaction to lower-back ache is to avoid activity, which only goes on to make the muscles more stiff and so contribute to the existing pain. CBT ensures people don’t fall into this vicious circle, and instead provides advice on appropriate activities they should pursue for faster recovery. At the Indian Spinal Injuries Centre, CBT is an accepted tool for the treatment of backaches and a psychologist is a member of the team treating backaches.


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Saturday, August 11, 2012

S. Viraraghavan, Director, Sales and Marketing, Cargill India shares nitty gritties in an exclusive interview to B&E

B&E: How does Cargill India feel government policy should be modified with regard to FDI in food processing and retailing and will it adversely affect the unorganized and small players?

SV: Creating a favourable fiscal environment to induce venture capital and mutual funds to invest in different components of supply chain, tax holidays, excise relief, fiscal incentives for cold-chain setups and a regulatory mechanism are important for driving growth. It is a misnomer that organized retail will have a negative impact on unorganized sector. They can co-exist and grow and a lot of inefficiencies will get addressed.

B&E: Processed food currently forms a very small percentage of India’s exports. How can this scenario be improved in terms of duty rates and standards?

SV: We have to improve the acceptance of process food in the society and address the myth that all processed food is unhealthy. Govt. of India is taking some positive initiatives to address fiscal incentives to the sector which is a positive development. Export of food items to developed markets needs adherence to stringent food norms and hence, requires high capital investment in machinery and process automation. Concessional duties for importing machinery will also encourage big ticket investments in the sector. The Food Safety and Standards Act is a positive step and we need alignment to global food safety standards such as CODEX to make our products acceptable in the global market.

B&E: How does Cargill India see the future for the sector in a 3-5 year timeline and what is the biggest opportunity areas within the sector?

SV: With the economy growing at an accelerated pace, there’s been a significant change in food habits. More processed and functional food will become part of the Indian diet and hence the sector will see robust growth. As a major global Food Ingredients Supplier we see a big opportunities in the sector. We have successful and popular brands like Nature Fresh and Gemini and have substantial market access. Going forward, this creates a favorable situation for us to look at the food market.


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Friday, August 10, 2012

RAMESH POKHRIYAL, CM, UTTARAKHAND

“We have Vision 2020” 


7 months into his tenure as CM, Ramesh Pokhriyal unveils his plans for Uttarakhand to Anil Pandey 

What are your plansfor Uttarakhand?

We have prepared ‘Vision 2020’ to make Uttarakhand a prosperous, ideal and developed state by 2020. The plan focuses on the theme ‘Pahad Ka Pani, Pahad Ki Jawani’, or water and youth of the hills. We will harness the natural resources of the state in an optimal manner. We will also focus on increasing economic activities in the state that will lead to creation of more jobs and increase in GDP. We’ll take education, health facilities, roads, drinking water, power and other basic amenities to every nook and corner of the state. We have invited investors and the response has been very encouraging.

Please elaborate your ‘Water & Youth of the Hills’ scheme.

The state has a capacity to produce at least 40,000 MW of power from hydel projects. Therefore, we have planned to install several hydel power units in the state. The surplus power will be sold to other states. To rope in local talent and provide jobs, we have decided to employ local youths in mini hydel power projects.

But haven’t all these measures failed to check migration from the hills?

No, there is a significant dip in numbers. Expansion of industries and further industrialisation are the key factors for stopping brain drain.

Health is another area of concern. The lack of connectivity and the lack of facilities in small hamlets are the major areas of concern.

The state provides all BPL families free treatment. Keeping in view the specific problems of the hills, the state government has come up with Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Free Healthcare Programme. At present, the programme is run through 90 centres in the entire state. Under this scheme, anybody can dial the prescribed number – 108 – and avail the facility of emergency ambulance service. These ambulances are sort of mobile hospitals. We have saved as many as 82,000 mothers and children .in the last one and a half years.

Read more.....

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Thursday, August 09, 2012

3 IDIOTS IS CERTAINLY NOT FIVE POINT SOMEONE. IT IS THE BEST FILM EVER MADE WORLDWIDE ON ANY COUNTRY’S EDUCATION SYSTEM

I hadn’t read the book, but even before going for the film 3 Idiots, I had heard the movie was based on Five Point Someone. So after seeing the movie, I immediately congratulated Chetan Bhagat on the outstanding philosophy of his book! However, after the controversy, I thought of reading Five Point Someone... and immediately realised the crux of the trouble! The book and the film have about ten to fifteen percent similarity. The book is more of a diary on IIT days without taking a strong stance on anything and without inspiring anyone to think of changing the education system. It has got its locker room humour of friends and is a decent read. But after reading the book, you don’t start thinking of the education system and about how to change it. So, to say that the film 3 Idiots has a lot in common with the book, is totally incorrect...

The Aamir character in the book is a plain rich guy who doesn’t like the education system but does nothing to change it either, completely unlike what Aamir does in the movie. And of course, the character in the book is surely not a gardener’s son, as portrayed in the movie. Neither is he even close to Phunsuk Wangru (the research genius in the movie)... nor does he start a science school... or vanish into oblivion after graduating. The book’s character is not even a topper but one who trudges in last academically. In fact, the book doesn’t even have the quintessential Chatur character, nor does it have even a millimetre of the Javed Jaffrey character. The Principal is not the crazy-scientist variety either. And further, the Kareena character in the book actually has an affair with Madhavan; and by the end of the book, they both don’t even get married – they split! Well, that’s how similar the book is to the film. It would be criminal to take away any credit from the extremely talented writers of 3 Idiots and give the story credit to anyone else. Yes, the story surely must’ve been conceptualised around Chetan Bhagat’s book’s characters, but it’s purely a new story.

All I would say is, if you wish to know what is called making a movie out of a book, watch the Clint Eastwood-directed The Bridges of Madison County – you can virtually feel Robert Waller James’ best-selling novel unfold right in front of you, page by page, character by character. Nothing of that sort happens in 3 Idiots. Anyway, that’s not the crux of this article.

On a lighter note, even my mother almost cried after seeing the film. She felt the writers/director must’ve heard me speaking on education during one of my seminars or must have read my articles on the IITs/IIMs and lifted the film idea from there! :-) It took me some time to explain to her that Rajkumar Hirani had made a similar film earlier called Munnabhai... and had there too tried to visualise similar things on the education system. Two concerned people can surely think similarly, can’t they? :-)

Now, coming to the movie, having seen almost every film made anywhere on the education system, I can say that I have not seen a film that has been better made globally! Without getting moralistic, Rajkumar Hirani has mastered the art of making a statement in the most commercial manner, yet retaining a very strong message for all those who care about a message. To me, this film is not about the 3 idiots, it’s a film with a strong message to the many idiots running the education system of this country and to the millions of idiots who accept this system without questioning – in turn ruining the childhood of millions of children and making them handicapped in their abilities for the rest of their lives; not to mention the innumerable lives lost in the form of unfortunate suicides in the process.

It’s time our educators wake up to the fact that the system stinks. Kids spend thirteen years in most schools having no clue about what they are studying and how it’s going to supposedly change their lives. Teachers enter classrooms and teach in the most uninspiring manner without an iota of a passion to change lives or to make education entertaining and interesting. They transform the most interesting subjects into disastrously painful experiences. Parents are no less, ruining the childhood of their kids by trying to live their personal complexes through their children – by labelling it their ‘dream’. And to fulfil these so-called dreams, parents pressurise their children into a crazy race for more marks, a race which has never benefited anyone.

Read more......

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Wednesday, August 08, 2012

The man who NAILED AICTE

How Kidar Bansal adamantly refused to bribe corrupt AICTE officials and faced torment for years before the wrongdoers were finally trapped by the CBI. An exclusive by Anil Pandey

It was a hot and humid morning on July 17, 2009 when Kidar Bansal was playing around with some files in his office. Within moments of picking up the ringing telephone, Bansal breaks into a broad smile and spreads his arms in a gesture of victory and vindication. The call was from a newspaper reporter who gave him delightful news: The CBI has raided the offices and homes of many top officials of AICTE. The CBI has arrested Member Secretary Narayan Rao and middleman S.B Subbarao; catching them red-handed taking bribes. The CBI has also registered an FIR against AICTE chairman R.A Yadav, Deputy Director Ravindra Randhawa, advisor S. C Rai and Regional Officer Om Dalal. Bansal, who runs the Echelon Institute of Technology in Faridabad, claims that it is these very men who have been tormenting him for years. His crime? Bansal refused to pay any bribes. Now vindicated, Bansal hopes that the CBI raids are just the beginning of the process to destroy and stamp out the hopelessly corrupt AICTE.

There are dozens like Bansal who had virtually given up hope. That is because they knew that R.A Yadav and his cronies enjoyed such political patronage that they could behave brazenly and get away with it. In fact, Bansal now recalls meeting even Rahul Gandhi and pleading with him to help stop AICTE officials using professional education as a personal milch cow. Bansal’s adamant refusal to pay bribes started bearing fruit when Kapil Sibal replaced Arjun Singh as Union Human Resources Development Minister. From day one, Sibal was determined to cleanse the rot. And he did sign a file on June 26, 2009 which enabled to trap the corrupt gang at AICTE.

The story of Bansal and his encounters with AICTE is both fascinating and sickening. Fascinating because it shows how some intrepid warriors will never succumb to the ‘system’. And sickening because of the extent to which AICTE officials tormented and harassed him for years in a brazen manner. Bansal launched the Echelon Institute of Technology in 2006 and sought approval to run engineering courses. “As per rules of AICTE, I had enough resources & infrastructure to run an engineering college.” From November 2006 to May 2007, AICTE kept rejecting his request. He literally pleaded with Om Dalal and Ravindra Randhawa (against whom CBI has now registered a case). All along, ‘agents’ kept trying to persuade him to cough up the “lubrication money”. But Bansal was adamant.

But corrupt babus who are thwarted have long memories. As per AICTE rules, an engineering college has to renew approvals every year and also needs an approval to increase the number of seats. When Bansal applied for necessary approval, officials tried to procrastinate the matter. “AICTE used to respond weeks after the date written on the envelope of the letter. On the other hand middlemen kept demanding bribes.” They were demanding Rs.15 lakh at the rate of Rs.25,000 for 60 seats.

The second session (2008-09) was about to start and Bansal was still rubbing his heels in the AICTE corridors. Neither did his college got renewal nor were the number of seats increased. He registered his complaint with special Secretary in MHRD M. K. Acharya and then with Additional Secretary Ashok Thakur. On 10 July, 2008 he got a renewal approval but number of seats were not increased. Bansal met with Secretary R. P. Agrawal in MHRD. A concerned & upset Agrawal ordered Thakur to look into the matter.

On 8 0August, 2008 Ashok Thakur held a meeting with R. A. Yadav and Kidar Bansal. In the meeting R. A. Yadav leveled allegations of irregularity on his college but these fizzled out like moist bombs after Bansal put up his case strongly. Recalling the incident Kidar Bansal tells B&E, “Yadav received a phone call during the meeting and after his talk finished, he told me the approval letter is ready.” Kidar Bansal smiles, gives a pause and says further, “The letter was prepared two days ago. This means Yadav had issued me a backdated letter to save his skin.” Sources in the ministry confirm that Ashok Thakur found Kidar Bansal’s allegations quite convincing and true. He even ordered for major penalties to be imposed on Regional officer Om Dalal and Advisor S C Rai. But no action was taken against them.

Though Kidar won the battle, the war was still incomplete. Renewal approval for the next year session (2009-10) was again denied on frivolous grounds. He met R. A. Yadav, but AICTE raided his engineering college instead. Then he complained to the CVC and even met Rahul Gandhi to apprise him of the situation.


Read more....




 
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