Edu ministry finalising details of ’22 entrance test for central varsities

Edu ministry finalising details of ’22 entrance test for central varsities

Manash.Gohain@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:  15.11.2021

Shelved in 2021 due to the pandemic, the education ministry is finalising the details of the Central University Common Entrance Test (CUCET) to be conducted from 2022 for 41 central universities. According to ministry sources, the details will be announced by December-end so that aspirants and institutions can start the preparations.

The exams, as envisaged in the NEP 2020 are likely to be conducted twice a year. The computer-based common entrance test for the central universities, which includes the likes of JNU, BHU and DU, would comprise of three hours of testing divided into two sections -- Common Aptitude Test (50 questions) and Domain Specific Test (30 questions each)— and will eliminate the individual exams that many of the universities conduct presently. According to sources, the ministry is finalising the proposal based on the report of the committee set up by the UGC and the admissions to the central universities for the 2022-23 will be based on the CUCET score.

“The ministry is ready to implement the CUCET from 2022 as planned under the NEP 2020. The details and the dates will be worked out soon. The ministry is planning to announce the details as early as possible so that the candidates and universities get time to prepare,” said the official.

The official said that Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan has asked the officials to work on the recommendations of the UGC to roll out its implementation without any further delay.

Rly’s reservation system to stay down for six hours this week

Rly’s reservation system to stay down for six hours this week

Somit.Sen@timesgroup.com

Mumbai:15.11.2021

Long distance trains which were affected due to the pandemic will restore its regular train numbers in the next few days as normalcy seems to be returning gradually, said officials.

Railways’ passenger reservation system (PRS), however, will be shut for six hours during lean business hours of the night for the next 7 days, said Central Railway chief spokesperson Shivaji Sutar.

“This is to enable upgradation of system data and updating of new train numbers. Since huge amount of past (old train numbers) and current passenger booking data are to be updated in all Mail/ Express trains, this is being planned in a series of carefully calibrated steps and implemented during night hours,” added Sutar The timings of system shut down will be from 11.30pm to 5.30am in order to minimise impact on ticketing services. Both Western and Central Railway will revert back to the original train numbers of pre-Covid times. During Covid, they ran special trains.

‘Bizarre’ eligibility norms for posts put docs with disabilities in a bind

‘Bizarre’ eligibility norms for posts put docs with disabilities in a bind

Rema.Nagarajan@timesgroup.com

15.11.2021

You are ineligible for the post of ENT, urology or dental surgeon if you cannot use both legs, but eligible if your disability affects both arms.

“Why are those with both legs affected barred from these surgical specialties while allowing those with both arms affected? Do they conduct surgery with their legs?” asked a doctor with disability about the bizarre identification of posts.

The strange identification of posts for doctors with disabilities came to light when the organisation Doctors With Disability: Agents of Change (DwDAoC) raised the issue of institutes of national importance including all the AIIMS advertising posts for recruitment without including the latest identified posts for persons with disabilities. Though a January notification of the social justice and empowerment ministry has identified hundreds  (593) of more posts for those with disability than the last notification in 2013, DwDAoC has challenged the very concept of identifying posts, especially in the medical field.

“The identification of posts for doctors with disabilities continues to categorise people according to body parts such as OA OL BL (one arm, one leg, both legs) rather than seeing their functional ability. Unlike post-graduation in other disciplines, in medicine, it combines active duty with studies. No matter what their disabilities, if they have a post graduate degree in a specialty, it means they are capable of carrying out the job for which they have specialised. However, many such specialists cannot get a job as posts in their specialty have not been identified as being open for persons with their specific disability,” explained Dr Sharad Philip, a DwDAoC member.

The January notification identifies posts in urology and ENT (ear, nose, throat), two surgical specialties, as open to OA, BA, OL (one arm, both arms and one leg) but not for someone with both legs affected (BL). There is a surgeon super specialising in urological surgery both of whose legs are affected who conducts surgeries using a standing wheelchair. However, he will be ineligible for any post as he is ‘BL’. Similarly, in the case of psychiatry, persons with visual disability are excluded.

PRESCRIPTION FOR CHANGE?

21 special trains get regular status

21 special trains get regular status

Indore: 15.11.2021

As many as 21 train services, including those originating from Indore and nearby railways stations and operated as special trains will now run as regular trains.

As per officials, the railways has decided that all regular trains which were operating as special services will now operate as regular trains from Monday onwards.

The list of trains includes - Indore-Nagpur Express, Malwa Express, Dr Ambedkar Nagar-Nagpur Express, Avantika Express, Dr Ambedkar Nagar-Yeshwantpur Express, Kamakhya Express, Chandigarh Express, Gandhi Nagar Shanti Express, Patna Express, Rajendra Nagar Express, Lingampalli Express, Indore-Veraval Mahamana Express, Dr Ambedkar Nagar-Bhopal Intercity Express, Amritsar Express, Udaipur Express, Kochuveli Express, Bikaner Express, Delhi Weekly Express, Shipra Express, Udhampur Weekly Express and Daund Express.

Senior officials with the Ratlam division of the Western Railway said that all these trains will run under the new time table. TNN

Student visas are a priority for US embassies and consulates

Q&A

15.11.2021 Times Education 

Student visas are a priority for US embassies and consulates

The US embassy has cleared 62,000 visas this summer, showing American universities’ demand among Indian students, says USIEF Educational Advisor Bhavna Jolly

Priyanka.Srivastava@timesgroup.com

As per National Student Clearinghouse Research Centre (NSCRC), there is a dip in number of international students in the US due to Covid. What are the strategies introduced by the US to bring back the lost students?

This past summer, the United States embassies and consulates globally prioritised student visas. International students were exempted from the US Presidential Proclamation that restricted entry of people who had been in India in the 14 days before going to the US. Thus, Indian students could apply for visas and travel to the US. We issued over 62,000 student visas this summer, showing that the US is a top choice for Indian students.

What are basic concerns of students? How will the US address them?

Students and families in India are concerned about physical health and safety. They seek information about the measures in place at university campuses for Covid-19 prevention and testing, as well as the support that students get in case they test positive for Covid-19. Universities have collated resources and established various systems to keep students safe. Also, new Covid-19 helplines are available at many universities to support students.

The UK government has loosened their restrictive visa policies of the past several years, which has benefitted them. Is the US considering making more relaxed post-work visa policies for international students?

The US includes an opportunity for practical training options as part of the student visa process to ensure international students gain valuable work experience in their field of study during and after their degree programmes. Students can pursue internships during the degree programme called Curricular Practical Training (CPT) for up to one year. Students can gain work experience for up to one year after graduating through Optional Practical Training (OPT). STEM graduates can participate in OPT for up to three years.

International students contributed $44 billion to the US economy and India is the second-largest contributor to this. How is the US planning to hike this further?

Last year, the US mission launched a second EducationUSA student advising centre in Hyderabad at the Y-Axis Foundation. This brings the network of EducationUSA centres in India to eight, in Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. These centres offer accurate, comprehensive and current information about opportunities to study at accredited post secondary institutions in the US. Our free mobile app, ‘EducationUSA India’ offers the most recent updates on studying in the US.

Any initiatives in the form of scholarships or discounts on tuition fees?

There are more than 4,500 accredited higher education institutions (HEIs) in the US and each has its own admissions policies. HEIs recognise the challenges the pandemic has posed for international students and many have updated their admissions policies. Many universities are offering application fee waivers and announced that they would keep tuition, housing, and fees flat. Some universities have extended their application deadlines to allow students more time to apply and accept admission offers. Whatever your requirement, EducationUSA will help you look for substantive information about scholarships and finances.

67-year-old sues KSRTC for failing to pick him up from bus stop, wins ₹1k Senior Citizen Pre-Booked Ticket; Designated Spot Changed On Day Of Travel

CONSUMER IS KING

67-year-old sues KSRTC for failing to pick him up from bus stop, wins ₹1k

Senior Citizen Pre-Booked Ticket; Designated Spot Changed On Day Of Travel

Petlee.Peter@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:15.11.2021

A 67-year-old man, who was not picked up at a designated bus stop in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu by a Karnataka State Road transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus on which he had booked a ticket to travel to Bengaluru, took the utility to a consumer court and has now won a refund and compensation of Rs 1,000.

S Sangameswaran, a resident of Banashankari 3rd Stage, had booked return tickets online on KSRTC Airavat Club Class from Bengaluru to Tiruvannamalai. As planned, he left Bengaluru on October 12, 2019 and was scheduled to return to the city the next day. He reached the designated bus stop around noon. However, despite waiting for over an hour, there was no sign of the bus.

Sangameswaran had received an SMS from the state transporter mentioning his bus details, including the conductor’s contact number. When he called the number, he was told that the bus had left Tiruvannamalai as he failed to turn up at the new temporary stop and it was 30km away on its journey towards Bengaluru.

The dejected senior citizen had no choice but to take another KSRTC bus from Tiruvannamalai and reach Hosur by paying Rs 131. From there he took another bus to Bengaluru for Rs 69. Enraged by the fact that a senior passenger like him with a pre-booked sleeper ticket for the premium service wasn’t informed about the change in bus stop, Sangameswaran approached the Bangalore 2nd Urban Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Shantinagar with a compliant against the managing director and general manager (traffic), KSRTC.

The litigation commenced on October 30, 2019. Sangameswaran presented his case, while the KSRTC lawyer claimed the complainant wasn’t maintainable by law. The attorney also stated that the case should be dismissed by the forum as the place where the alleged incident happened was Tiruvannamalai and beyond its jurisdiction.

He further said the conductor of the bus had sent an SMS to the complainant about the local TN police temporally shifting the bus stop to an outer location to manage crowds during the full moon day and it was a mistake on the part of the complainant, who failed to be present at the spot. He also claimed that 23 other passengers had boarded the bus, but not the complainant.

The judges of the consumer forum, however, didn’t accept the state transporter’s version as it failed to provide proof to substantiate its claims. The utility also failed to produce the bus conductor before the forum.

In their verdict pronounced on October 26, 2021, the consumer court ordered the managing director and GM (traffic) of KSRTC to refund Rs 497 towards the complainant’s Airavat ticket and Rs 131 and Rs 69 for the alternative bus journey he was forced to take to return to Bengaluru. The court also ordered the officers to pay the senior citizen a compensation of Rs 1,000 for the trouble caused.

All payments to the Bengalurean must be made within 30 days of the order, the court ordered.

UNPLEASANT EXPERIENCE

S Sangameswaran, a resident of Banashankari 3rd Stage, had booked return tickets online on KSRTC Airavat Club Class from Bengaluru to Tiruvannamalai. As planned, he left from Bengaluru on October 12, 2019 and was to return to the city the next day. He reached the designated bus stop around noon. But despite waiting for over an hour, there was no sign of the KSRTC bus

5 Gmail Add-ons to Boost Productivity

TECHTONIC

5 Gmail Add-ons to Boost Productivity

15.11.2021

Emails are an intrinsic part of our internet-dependent lives — for personal and official use — with Gmail being one of the most popular services around. Besides built-in spam filters and security features, you can install third-party ‘add-ons’ to extend the functionality of a Gmail inbox. They can be found at workspace.google.com/marketplace, only need to be installed once and appear in a sidebar whenever you sign in from a web browser. Ashutosh Desai recommends five such add-ons to improve productivity.

SCHEDULE MEETINGS You can set up meetings with friends, colleagues or clients from Gmail with a smart scheduling service like CalendarHero (calendarhero.com). It also integrates with Google Calendar, so you don’t end up double booking your day.

It uses AI to ‘learn’ your scheduling patterns. Here, you can create fixed time frames for video calls, voice calls, coffee meetups, etc, for a more organised day. Each meeting type has a web link so anybody can ‘self book’ appointments with you. CalendarHero lets you set a daily limit to meetings; it can also integrate with Zoom and Cisco Webex; meetings can be scheduled via Slack, MS Teams, FB Messenger, and more. You can even chat with a virtual assistant to know your schedule.

MAIL MERGE GMass (www.gmass.co),lets you send several personalised emails with just one template. When you compose a new email, click the ‘GMass’ button next to ‘Send’. Choose a template to view the syntax it uses for the recipient’s first and last name. Now use the same format when composing the email. GMass will replace it with the recipient’s first or last name, depending on what you selected in the configurations box.

This add-on also includes a scheduling feature that sends reminders after a specified interval. A free GMass account lets you send up to 50 messages per day.

SEND INVOICES If you are the proprietor of a small business or a freelancer then a free invoice generator like Bookipi (www.bookipi.com) will be a useful addition to your workflow. To use this add-on, you first need to register with Bookipi and design your invoice to include a logo, payment instructions, etc before sending them from Gmail.

When you reply to a client’s email or compose a message, you will be able generate an invoice without leaving the tab.

These invoices can be saved into categories like estimates, incidentals, arrears, etc; can include tax, discount, shipping, and a placeholder for signatures as well. Alternatively, you can also consider the Zoho Invoice add-on to email bills to customers.

ORGANISE EMAIL You can turn your inbox into Kanban-style boards to help you get more work done with Sortd (www.sortd.com), a task-oriented service that lets you assign emails to ‘buckets’ like To-Do, Planning, In Progress, Done, etc. It is ideal for project managers and event planners who need to separate important emails from all the noise.

The add-on lets you assign the email to specific boards while its Chrome extension — which also needs to be installed — toggles between the regular Gmail view and Kanban boards. When you switch to the latter, you will only see the emails you assigned to the various boards. You will see the inbox as a panel, but you can hide this as well so that you can focus on the work at hand and not get distracted by new email notifications.

TRACK EMAILS If your work has you sending several emails through the day to your customers, clients and vendors then it is necessary to know if your messages are actually being read or ignored. With the Mailtrack (mailtrack.io) add-on and its browser extension, you will receive alerts — as popups and as emails, depending on what you choose — whenever your emails are read.

You can also set your account to receive daily reports with analytics related to your read/unread emails, alerts for old emails and messages that have been opened several times over a short period of time.

Mailtrack will also notify you when an email you have received uses tracking features. Moreover, you can install this add-on on an Android handset and send tracked emails while being on the move.