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UOH DISPATCH A LAB PUBLICATION OF DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, UNIVERSITY OF HYDERABAD
November 2014, For internal circulation only
Volume 8, Issue 10, Pages 8
RAYAPROL POETRY PRIZE AWARDED P2
GETTING A DUPLICATE ID CARD
Garbage mess in University
THE CAMPUS TEA CULTURE P8
P3
Building collapse: Time for quality check Rajesh Dupta
Waste scattered near men’s hostel-J
Ashutosh Prasad The University of Hyderabad campus produces four tractors of bio degradable and non-bio degradable waste every day. Proper management of this waste is a no-nonsense task. When it comes to the collection and disposal of waste, the much hyped zero waste-management system in the campus cannot be termed as a success. “Building premises are becoming dumping yards and the basic problem starts from the absence of coordination between the cleaners and the collectors.This makes collection of waste difficult for collectors and results in slow work” Said Ajay Kumar Koli,
PhD student from School of Management Studies, who has been coordinating voluntary waste management programmes under the NGO Free Service. “Campus community should understand the importance of waste management and use waste bins to make the collection easier,” said Shyam Sunder, Sanitary Inspector, University of Hyderabad. It is not just the problem of using waste bins. The garbage is not properly segregated or recycled. Often waste is burned in open near hostel premises in an unsceintific way, affecting the air quality . “We are facing work force crunch. We have only seven work-
ers,which is not enough to clean the vast campus” Said Raju, supervisor of contract agency Sukuki Exnora. Collected waste is brought to the dumping yard behind the Men’s Hostel-F.“After collecting the waste we segregate dry waste so that it can be sent for recycling. Food waste is put in compost pit to use as fertilizer” adds Raju. But Ajay disagrees. “They pick resellable items from the collected waste and remaining will be burned.There is no proper recycling or reuse” he said. “We are handing over the waste management to an efficient agency .Tendering process has started,”said B.Mallesh, section officer, sanitation department.
A portion of the newly constructing Zakir Husain lecture hall complex in University of Hyderabad caved in recently, raising several questions about the quality of constructions being taken up in the campus. Nobody was injured in the incident. “I have requested detailed report from the chief engineer. Once we receive the report, necessary actions will be taken” In-charge Professor A.C.Narayana said to the students’ representatives. The metal bars were falling down while this reporter was talking to the officials. This also brings up issue of security of the construction workers. “These things will not repeat. The part of the construction collapsed because of some faulty metal bars used to balance the concrete. All the expenses for the reconstruction of the collapsed portion will be borne by the contractor” said K.Y.Reddy,contractor-in-charge,Ramkrishi Infrastructure Private Limited Company.
Contracts for constructing buildings in the campus are given through the Central Public Works Department. “Only qualified contractors are selected by CPWD.Regarding this event, we are waiting for the detailed report” said I.Ramabrahmam,University Registrar. Various students’ representatives present at the scene pointed out serious negligence on the part of the administration. It is a well known fact that buildings constructed in the last few years have started to show cracks and water seepages. Once the construction is over, CPWD and the contractor leaves the scene. It is up to the University administration to ensure the safety of the buildings. The University doesn’t have a permanent engineer to continuously monitor the constructions. “ There is no continuous monitoring of the health of the buildings in the campus. There should be an immediate appointment of permanent engineer for the university. We also demand a detailed inquiry of the event” said Vincent, President of the Students’ Union.
South campus lit up
Poacher caught on campus
Meghna Neogi
Avnish Kumar
The stretch starting from Men’s hostel F to South campus has overcome the issue of lack of streetlights as the authorities have started fixing them. The commute from the north campus to the south campus was very unsafe for students when there were no streetlights.Snakes,scorpions and other wild life often cross this stretch of the road at night. “I had to struggle every night on my walk back from my department. There was no hint of light on the road because of which I would religiously carry my torch,” says V. Ramesh, a second year B.Sc student. However, the absence of lights went unnoticed by the authorities for a long time. "We have had a shortage of funds for maintenance because of which many of the street lights have not been working", says Mr. Mukhtar, Assistant Engineer,
Electrical department. It is not as if there were no streetlights, surprisingly they were left unlit.Initially authorities installed solar powered lamps.But they were not enough to light up the wide road.Solar powered lamps apparently required high maintenance also. “Once while I was riding my bike and out of the blue I saw a guy in a dark shirt crossing the road. I had to halt suddenly to avoid running over him. Had there been streetlights, my visibility would have been better,” says Preethi, M.Phil student. A highway could match the one leading to south campus in terms of the quality and width of the road. Now, it is fully lit throughout the night for commuters to travel comfortably. Finally authorities have taken this issue seriously by fixing the lights before the occurrence of any untoward incident.
Jerripothula Ashok, an animal hunter was caught in the south campus recently. The hunter hails from Gowlidoddy village in Telangana, which is a few kilometers away from the University south campus. He has been using the University campus for a while now for his hunting expeditions. He was using five trained dogs to catch the animals around the wildlife- rich campus. Ashok was taken into custody when Jillapalli Ravi, a PhD scholar from the Department of Animal Sciences, spotted him and informed the security in charge. The next day he was handed over to Gachibowli Police Station for cross-questioning. “We have given him a warning and he will come again for interrogation,” says Benjamin Frazer, Assistant security officer. So far no FIR has been registered against
Photo by:Jillapalli Ravi
Ashok with his hunter dogs
Ashok. The boundary walls at the south campus are not high enough allowing hunters from outside easy access into the campus. “Peacocks, monitor lizards, rabbits and
other species are allegedly being caught on a regular basis and sold out,” says Ravi. Ashok’s brother Laxman has another story to tell. “We belong to a very poor family and our father passed away last year. Ashok has to look after his wife and three young children.” He also said that Ashok is engaged in cattle rearing and may have entered the campus along with his livestock. According to the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972, a person found guilty of hunting can get imprisonment up to two years or a fine of maximum Rs 2,000 or both. Cases of hunting have been reported in the campus previously as well. “I feel it’s everybody’s duty to safeguard our wildlife,” says Ravi. He suggested electric fencing to keep outsiders from trespassing and formation of a proactive groupto monitor hunting activities in the campus.
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CAMPULSE Entrance Exam: Students’ Union and Admin at loggerheads U O H D I S PA T C H
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Joining percentage in the year of 2014-2015 is 96% and the withdrawal is more than 300 Basha P Venkatesh Mamidi The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) won this year’s Students’ Union elections by promising the student community infrastructure development and policy reforms. When it comes to the entrance examination policy there is a sharp difference in the views of administration and Students’ Union. Administration points out that the number of applications has increased with the early entrance examination policy.The ruling alliance alleges that the number of students withdrawing after admission has increased with the new policy. “Don’t look at the withdrawals, look at the joining percentage. Every year it is increasing,” said Prof. Ramakrishna Ramaswamy, Vice-Chancellor of University of
Hyderabad (UoH), brushing aside the arguments of UDA. “There is no date clash of our entrance examination with examinations of other universities. Also, students can prepare freely for their other examinations after giving our entrance examination.” he added. “Number of applications has increased not because of early entrance examination,” argues Vincent Benny, President of Students’ Union. “It is because they have introduced online application. In the past, students had to apply offline and the procedure was difficult. It is also important that for admissions to PhD courses, the university is giving 40 marks weightage in advance for those who have appeared for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) Exam. Admission list is prepared based on this score.Candidates who fail
Green bucket challenge Venkatesh Mamidi Students of the School of Management Studies (SMS), University of Hyderabad, followed up their rice bucket challenge initiative with the green bucket challenge. The activity was initiated by Prof V. Venkata Ramana, Senior faculty member, SMS, to sensitise the youth and inculcate a sense of responsibility towards ‘environmental ownership’. The students and faculty of the department participated in the event by cleaning the SMS premises and planting around 200 saplings.““It is a great privilege to be a part of the cleaning drive. Our work is not over by just planting saplings, we will nurture these plants till they grow into trees,”said Raj Kiran, a student from the department. The chief guests included K. Vishweshwar Reddy, MP of Chevella
constituency, NVS Reddy, Managing director of Hyderabad Metro Rail and Prof. Ramakrishna Ramaswamy, Vice Chancellor, UoH. “There are several Government programs to initiate projects, but the challenge is sustaining these projects post their initiation.” said Vishweshwar Reddy. He called upon the students to go further and ensure that the trees planted survivie, to reap the real benefits of this tree planting exercise. NVS Reddy appealed to students to identify the problems and contribute back to the society through green initiatives. “The flora, fauna and rock formations are part of Telengana heritage and need to be preserved. Our campus needs initiative support to preserve the biodiversity,” said Prof.Ramakrishna Ramaswamy,Vice Chancellor.
to clear JRF automatically get disqualified later. This can lead to legal repurcussions and disreupute to University” added Vincent. “Early entrance examination makes the best students compete for admission. If we conduct examination in June or July, other good universities would have finished their admissions. Only students who couldn’t qualify for these institutions would join here. I want qualified students who can give a challenge to others,” said Vice Chancellor . Students’ Union counters this argument by stating that universities are not meant to admit only the best students, but should create the best students. The President further pointed out that public universities should not allow a single seat to go vacant when there are a large number of students waiting to get admission.
Administration V/S Students’ Union • Number of applications increased • Joining percentage has increased • Early entrance exam helps students prepare for other examinations • Best students join when the exam is conducted early.
• It is because of the online application procedure • Withdrawal percentage has increased and seats go vacant. • Early entrance examination creates problems for students in preparing for other examinations. • University is not just for best students. It should create best students.
Security lapses in ladies hostels Nidhi Gupta On October 7, a man stepped into the North Campus Ladies Hostels premises and was caught peeping into a washroom when a girl was bathing. Expressing her disgust, the girl who wishes to remain anonymous said, “I was shocked. I don’t know what to do. I’m still angry and will not be at peace unless the person is caught.” The campus has witnessed several security lapses in the past few months, risking the safety of hostellers. On October 12, a theft occurred in Ladies Hostel VII in South Campus. The occupants of the room whose window was pried open lost Rs. 6,000 in cash. Installation of street lights, allotment of security guards at individual hostels, and night patrolling within hostel premises
have been deployed as damage control measures. The administration has instructed female security personnel to accompany all outsiders who enter hostel premises for maintenance works. “University should insist on providing security not just for moral policing but also for the general safety of its inhabitants,” said Sanjana Krishnan, a PhD student at Department of Political Science. “We have even taken an initiative addressing issues to establish a gender sensitive campus,” she added. Students are concerned about the lax attitude of the University. “Lights, fencing and clearing of bushes are secondary measures which will not make a lot of difference unless there is cohesion between permanent security and security working on contractual
basis. They cannot continue the blame-game and must work in unity,” said Rahul Jambhulkar, an M. Phil student from the Department of Sociology. “The security has always been given the lowest quotation by the administration. There should not be any compromise in the tendering process of security guards. We have listed out some of the shortterm as well as long-term measures to the administration,”said Vincent Benny, the President of Students’ Union. He added that the Students’ Union is looking forward to a positive response from the administration. Immediate funds have been sanctioned by Pro-Vice Chancellor Prof. E. Haribabu for managing security issues like fencing and lighting in the hostel premises said Vincent Benny.
Ranjani Murali wins the Srinivas Rayaprol Poetry Prize
Photo by: Joyel K Pious Ranjani Murali receiving the prize from Ranjit Hoskote Sanjana K.K The sixth Srinivas Rayaprol Poetry Prize was awarded to Ran-
jani Murali, a poet and educator currently living in Chicago, USA. The award was handed over by renowned poet, curator
and cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote, who earlier delivered a distinguished lecture in the university on ‘The Problem with Craft’. She was selected from a list of 175 contestants this year. The prize is named after the pioneering Indian English poet Srinivas Rayaprol and is instituted by the Srinivas Rayaprol Literary Trust in association with The Department of English, University of Hyderabad, to recognize excellence in poetry written in English. The prize consisted of a cash award of Rs. 15, 000 and a citation. Here is an exerept of an interview with Ranjani Murali:
What inspired you to write poems? Over the years, I came in contact with the works of several Indian poets and prose writers working in English, as well as a variety of poetry translations, particulary in Sanskrit and Tamil. I started writing to diffuse the profusion of sensory experiences I encountered, and then, slowly, the emphasis moved from speaking about the “feeling” to constructing the evocation of it. How does it feel being the recipient of the 6th Srinivas Rayaprol Poetry Prize? It is an immense honor. I am overwhelmed by the support I
have received. This award is also significant to me as a student because Srinivas Rayaprol’s pioneering poetry came at a time when the Indian English writing scene was as yet beginning to take roots. What do you think about the present generation’s attitude towards poetry? I assume you’re referring to Indian poetry in English. There is an extended interest in reading and writing that may not be in our “native” tongue, because the search for our own place and relevance in a digital, global world is constantly in a state of revision.
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CAMPULSE
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Contract Labour: Sanitation workers seek a fair deal Joyel K.Pious Sanjana K.K “I have been working here for more than 7 years. When the university was directly employing us things were better. At least we could directly talk to the authorities. Now, we have become commodities being exchanged between different contractors,” said a sanitation worker who wishes not to be identified. Initially employed by the university as temporary labourers, more than 170 sanitation workers who clean the campus and hostel
wash rooms are now under the payroll of a contract agency. “We strictly follow all the rules and regulations related to the employment of contract labourers,” said Srinivas Reddy, Proprietor of S R enterprises, which employs the sanitation workers. The administration also denies the charges. “Previously when Prabhakar Reddy was the contractor there were lot of issues. Now things have improved a lot. Salary is credited before tenth of everymonth ,” said V. Prasanna Kumar, Deputy Registrar, Sanitation. But, the situation is not as
promising as it seems. “We don’t know how much amount is being cut from our monthly salary for Provident Fund and Employee’s State Insurance. We just get a mobile message from the bank indicating that the salary has been credited into our accounts. The authorities should provide us a pay sheet with all the details of salary,” demand the labourers. Without a pay slip, workers are unable to ascertain whether the contractor is properly crediting their PF and ESI premium. “I was not aware of this issue. I will make sure that pay sheet
will be provided every month,” said Prasanna Kumar. Other than Sundays and six government-notified holidays, the contract workers are not entitled for any casual leaves. If they are absent from duty on any otherday, that day’s wage is deducted. They also face issues related to medical facilities. Many of the workers are yet to get their ESI activated. “We request the authorities to allow us to form a society to work directly under the University without the interference of an outside contractor,” said sanitation workers. But this demand is fac-
ing strong opposition from the administration. “If we allow them to work under a society, the next day they will ask for permanent jobs,” said an official in the administration, under the condition of anonymity. “We are aware of the problems .We are planning to bring the contractor and administration together to discuss the problems of contract workers. We will make sure that the university oversees the timely disbursal of salaries, crediting of provident fund and ESI premium,” said Vincent, President,Students Union.
Pro-active Placements Getting a duplicate ID card Anupama Evani At University of Hyderabad 39 have secured jobs via the placement cells in their deparments, with 15 students bagging pay packages of 7 lakh (and more) per annum. M. Tech, MBA, MCA and MA Economics departments have taken a proactive role in working with the placement office and the students of these departments have benefitted as a result. The Placement Office is a two-member team comprising Placement Officer Ashish Jacob Thomas, who is also the university’s PR Officer, and P. Upender who serves as a Consultant Placement Coordinator. The departments / schools in the university are to create brochures on the courses and facilities available with them, along with details of students. The faculty and student placement coordinators should then approach companies with this brochure, printed by the placement office, and follow up till the company agrees to come
to the University on a placement drive. Here, the placement office takes over and handles logistics, ensuring that the needs of the companies are met. 210 students were placed last year and the number promises to rise this year. In this university, 50 to 60 per cent of its students opt for higher studies. The remaining opt for jobs, of which 30 to 35 per cent are qualified to get placed. The placement office also follows up with companies to find bottlenecks and work on improving the efficiency of placements. Pro-active departments have received feedback from the office that allows them to concentrate on soft skills and professional etiquette of their students, preparing them for placements. An issue with the placements is that students who are not interested in taking up a job, apply, secure a job, but fail to join. This reflects poorly on the University. As a result, other students in need of a job miss out on the opportunity.
K.Divya While the loss of University identity card (ID) and the ensuing procedure to get a duplicate issued is seen by many students as tedious, the University maintains that the procedure is necessary to protect students from any untoward incident. “I lost my identity card towards the end of last semester and a duplicate was issued to me only this semester. While the procedure per se is easy, the functioning of the system is more problematic. I had to make several trips to eSeva as the officers were away,” said Mrudula Bhavani, a student of M.A Comparative Literature. However, the administration maintains that the procedure is in compliance with the guidelines given by the police department and the University is obligated to follow it. The University ID card is a bona fide identity proof and hence lost ID cards must be protected from misuse. “The intention of introducing the procedure is not to cause inconvenience to anybody. An ID
card is an important, valuable document possessed by any individual and following this procedure is essential because of the repercussions that losing an ID card Identity card is an important document for the students and it must be protected from misuse may result in,” said Devesh Nigam, Deputy Registrar (Acad. and Exams). Nevertheless, an amendment
has been made to simplify the procedure. “Now, a missing report is not required. A letter addressed to the Station House Officer, Chandanagar Police station along with the acknowledgement received at e-Seva is enough. Also, we have been assisting women and physically disabled students in completing this procedure,” added Devesh Nigam. The procedure is same for students and employees alike. It is applicable only for the loss of university identity card. Semester registration cards are issued by a simple payment of Rs.50.
When learning transcends borders
The poster problem
UoH now has eight exchange opportunities for students
Priyanka Manikandan
Harika Vankadara Speaking at an Indo-Turkish dialogue seminar in the university, Paridhi Singh , a student of Jindal Global Law School, spoke of the manner in which countries can foster good-will and forge friendship by allowing youth exchange programmes centered on education, professional practices and culture. She said without the restrictions that shackle diplomats and governments in their communications, the youth of two countries are sensitised to each other’s lives through such programmes. Although not truly an exchange programme, the University of Hyderabad (UoH), since 1998, has in place, the Study in India Program (SIP). It is a unique initiative in
the country. Through memorandums of understanding (MoU) with certain universities abroad, students from different countries are allowed to take up a semester at the university . “This is a oneof-a-kind programme in India, wherein grades earned by students from foreign Universities are transferred to the parent school. Courses are sometimes customized to meet the needs of students,” said Dr. Kanchan K. Malik, a member of the Management Committee, SIP. The Office of International Affairs, UoH, said that the university has entered into MoUs with universities in Finland, Germany and Canada. Currently, there are MoUs with four foreign universities for a total of eight exchange
opportunities for UoH students. Two students from the School of Management Studies visited University of Wurzburg for summer internships and two students of University of Jyvaskyla spent a semester at two departments in the university. “...It is pretty amazing everything you can learn by this kind of experience. You learn about yourself, your limits…you need to study in another language, with different teachers with a different pedagogy and that can be really challenging because every country has its own way to promote education,” said Marie-Frederique Quellet, a Canadian on a government exchange programme organised by the governments of the two countries.
Even a month after the conclusion of students’ union election, when it comes to the removal of banners and posters, the political parties don’t seem as enthusiastic as they were while pasting them. Except ABVP, who hanged their posters pasted on cardboards and immediately removed them after election, posters and banners of all other parties fill the campus. Dr. B.R Ambedkar’s face is painted on the walls of men’s hostels J and K and spray painted invitations to join ASA decorate south campus. There is hardly any wall or tree in the north campus that does not display political sloganeering, making notice boards mere spectators. “We have removed all the banners. But removing all posters is
difficult. We will take an initiative by taking inspiration from Swach Bharat Abhayan, ”said, Eswar, former President of the party, when asked about the TRSV plastic flags and banners being a major contributor to the large amount of election related trash. “Why can’t people remove the posters once the event is over? Students are not concerned about these issues. Those who are concerned should not keep quiet,” said Abhishek Singaraju, a student from the School of Physics, who wrote a blog on the same issue. Students speak about their right to paste posters, but they often forget the fact that any right comes with an equal amount of responsibility which has to be fulfilled.
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UOH DISPATCH Culture conundrum
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hen asked why he was stealing plates from the hostel mess, “It’s university money. Why do you have a problem?” a student replied. The long serpentine queue of the mess and its dining tables showcase something that doesn’t really reflect that we are members of one of the finest universities of the country. While behaviour patterns at a mess hall can’t be used to assess students, they do give us some hints about our underlying attitudes. Here, we have a future generation which is not even capable of patiently standing in a queue. The typical ‘Indian queue’ in the mess hall looks like a snake, with a huge head and a thin tail. The late comers, a group that comprises future scientists, engineers, philosophers, writers, economists, journalists and artists, automatically move towards the head of the queue, making fools of the patiently waiting fellow students. Sometimes, the ones who are ethically upright by standing in the queue will have to leave the dining hall hungry while the late comer insolently eats to his/her fill. The chewed vegetables carelessly thrown over dining tables for the others to clean up shows the insensitive attitude of students. We are in the fore-front when demanding our rights from governments and administrations. Only through struggles we can achieve our rights. But what about the basic rights of our fellow students? What about the dignity of sanitation workers? Are they to clean the chewed vegetables spat out by us? The degrees we earn from here are worthless unless we learn to respect the basic rights of our fellow citizens.
Women’s safety
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he recent incident where a man was found peeping inside bathroom in one of the ladies’ hostels highlights the issue of women’s safety in the campus. This incident created furore among students in the university especially female students who demanded stern action against such perpetrators. This peeping tom gave security personnel the slip. In the past few months, a man was found indulging in indecent acts outside the North Campus ladies hostels. There is also the case of a robbery at a south campus ladies hostel where the window of a room was dislodged and the residents robbed. It is evident that safety norms are not in place in the University. The administration has increased the number of security personnel in and around the ladies hostels. Bushes and trees in hostel premises have been cut down for clear visibility. Lights have been added in all those unfrequented corners of hostel grounds that were shrouded in darkness before. But the larger question remains the same. Will the new beefed up security measures deter such culprits? Men, both authorized staff and non-authorized visitors, continue to walk around in the ladies hostels unfettered. In a varsity of 2,300 acres where security persons are deployed at all major points, why were only two lady guards and one male guard appointed outside the ladies hostel? In a textbook case of wisdom following a tragedy, more security personnel have been deployed within and outside the north campus ladies hostels after the peeping tom jostling authorities into action. However, there is room for improvement in actually securing the hostels from intruders as loopholes continue to exist.
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Annihilation of gender
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nnihilation of gender is a theoretical concept that is inspired by Babasaheb Ambedkar's vision of the annihilation of caste. Babasaheb asserted that reformist attempts in Hinduism to "reduce" caste discrimination within the varna system or to "eradicate untouchability" were pointless if they did not fundamentally disturb the framework of caste. He called for the annihilation of the entire system of caste. The question is – can we annihilate gender? What is gender? Gender is the bizarre socio-economic construct that refers to the genital and secondary sexual characteristics of people. In societies where people exert considerable effort to cover their bodies, the genderspecific clothing, the mandatory checklist of appropriate and inappropriate behaviours, the mustache retained on an otherwise shaved face serves as a quaint reminder of what is hidden, a euphemistic way to refer to bodies. Can people break the socio-economic construct connecting their natural choice of behaviour, gestures and clothing to
some veiled reference to their gender? One obvious question that arises from such a notion is whether such a framework destroys the hard work of some feminist movements to put in
place systems of protection for women (other feminist movements have posited the annihilation of gender itself in other languages and contexts). Babasaheb’s vision of the annihilation of caste does not mean pretending we live in a post-caste world, it involves thinking through ways of destroying these oppressive systems, while simultaneously instituting measures (such as
preferential opportunities, political education, reservation, and empowering spaces) to combat the historical injustices faced by oppressed castes – this can be extended to oppressed genders, “dis”ability, oppressed religions and nationalities. In terms of annihilating gender, what tools we might use to dismantle the system are up to people reading this article to think through. Perhaps all of you should try behaving in ways considered inappropriate for the gender you were assigned, or even wearing clothes considered inappropriate, to see how sharply gender is policed around you. The fact that a garment wrapped around the body can be considered both feminine (wraparound skirt) and masculine (lungi) might help convince you that there is nothing inherently gendered about a piece of cloth; gender is a social construct to demarcate socio-economic labour roles and expectations. Kaveri R.I. is a Postdoctoral Faculty Fellow, Cognitive and Neural Sciences, UoH
Listening as a skill and an art
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ur intension behind creating ‘Listening post(LP)’ was to emphasize on the skill of listening in the academic space. The art of listening is significant to hear and to be heard in the world of thoughts, ideas, and of multitude. Listening to one another is an important precondition for dialogue and genuine conversation. Listening post gives you a chance to join a series of speakers from the academia talking about their recent work, ideas and interventions. The initiative was put forward by Arvind Susarla, Aparna Devare and Ratheesh Kumar. We believe that we are promoting listening as a skill through this platform, which is believed to be a precursor and may allow for meaningful dialogues. In January / February 2014, an informal initiative titled Listening Post was started specifically with a purpose to create a platform for listening. The thrust at this platform is listening. It is primarily a discussion between faculty colleagues from all
schools on their research works, ideas, and thoughts. However, we envisioned speakers to be from outside the academia as well. It is hoped that speakers at this initiative will present their research work succinctly, and enter into dialogues to foster innovative or creative conversations, at the very least.
From the left: Sowmya Dechamma, Arvind Susarla, Aparna Devare We found that the UoH community often does not have an opportunity to listen to their own faculty talk about their own publications and this forum also attempted to address this lack. By definition, LP-model is interdisciplinary / multidisciplinary and allows for
CARTOONSCAPE
sharing with, and obtaining of feedback from, persons with various disciplinary backgrounds. Thus far we have heard speakers from wide ranging departments, including: Philosophy, History, English, Political Science, Cultural Studies, Anthropology, Sociology, and Comparative Literature. The first talk on Listening Post was by the Vice Chancellor of our University on "The Unknown D. D. Kosambi." and other talks were by Prof. Sanjay Palshikar from the Department of Political Science, Prof. Pramod K. Nayar from the Department of English and by Prof. N Sudhakar Rao from the Department of Anthropology and much more.We have been using social media sites to promote LP-model and part of the overall objective was to create an inter-disciplinary platform for students and faculty to come together. Arvind Susarla, Aparna Devare, and Sowmya Dechamma are the co-founders of Listening Post.
Corrigendum:In the article 'Nipping suicides in the bud', writer Sumantran Ray was wrongly mentioned as PhD student. He is doing M.Phil at the Center for Neural and Cognitive sciences, UoH. THE TEAM Cartoon by: R Praveen Varma
U O H D I S PA T C H
Editors: Joyel K. Pious, K. Keerthi Kiran Copy Editors: Aalekhya Tadepalli, Meghna Neogi, Sanjana K.K, Saumya Painuli Reporters / Editorial Team: Aalekhya Tadepalli, Anupama Evani, Avnish Kumar, Ashutosh Prasad, Basha P, Divya K., Harika Vankadara, Joyel K. Pious, K. Keerthi Kiran, Meghna Neogi, Nidhi Gupta, Priyanka Manikandan, Rajesh Dupta, Saumya Painuli, Sanjana K.K, Venkatesh Mamidi Photographers: Aalekhya Tadepalli, Joyel K. Pious, Priyanka Manikandan
Printed and published by the Head of the Department, Dept. of Communication, Sarojini Naidu School Of Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad. We appreciate participation from all departments. Mail us at dispatchuoh@gmail.com
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U O H D I S PA T C H
REFLECTIONS 5
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Organisational stability
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odern organisational theory represents the domain which is Pratapa Chan- most suitable dra Nayak to the case of student organisation in the University of Hyderabad. It has a vibrant student politics, where various student organisations work with their respective objectives and ideologies. The present Student Union 2014-15 is a combination of various student organisations which can be called as a coalition union. The student community of the campus is well aware about the political entrepreneurs. The primary objective of the organisation’s leaders to safeguard their control over their enterprise can be reformulated as follows: the organisation leadership’s fundamental objective is to safeguard organisational stability. Organisational stability means the conservation of the organisation’s internal authority channels. An
example of this is its configurations of legitimate power. Such a configuration is continuously threatened by outside environmental challenges (campus issues) which are at any moment endangering the organisation and thus offer ammunition to the minority elites.
UoH has a vibrant student politics, where various student organisations work with their objectives and ideologies All organisations leaders want organisational stability and leaders try to ensure it in more than one way. Therefore, the strategy that is chosen by the organisation’s leaders to ensure organisational stability cannot be predetermined. It depends on the characteristic of internal power equilibrium and on the organisation’s relations with its environment. In certain cases, all organisations want their internal
Predicting weather and climate
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he track are not seen. Moreover, the of the processes are subtle and more r e c e n t complex, such as ~10 km sized Hud-Hud cy- clouds supplying energy to a clone and its 1000-km tropical cyclone. All landfall were these make the weather prediction well-pre- in the tropics more challenging. Dr. Ashok Karumuri dicted by With increasing ground-based the India Meteorological Depart- and satellite observations, which ment. On a different note, the re- are important to design the model cent IPCC report states that “Most initial state, tropical weather preof the observed increase in global dictions are improving signifiaverage temperatures since the cantly. mid-20th century The monWith increasing is very likely due soonal seasonal to the observed prediction is anground-based and increase in another challenge. satellite observations, Monsoon is a thropogenic tropical weather greenhouse gas manifest of concentrations”. processes that predictions are These models vary on broad improving are nothing but a spatial and tembunch of matheporal scales. Inimatical equations. Solving these tiated by the land-sea temperature equations is not feasible by tradi- contrast, monsoons are driven by tional math. Therefore, we use external impacts from the tropical some techniques, such as finite pacific, the Himalayan/Eurasian difference techniques of mathe- snow covers, etc. Of late, some matics for solutions. Weather/cli- scientists propose that the anthromate prediction needs pogenic aerosols can impact the super-computing. monsoonal rainfall. The potential The dynamics in mid-latitudes impact of climate change, which are essentially due to large scale not yet well understood, is also rechanges in air masses, and associ- ceiving serious attention. ated with huge changes in temperature and pressure on Dr. Ashok Karumuri is an Asdaily/sub-daily basis, and hence sociate Professor ,University easy to predict. On the other hand, Centre for Earth and Space Sciin tropical regions, such changes ence, University of Hyderabad.
stability as well as good relationship with the environment. In this case, the organisation’s growth strengthens its stability. It becomes a tool for the consolidation of the leading group and the organization manifests tendencies towards expansion. On the other hand, expansion is a product of competition within divided elites. Organisational stability can be defended by leaders through different strategies. In certain cases, it is through expansion and in the other cases, it is through the avoidance of expansion by increasing environmental adaptation. So, even if it is the organisation’s inner stability or cooperation with the outside environment, the student community is benefited both directly and indirectly. Developmental approach should be a healthy process. It is suitable for the organisational stability and development we aspire for. Pratapa Chandra Nayak is a Ph.D Scholar at Department of Political Science,University of Hyderabad
The politics of friendship
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he Students’ Union elections 20142015 concluded last month with a Saumya Painuli new alliance emerging as the clear choice of student community. The pre-election scenario was in no way different from that of previous year. The atmosphere was filled with slogans aimed at reaching each one of us. Interestingly, this year too, politics went along with friendships. The pre-polling atmosphere captivated everyone’s attention. Ironically we witnessed enemies turning into friends and vice versa. It is intriguing to notice that a person is no longer identified with his/her name but with one’s political affiliation. There is a saying, “Man is known by the company he keeps” but that does not always hold true in the case of our cam-
pus. Here, a person is known by the political party he/she aligns with. There is no escape even if one is not aligned to any party. People start assuming that one is an ardent supporter of a party if she/he has friends who are members of that particular party. It is beyond comprehension that why would someone associate a person with a party. Campus politics and friendship are becoming distinct terms. It seems that if one plans to align oneself with one of the parties on campus, one must be prepared to lose their identity! It is high time that we consider these issues seriously and think back on our actions. In the process of building new ties, we have forgotten our old bonds. Let’s act prudently and separate politics and friendship. Saumya Painuli is a student of MA Communiction,SN School of Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad
An urgent need for reforms The changing dynamics of student requirements should be addressed
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f one was to judge the hostels in University of Hyderabad (UoH) by the Hostel HandHarika book, the little Vankadara book that most of us have religiously ignored, the mental picture created would be very different from reality. A well-disciplined, sanitized, clockwork mechanism is formed in the reader’s mind, with students feeling the lack of nothing. This very handbook also states that students are allowed only three electronic items in their rooms – a personal computer, a mobile phone and a personal music player. While the functionality of such norms is understandable, their relevance can be questioned. In a system where a hosteller is served three meals a day at a schedule that jostles for space with academics, and the quality of food is determined by the honesty and earnestness of the mess-incharge for the month, one does feel the need to fend for oneself.
It is an open secret that students do keep cooking paraphernalia in their rooms and cook for themselves. This, according to hostel rules, is unacceptable. Appliances are confiscated during random checking drives by wardens, and a fine is charged. The interesting part here is that the victims of these checks are those students unfortunate enough to be in their rooms at that unfor-
tunate time. Those who are not in their rooms are untroubled as there is no systematic way of conducting searches. However, here archaic rules are pitted against necessity. When safe drinking water is not guaranteed due to contamination of the water reservoirs and lack of functional water filters, can’t a young adult enjoy the right to maintain a kettle to ensure safe drinking water? Have you ever wondered what a dietician would say about
the quality and variety of food served at the messes in the campus? The purpose of the university is definitely to disseminate and promote education. But needs of students have also continued to evolve over time and it is time to accommodate these needs. A system that allows students to cater to their needs need to be developed. Before any sweeping changes can be made, infrastructure needs to be given a boost to support the former. The designs of hostels are flawed when it comes to the case of fires and other accidents. The electrical wirings too are cause for concern, with loose connections and faulty lines being commonplace in the hostels. There is no ready-to-use solution waiting to be picked up for these issues. A collective effort on the part of the university administration and students is required to arrive at a solution here. Harika Vankadara is a student of MA Communication, SN School of Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad
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Keeping Clean: A day out of the lives of often unnoticed sanitation workers captured by Aalekhya Tadepalli, Joyel K. Pious and Priyanka Manikandan
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No sporting culture in the University?
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The authorities cite lack of enthusiasm from students as the primary reason K. Keerthi Kiran The University of Hyderabad carries a reputation of being the top University in South India. However, it reels under staff shortage as there are no permanent coaches in the University. The Students’ Union 2014-15 President Vincent Benny says, “The University does not have sports quota. However, the administration does ensure that a camp is organised for the students. For the camp, coaches are brought from outside and the students are trained for minimum 15 days.”
The suffering of sportspersons in the University has gone unheeded by the administration and other authorities. G. Naresh, student of IMA Economics, says, “We require separate coaches for track events. As of now, we only have Physical Education Director who takes care of all the sports events.” Evidently,University has failed to provide adequate infrastructural facilities to athletes. Naresh adds, “We have to pay Rs 300 per month to use the facilities at the Gachibowli Stadium. Vinay Pradeep, student of IMA
says, “I represented the University team at the inter-university Vol-
UGC granted Rs 50 lakhs during the XI plan. Out of this, only Rs 25 lakh was spent leyball tournament. The trials were held 15 days prior to the event and we were given training only for 10 days.” The University was granted an amount of Rs 50 lakhs by UGC during the XI plan. Out of this,
only 25 lakh was spent for development of adventure sports, infrastructure and equipments. In this regard, the Physical Education Director, Dr. K. V. Rajashekar says, “There is no need for providing full time coaches because when ever we organise camps the attendance is very poor. The University lacks a sports culture. On the whole we need to be more sports oriented.” Ruthvik Chowla, Sports Secretary, says, “It is very unfortunate that a reputed institution like ours doesn't provide regular coaching facilities because of which tal-
ented students suffer. I was informed that a call for tenders will be initiated as soon as possible.In this aspect I will try to make sure that there is no delay in this process.” He further added that there are many issues that need immediate attention like implementation of sports quota as per University Grants Commission guidelines, renovation of sports facilities, and establishment of sports complex in south campus, permanent arena for indigenous sports like kabaddi and kho-kho and indoor sports facility for every hostel.
Athletes brave all odds
From left to right P Sreenu, Dr.K.Kishore ,B. Vinod Kumar, G. Naresh, B. Prashanth, Praveen Punia and C. Mallesham. Saumya Painuli A team of six students from University of Hyderabad represented the University at the National Cross Country Championship held at Ernakulam, Kerala. The team members, C. Malle-
sham , Center for Health Pyschology , B.Vinod Kumar, Department of Anthropology, G. Naresh , School of Economics , Praveen Punia, College of Integrated Studies, P. Sreenu, College of Integrated Studies and B. Prashanth, Department of Telugu represented
the University at the cross country event of 12.5 km. The championship was organised by the Mahatma Gandhi University, Ernakulum and a total of the 1500 participants from all over the country took part in the event. Expressing the joy after securing decent rank at the event G. Naresh said, “I have improved my timing from the last year. This year, I secured 331 position. This is my personal best and also the team best score.” P.Sreenu said, “We had been practising from July. We performed well but lagged behind because we don’t have separate coaches for different events.”
The team is preparing for the upcoming All India Athletics Meet that will be held in Mangalore in January 2015. “The team would strive to include as many athletes as possible. The team members will participate in different track events,” said Praveen Punia.
Cricket Time: An action packed moment from final match of the 4th Senthil Balraj Cricket Night Cup.The tournament saw approximately 108 knock out matches Photo by: Aalekhya Tadepalli
Varsity Chess team shines at South Zone level Harika Vankadara Abhishek Paul, Saketh P, Veerababu Gorla, Akhil Chakravarthy and Jaya Prakash put up quite a fight at the South Zone Inter University Chess competition at Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT). Saketh P won the Individual Board Prize for winning every game he played at the event. Captain Abhishek Paul won 6 of the 9 matches he played. These five students of the University were chosen after a screening round with about 25 students. Interestingly, not even one woman auditioned for the team. Saketh from School of Management Studies has been competing at tournaments since 2002. He won an international rating of
From left to right Akhil Chakravarthy, Veerababu Gorla, Saketh P, Naresh Kumar Benny, Abhishek Paul and Jaya Prakash.
1,735 in 2006. “I use ChessBase, a database of 14 crore chess games, to practice and study the game. This is a game whose result depends on a player’s talent rather
than luck,” says Saketh. ‘I don’t know how my passion for chess began. It has shaped my life: my character and attitude,” says Abhishek Paul, a student of
Department of Communication. He has an international ranking of 2,010. “He played extraordinarily well for someone who is participating in a chess tournament for the first time,” say Saketh and Abhishek proudly of their team mate Veerababu Gorla. A student of IMA Linguistics, Gorla won five of the eight matches he played at VIT. A basketball player when in school, arthritis deprived him of the healthy use of his legs. Adjusting to this sudden health restrictions, Veerababu started playing chess as the game allows the exercise of mind power. Taking inspiration from his teammates, Veerababu wishes to earn an international rating soon. Akhil chakravarthy is a fourth
year student of IMSc Chemistry. This is the third year that he represented the University at chess tournaments. All the team members were full of praise for their manager Naresh Kumar Benny, who they say was extremely supportive and encouraging throughout. While sports persons in the University continue to battle all odds to perform well in the sports of their choice, the lack of administrative support discourages them. The system is such that students have to choose between pursuing a sport or faring well in their academics. If this condition was somehow remedied, sportspersons believe they would have room to perform much better.
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University students trolled by UoH Memes Saumya Painuli
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aunched in September 2014, “UoH memes, Just for fun” is a Facebook page replete with satirical comments about campus. Be it politics, administration or students, the page does not spare anyone. Popular posts on the page target student political parties, and others attract attention to different aspects of campus life as can be seen here: “Who are we?” “We are seminar attendees.” “What do we want?” “High tea!”
As the page came into being just before the Students’ Union election 2014-15, it drew flak from ardent supporters of different parties. Some students say that the page should have been named UDA Memes because most of the posts target SFI and ABVP. Notwithstanding this, there are students who like the jokes and comments made by the administrator of the page. Within a couple of days of its creation, the page attracted 352 likes and the number continues to rise. Aamir Hamza, a student of Department of Communication,
said, “I got to know about the page a few days ago. Some of the posts are original but others are from popular pages. I do not feel
Bidesia in Bambai Aalekhya Tadepalli A taxi driver telling the story of a woman, whose husband is a migrant worker, sets the stage for Bidesia in Bambai, a documentary film that sketches the lives of migratory workers in Mumbai. The taxi driver is also a migrant who moonlights as a Bhojpuri singer. Bidesia in Bambai, produced and directed by Surabhi Sharma, came out in 2013. Through a series of lively and colourful frames it explores the music space of the Bhojpuri migrant workers in Mumbai. The songs of the migrants deal with several anecdotes of men singing of what the women want. There is a scene which shows a man singing “My wife might have access to me through the mobile phone, but shy as she is. When she
calls on my number, she doesn't know what to say.” Through its lyrics, the film gives the viewer a sense of missing and longing of the wife for her husband. Kalpana, an established Bhojpuri singer, articulates the music of the migrants as shy and direct in demanding affection. Scenes showing the workers singing lines like “I don’t need to write letters to my dear anymore, because I will call him from my mobile phone,” show how technology is reshaping the lives of migrants. The documentary shows how the migrants maintain their identity in a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai. The artists portrayed in the film live a dual life, one as casual labourers at day time and the other as songwriters or singers at night. By the way of clever mix of sarcasm and sensuality the film speaks of the home sickness and livelihood issues of the migrants.
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good about the political trolls in it.” Despite varying claims, the page makes light and witty comments about the events that transpire within the University premises. From comments on SFI’s defeat in the recent elections to ABVP being devoid of social justice, the posts are a favourite among students. The administrator of the page who does not wish to be named said, “We do not claim to be neutral. Neutrality for us is a very problematic concept. Given one’s subjectivity, one will always be biased. All claims of neutrality
and objectivity are bogus.” Talking about the page, the administrator said, “We believe that we should be biased towards the cause of equal rights and justice. This page was started before the elections. We felt that there is a need to get in touch with the people and discuss various issues through a medium that appeals to them. We chose to do so using memes because they are funny as well as pinching. We are committed to our cause and we won’t spare anyone from our 'memetack' if we see them to be deserving of that. We don’t care about parties or individuals.”
: Sending a powerful message Aalekhya Tadepalli
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raffiti as an art form is controversial in its very nature and is generally associated with the youth rebelling against the system or corporations using it as a means of expression. The campus space is no exception to using this disputed art form to convey a strong message. Some of these graffiti’s like the one on the wall adjacent to the Social Sciences building reinstate the age old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” On the wall adjacent to the social sciences department parking lot is a huge commercial for Pepsi covering the entire wall, and under it, in white ink, is a little man, holding a bucket under an almost empty tap and looking up at “Pepsi” for water. It is widely known that corporations like Pepsi and Coco Cola are allegedly responsible for the depreciation of underground water.
Graffiti near social sciences building By the clever placement of this graffiti the artist (who is still unknown), is making a strong statement against these corporations. This well-loved yet notorious art form is used by several other student groups as well. ‘Just Another Students Group’ is painting several interesting graffiti around shopping complex and Humani-
Photo by: Joyel K.Pious
ties department asking the students to “annihilate gender.” A film club of the University created a black and white graffiti with a three dimensional effect. Looking at these art works, it is evident that the campus is a great space for art and ideology to come together to convey strong messages having global significance.
It is always chai time in campus Priyanka Manikandan The energizer of intellectual discussions, the boost of friendlychats, the drink that refreshes the mind after tiring classes, the favourite evening beverage,…No prizes for any guess, it is nothing but our chai. Tea is the favorite and most consumed beverage in the campus. “I drink a minimum of three cups of chai everyday and maximum can go up to 10. Chai gives an instant energy and helps to control sleep in the class. Can’t imagine our campus without tea stalls,” says Abin George, second year IMA student, sipping a cup of hot tea from Mazar tea stall in the south campus.
An average of 250-300 litres of milk is used in eight tea stalls in the campus. The student’s canteen alone uses 70-80 litres milk for making tea. The Mazar tea stall, recently shifted to south campus from Gops, has a good business. “Only few people prefer coffee.We use 20-25 litres of milk every day for making chai. Business is expected to go up in another week,” says Mujahid chaiwala in the tea stall. For Chitra Ashok, an MA English student, tea is a temptation. “If I spend 5 minutes at shopcom, I drink a cup of tea, if it is half an hour it becomes 2 or 3 tea…After all I like tea...The tea we get here is the best,”she says . Apart from 8 stalls and canteens that serve
tea, the ‘Night Canteen’ at south campus and ‘C’ canteen near the shopcom are also favorite spots of ‘Theics’.The tea stalls at Gopanpally also have large number of student customers. While tea makes students happy, not all sellers are happy. “We are not benefited much from selling tea. A small cup of tea is sold for Rs.5 and big cup is Rs.10. In some canteens it is Rs.8. Rent and milk price are going up but we can’t increase the price of tea,” says Mohan, tea seller at shopcom. Be it day or night, winter or summer, tea consumption never goes down below the margin, agree all the tea sellers. Now, you wanna have a tea? Let’s go to shopcom.
Copyright : Calvin and Hobbes comic strip on GoComics.com
Bol Hyderabad invites volunteers. You can produce programmes which could be an interview, a documentary etc. You can also hold live shows. Drop in to showcase your talent at Department of Communication. Contact us on : 040-23135542 or Mail us at : bolhyd@uohyd.ac.in