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Furqan: A journey from madrasa to UPSC rank

Furqan, who now works in the Indian Audit and Accounts Services, considers his mother as his first teacher. He says that his mother has lent all sorts of assistance to him…reports Asian Lite News.

It’s difficult to measure the happiness of a person who has achieved his childhood dream. Furqan Akhtar has been blessed with such success. In 2018, 51 Muslim candidates had qualified prestigious UPSC examination. One of them was Furqan. Furqan, a resident of Bigra Awwal village in Sant Kabir Nagar, had secured 445th rank. It was his third attempt in UPSC. When he went for probation, he left his mark there too. He was awarded the gold medal in Best Probationer in Academics.

Madrasa background
Furqan started his education in a madrasa called Arabia Mazharul Uloom. He studied from Class 1 to Class 10 here. He says that apart from religious texts, he was also taught Maths and English in the seminary. Later, he joined a government Junior High School in Semriyawan and studied there till Class 8. It was here that he became aware of an exam called UPSC and he dreamed of becoming an administrative officer one day. Actually, this dream was inculcated in Furqan by one of his teachers, Abdul Salam. “He had said that one day, I would become Collector. Ever since this dream travelled with me,” says Furqan, reminiscing his old school days. He started bracing up to fulfil his dream ever since.

Connected to his roots
Today, Furqan feels indebted to all those teachers and professors who encouraged him and played their parts in shaping his studentship. While Furqan remembers Abdul Salam Sb who coaxed him to dream about collectorship, he is also reminded of very strict Master Abu Bakar. “He used to beat a lot if a student would repeat silly mistakes,” he says. He says that he respects all his teachers and feels indebted to them for their sound teaching and timely guidance. “Whenever I visit my madrasa, school or college, I meet my teachers as I am still their student. Their respect will never diminish in my eyes,” he says.

Family support
Furqan, who now works in the Indian Audit and Accounts Services, considers his mother as his first teacher. He says that his mother has lent all sorts of assistance to him. “My mother has endowed ethical and moral values to all my siblings. She has been our first guru. She has also been my economic pivot,” says Furqan, emphasising that family support plays a key role in a person’s success in life. Furqan recently married his cousin Zikra Khatoon on November 22. His wife is his maternal uncle’s daughter.

Facing challenges
Furqan had to face all those challenges that confront any middle-class student. When he was a post-graduate student at Aligarh Muslim University, he started working with the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). Initially, he was the system engineer at TCA and was later promoted to be an IT analyst. He says that while doing a job at TCS, he knew that he would go for UPSC. “I had to work with TCS as I had to support education as the financial conditions of my family were in the doldrums. You know we middle-class people often face financial crises. My father Mushtaque Ahmed is a farmer and all of my siblings were studying. So, it created a crunch for funds in the family and I had to join TCS. Many times, we didn’t even have enough to submit even our fees. However, my younger maternal uncle helped me. I also took admission in AMU as it is one of the least expensive universities in India,” he recalls.

Support of maternal uncle

When Furqan qualified for the UPSC exams in 2018, he didn’t head to his home in the village. Instead, he reached his maternal uncle’s place in Sant Kabir Nagar. His uncle Nazim Khan is a Congress leader and he had supported Furqan in times of financial difficulties when the latter was a student. “We as a family underwent a difficult phase, but my mamu always stood by our side,” says Furqan, exhibiting his gratitude to his uncle.

Message to Muslim youth

In his message to Muslim youth, Furqan says that the key to success lies in hard work, dedication and a focussed approach to achieve your target. “Hard work is the only shortcut to success. Muslim youth have to believe in Allah and maintain their confidence. If you are truthful in your efforts and apply the required labour, Allah will not disappoint you and the success will be yours. Your ability and capability to transform it into success will definitely bring results. Muslim youth have to immediately shun the illusion that they are discriminated against in employment in India. Had it been so, I wouldn’t be able to get through UPSC,” says Furqan.

Furqan highlights a very important aspect of education. He says that primary education prepares a base for the growth of a competitive mindset in students and hence the parents and guardians have to be very careful about their wards’ primary education. “We have to inculcate in children habits to achieve small targets. It will prepare them for a bigger stage. But, we must be careful that we are not unnecessarily pressuring them. Rather, we must encourage them to nurture and hone their talents. Students don’t need to study for hours, rather their study must be focussed and should follow a carefully crafted schedule. Then, they will be on right track to achieve their dreams,” says Furqan, sharing his hopes for Muslim youths.

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Education Lite Blogs

Ifrah Khan, IIT-JEE 3rd rank holder, scales heights in hijab

The Indian Olympiad School also has a mosque and it imparts religious education (ethical education) side-by-side mainstream education…reports Asian Lite News.

Ifrah Khan, a hijabi student from Nagpur, has secured 3rd All India Rank in IIT-JEE main entrance examination 2021. She is 2nd rank holder in the state of Maharashtra and the first topper of Vidarbha region. She credits her success to disciplined study, hard work, punctuality and focuses on the target. She is also grateful to her parents and elder brothers who constantly motivated and guided her. She says that her parents were in tears when they saw her result.

Ifrah has studied at Indian Olympiad School, Bhelgaon, Kamptee Road. Ifrah’s father Sohail Khan and mother Nagma Khan both are directors of the Indian Olympiad School.

Talking about her first infatuation with the IIT, Ifrah says that her elder brother used to study at IIT Kharagpur. Once, she went to meet him. The atmosphere at the prestigious institution cast a magic spell on her. She was so overwhelmed with the influence that she decided to study there one day.

She shares a success mantra: “We should study daily, even if it is for some time. It should develop as a habit.”

Ifrah says that she had started preparing for IIT when she was in Class 6 and by the time she was in Class 10, she had made her study more rigorous. “I have noticed that most students slow down in the last phase of Class 10. Actually, this is the time when they had to gather pace and move towards their goal of passing the entrance of their subject of choice. This time is the most pivotal period. It has to be utilised the most,” she says.

Besides studying, Ifrah emphasises the importance of learning sports and participating in other extra-curricular activities. Her favourite games are Basketball and Volleyball. She had also won the gold medal in the Volleyball competition in her school. Interestingly, Ifrah wears a hijab and even participates in games in such attire. She has no problem being tagged as “hijabi girl”. “Hijab is not a setback for Muslim girls or any other girl. Hijab or burqa are not symbols of backwardness. A hijabi girl can walk ahead in the modern world very comfortably,” she says. In this regard, her advice to the Muslim girls is: “Never feel disheartened just because you practice your culture in open. Only focus on your hard work, honesty and discipline. Success is waiting for you.”

Ifrah’s success especially breaks the myth about girls that they are made for subjects like Home Science and that they have to prepare themselves for family life. “My family was different. Though such discriminations do exist, yet girls are now marching past all types of stereotypes. They are in fact taking leading positions in different walks of life,” she says.

Ifrah’s success has delighted her parents the most. Both her parents have been teachers. Her father Sohail Khan says that he has been teaching for 25 years. “I have toured cities like Delhi, Kota and Hyderabad to observe the working of quality schools there. After studying the pattern of their administration, I opened the Indian Olympiad School in Nagpur. It is laced with all modern facilities. Students in our schools are encouraged to choose their subject of choice and accordingly, they are groomed for competitive examinations,” says Khan. His wife, Mrs Nagma Khan, helps him run the schools and also teaches Science subjects.

Before Ifrah, Sohail’s two elder sons also studied at IIT. One son, Uzair Khan, studied at IIT Kharagpur and Umer Khan was at IIT Roorkee. Uzair Khan was selected by an American Multinational Company, but he preferred to stay with his parents and teach in their school. His brother Umer followed his suit and quit his job to teach in his parents’ school. Both the brothers have tried to introduce new educational techniques at their schools to make education more student-friendly.

The Indian Olympiad School also has a mosque and it imparts religious education (ethical education) side-by-side mainstream education.

Sohail Khan believes that Ifrah’s success will be a trendsetter and help eradicate segregation of male and female children when it comes to education. “Girls make home heaven. We have to understand that,” says Khan.

Ifrah too says that she has read the Quran and its first message ‘Iqra’ which means to read or study. “Thus, Islam puts special emphasis on education,” she says.

Sharing delight of her daughter’s success, Sohail Khan says that Ifrah means bringing “joy and delight”. “Today, she has not only brought joy and delight to our family, but she has also brought laurels to Vidarbha and Maharashtra. I hope she will one day delight the whole of India,” says Khan.

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Education Lite Blogs

The men who created an enduring nursery of excellence

In May 1950, Ghosh opened the first IIT in a building at Esplanade East in Kolkata; by September 1950, however, the scene had shifted to the Hijli Detention Camp…reports Sourish Bhattacharyya.

Even as the Second World War was coming to an end, a motley group of people laid the foundation of the enduring edifice of India’s scientific and technological soft power — the IIT system.

It included three men who successively served as members of the Viceroy’s Executive Council — Nalini Ranjan Sarkar, an acolyte of Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das and 1933 FICCI President; ICS officer-turned-Tata Steel executive Ardeshir Dalal, who’s better known for his staunch opposition to the Partition of India; and Sir Jogendra Singh, an editor, author and former prime minister of Patiala who introduced mechanised farming in Punjab.

IIT Kharagpur (Wikipedia)

An author of the Bombay Plan, the 1944-45 vision document for India’s economic development drafted by industrialists J.R.D. Tata, G.D. Birla and Sir Purshottamdas Thakurdas, Sir Ardeshir, as Member for Planning and Development of the Viceroy’s Executive Council, persuaded the U.S. government to offer doctoral fellowship to Indian scientists so that they come back qualified enough to lead the newly established Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

Sir Ardeshir, however, soon realised that this arrangement with the U.S. government could only be a short-term solution and that the emerging new India needed institutions that would become nurseries for qualified scientific and technical manpower.

Sir Jogendra, who succeeded Sarkar as the Member for Health, Lands and Education (an odd mix, but that was how it was!) after the Bengali politician quit in the wake of Mahatma Gandhi’s imprisonment in 1942, took the next big step in 1946. He constituted a 22-member committee, headed by Sarkar, to prepare the blueprint for the establishment of ‘Higher Technical Institutions’ to drive post-war industrial development in India.

Two years before the committee started its deliberations, the 1922 Nobel Prize-winning English physiologist and biophysicist, Professor A.V. Hill, who was then the Secretary of the Royal Society, travelled across India from November 1943 to March 1944, on the invitation of the Secretary of State for India, to study the progress of scientific and industrial research. The immediate need for the exercise was to give a direction to the CSIR.

In his pithy report titled ‘Scientific Research in India’, Prof. Hill, among other things, mentioned the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA, as an example of excellence in teaching and research work, and stressed the need for “one or two technical institutes of the highest possible standing” to supply “first-class technical brains, trained in an atmosphere both of original research and of practical experience”.

Unsurprisingly, the Sarkar Committee recommended that institutes of higher technical education, modelled after the MIT, be set up around the country. Coincidentally, the three key people responsible for ensuring that the first IIT was launched in West Bengal were all Bengalis — Sarkar, after whom the main road of the IIT-Kharagpur campus is named; Education Secretary Humayun Kabir; and Sir J.C. Ghosh, the then director of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, who eventually became the first director of the first IIT.

Ghosh prepared the blueprint for the IIT with the help of two bureaucrats posted at the Education Ministry — L.S. Chandrakant and Biman Sen. The argument they gave for the first IIT to be set up in West Bengal was that the state then had the highest concentration of engineering students.

Kabir convinced Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy, West Bengal’s first Chief Minister, to find an appropriate location for the first IIT in his state. Roy settled for the Hijli Detention Camp at Kharagpur in the then Midnapore district, where a number of Bengali freedom fighters had been imprisoned during the struggle for independence.

It became the site for the first IIT, whose alumni, befittingly, include such diverse people as Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Rono Bose, CEO, IndiGo Airlines, and Kiran Seth, founder of Spic-Macay, an organisation dedicated to the promotion of Indian classical music and dance among students.

For Dr Roy and Sarkar (who, incidentally, was one of the five pillars of the Congress in West Bengal), setting up the first IIT at the Hijli Detention Camp was the best possible tribute to the freedom fighters who were incarcerated there.

It also had the locational advantage of being close to the Kharagpur railway workshop, the Fuel Research Institute in Dhanbad and the Chittaranjan Locomotive Works — all potential training grounds for IIT students.

In May 1950, Ghosh opened the first IIT in a building at Esplanade East in Kolkata; by September 1950, however, the scene had shifted to the Hijli Detention Camp.

The IIT was formally inaugurated on August 18, 1951, by the country’s first Education Minister, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, who, incidentally, spent his formative years in Kolkata. It was he who coined the name Indian Institute of Technology, inspired of course by MIT.

On September 15, 1956, Parliament adopted the Indian Institute of Technology (Kharagpur) Act, declaring it to be an ‘Institute of National Importance. And it is said that Ghosh was responsible for its liberal provision, which, till date, have ensured that the IITs remain insulated from any attempt to politicise them or impede their autonomy.

ALSO READ-Religious leaders, musicians, chess players too pass out of IITs

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Ed-tech firm upGrad to acquire Talentedge for 350cr

Started in 2015, upGrad has a learner base of over two million across 50 countries and over 300 university partners, with an enterprise business with a client base of 1,000 companies worldwide…reports Asian Lite News.

Leading online higher education company upGrad on Monday announced it has acquired Gurugram-based edtech rival Talentedge. According to reliable sources, the acquisition is valued somewhere between Rs 350-Rs 400 crore.

Talentedge, which is currently the fourth largest online education player, is expected to reach a revenue of over Rs 130 crore this year, and aims to double its revenue in the coming year.

“Talentedge has meticulously built a strong business over the last decade and stayed the course in this space where most did not survive and we are very pleased to welcome them at upGrad as we build one of the largest EdTech companies in the world,” said Ronnie Screwvala, Chairperson and Co-Founder, upGrad.

Talentedge offers more than 60 courses in partnership with more than 20 universities.

It has partnered with top Indian and international institutes including IIMs, XLRI, MICA, eCornell and UCLA extension, among others, and has more than 5,00,000 individual and corporate learners.

“Talentedge will continue to work as-is with its university and institute partners to deliver the quality education to its learners across degree and certification programmes,” said Aditya Malik, CEO and MD, Talentedge.

Started in 2015, upGrad has a learner base of over two million across 50 countries and over 300 university partners, with an enterprise business with a client base of 1,000 companies worldwide.

The company has offices in the UK, the US, Middle East, India, Singapore and Vietnam, with a presence in several other countries.

Talentedge recreates classroom-type interactions in the virtual world and has over 5,00,000 individuals and corporate learners.

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Religious leaders, musicians, chess players too pass out of IITs

He is a pioneer in playing traditional Carnatic music on guitar. Popularly known as ‘Guitar Prasanna’, he had studied naval architecture at IIT-M…reports Venkatachari Jagannathan

Not only scientists, technologists, industrialists, businessmen and top executives have passed out of the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M).

Religious leader Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji, Carnatic musicians — guitarist R. Prasanna and vocalist S. Sowmya — and chess players S. Kailasanathan and M. Ramesh, among others, too are distinguished alumni of this prestigious institution.

Founded in 1959 with German assistance, IIT-M, an institute of eminence, is a residential institution with nearly 550 faculty, over 10,000 students and more than 1,250 administrative/support staff.

Located in about 250 hectares of greenery in the heart of Chennai, IIT-M boasts of major names in various fields as its alumni, such as Prem Watsa, Founder-Chairman, Fairfax Holdings; Kris Gopalakrishnan, one of the Founders of Infosys; Anand Rajaram and Venky Harinarayanan, Co-Founders of Cambrian Ventures, Kosmiz, Junglee Corp (acquired by Amazon); Gururaj Deshpande, Founder, Sycamore Networks; T.T. Jagannathan, Chairman, TTK Group, and several others.

Here are thumbnail sketches of well and not so well-known IIT Madras alumni who have made a mark for themselves in their respective fields.

S. Kailasanathan, Managing Director, Microsense Group

Seventy-year-old S. Kailasanathan, Managing Director, Microsense Group, won the Tamil Nadu chess championship as a student of IIT-M. He also has the distinction of playing chess for West Bengal and Delhi.

Microsense is majorly into offering WiFi connectivity in major hotel chains and residential apartments, among others. The group will be entering the Middle East market soon.

After getting his business degree from IIM-Calcutta, Kailasanathan began his career with the Electronics Trade and Technology Development Corporation. In 1980s, he founded the Microsense Group.

Sponsoring several young chess players, Microsense also organised coaching camps for upcoming Indian players, roping in two chess legends — former world champion GM Vladimir Borisovich Kramnik and GM Boris Gelfand.

Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji, Head, Adichunchanagiri Mutt

An M.Tech of IIT-M, Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji – born as Nagaraj Gowda – was appointed as the head of the Adichunchanagiri Mutt.

Prior to joining IIT-M, he had completed his Diploma from a Government Polytechnic College and BE in civil engineering from the National Institute of Engineering, Mysuru.

In 1998, he became a ‘sanyasi’ (saint), renouncing worldly life, and in 2013 Nirmalanandanatha became the head of the Adichunchanagiri Mutt.

R. Prasanna, Guitarist

He is a pioneer in playing traditional Carnatic music on guitar. Popularly known as ‘Guitar Prasanna’, he had studied naval architecture at IIT-M.

Now based in the US, Prasanna says he got interested in guitar at the age of five when he saw his neighbour at Ranipet play the instrument. He says that Carnatic music is part of his DNA and thanks his mother for making him learn it.

Later, as part of rock bands, he toured different parts of India.

Guitar Prasanna (Wikipedia)

Deciding to focus 100 per cent on music, he quit his software profession and majored in Jazz and Classical Composition from the Berklee College of Music.

Prasanna has composed music for several movies, besides playing for the soundtracks for music directors like Ilaiyaraaja, A.R. Rahman, Harris Jayaraj and others.

Sridhar Ramaswamy, Co-Founder, Neeva Inc

If one were asked to name the Indian heading a search engine company, majority of the time the answer will not be Sridhar Ramaswamy, but some other Tamilian name.

After spending several years as SVP Google in the US, Ramaswamy, a 1989 IIT-M pass out, is the Co-Founder of Neeva Inc, a search engine. That too a paid one. The USP being it will be an ads-free search engine for $4.95/month.

Sridhar Ramaswamy, Co-Founder, Neeva Inc (Wikipedia)

He had partnered with Vivek Raghunathan, ex-Vice President, Monetisation, at YouTube, and a graduate from IIT Bombay.

Interestingly, Neeva in Tamil ‘you come’. The venture of the two ex-IITians that crosses swords with Google has begun recently and one has to wait for the results.

Sridhar Vembu, CEO, Zoho Corporation

Padma Shri Sridhar Vembu graduated with a B.Tech. degree in electrical engineering from IIT-M in 1989 and secured his doctorate from the Princeton University in 1994.

After working in Qualcomm, Vembu joining hands with his brothers and friends co-founded software product company AdventNet, which was later renamed as Zoho Corporation.

Eearlier this year, Zoho Corporation launched Arattai, an instant messaging app, as a rival to WhatsApp.

As a policy, Vembu avoids funding by venture capitalists and the public.

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IIT Bombay: Best academic destination for aspiring students

Over the years, the IITs have created world-class educational platforms dynamically sustained through internationally recognised research, based on excellent infrastructural facilities…reports Quaid Najmi

Nestled in a green jungle beside the picturesque Powai lake with misty-grey hills in the background, the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B) inspires and awes, as it promises to be the final academic destination for many students aiming to hit the sky in life.

Set up in 1958 as the country’s second IIT — after IIT Kharagpur (IIT-KGP, 1950) — in the list of 23 IITs currently, IIT-B enters the momentous diamond jubilee year of its historic first convocation held on December 22, 1962, when around 70 wide-eyed young men passed out of the institute.

Decades later, the golden jubilee convocation in 2012 was attended by then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The institute has a little more than 12,005 students in 2021, as per the current annual report released by its Director, Professor Subhasis Chaudhuri.

The groundwork for the first IIT-KGP was inspired and prepared well before Independence by the late Bengal academician Humayun Kabir, who later served as the Education and Civil Aviation Minister of India.

After the country achieved freedom in 1947, its first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru pushed the idea forward and even laid the foundation stone for IIT-B, according to the Council of Indian Institutes of Technology (CIITs).

Nehru wanted science and technology to play a prominent role in modernising the new India and meeting the needs of its growing population, and envisioned that the IIT system would, over time, produce scientists and technologists of the highest calibre who would engage in research, design and development to help build the nation towards self-reliance in her technological needs.

“The institutions were to be designed with the necessary dynamism, flexibility of organisation and capacity to adapt in the light of expanding knowledge and changes in the socio-economic requirements of a modern society,” says the CIIT.

The earliest IITs got the benefit of material assistance and academic cooperation from certain developed countries — IIT-B from USSR, IIT-Madras from Germany, IIT-Kanpur from the US and IIT-Delhi from the UK.

Over the years, the IITs have created world-class educational platforms dynamically sustained through internationally recognised research, based on excellent infrastructural facilities.

The faculty and alumni of IITs have made a huge impact in all sectors of the society, both in India and abroad, and the IITs are globally recognised as ‘centres of academic excellence’, reputed for the outstanding calibre of the students graduating from them.

Over the years, even IIT-B grew in leaps and bounds and now ranks nationally and globally among the most renowned institutes of excellence in various fields of technology.

Compared to the first girl — Tejaswini Saraf (1966 batch) — who turned heads at IIT-B, being the lone female student among 300 boys, today the situation is different with 20-25 per cent female students on the campus.

As the President of the IIT-B Alumni Association (IITBAA), Deepak Patil, says, at IITs, the mind is trained not only academically, but also to think deeply, rationally, to handle any problem, to go to the root and evolve a logical solution.

IITBAA Chairman Girish Nayak says IIT education makes the student sharper and analytical, trains them overall to solve any kind of problems, grapple any challenges in life without getting surprised or overwhelmed, and this is something that stays with them forever.

The duo feels that the IITs offer an excellent opportunity for personality development, total independence, no family support systems to shield them from any emotional problems, thrown together with total strangers from different parts of the country and learn to live together.

“It’s here that we realise that there are many who are not only as brainy as you, probably more intelligent than you… There would be hot debates of high intellectual levels on practically any topic under the sun, from technology to politics. All of these adds to your personality and intellect and yet makes you humble,” said Patil.

Plus, the students here get the advantages of an outstanding faculty, staff, academic-industry connection, and the rich experiences of the trail-blazer alumni, which result in achievements that make global headlines.

A few of the many notables who have passed out of IIT-B over the past six decades are: BSE MD & CEO Ashish Chauhan, Syntel founder Bharat Desai, Infosys Co-founder Nandan Nilekani, Twitter Inc. CEO Parag Agrawal, Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves, ex-BMC Commissioner Jairaj Phatak, ex-Union minister Jairam Ramesh, late Goa CM Manohar Parrikar, mathematician Ravindran Kannan, ex-Dean of Harvard Business School Nitin Nohria, economist Ajit Ranade, and ex-President of Bell Labs Arun Netravali, among others.

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Manchester school kids raise funds for UK charity

Socially conscious Manchester students used their creativity and talent to raise funds to help build a school library for the underprivileged students in India. Rahul Laud reports

Two months ago, socially conscious young students , students Soham Bhansali, Harish Chandra Nair and Aahi Shah studying at the Altrincham Grammar School for Boys (AGSB) and Altrincham Grammar School for Girls (AGGS) in Manchester planned an activity that would be festive, something entertaining, and inspire people to get back on their feet following a year and a half in lockdown.

Manchester

On Wednesday 17th and Thursday 18th November 2021, students from AGSB’s Hindu Sikh and Jain society (HSJS) joined forces with AGGS’ Hindu Society students and gave birth to Utsav 2021. Following the festival of Diwali last month in November Utsav showcased a multicultural performance night. Surpassing all expectations these students raised £2800 to support a local UK charity.

Entirely organised by the Altrincham’s student community, these students rose up in action to serve the community. The city’s first ever! 2 nights, 15 performances, 87 performers and 39 volunteers at Utsav 2021 was organised in a span of little over two months held the audience spell bound.

Together they entertained 350 attendees, which included students, parents, and staff, at this much anticipated event. The organising team said, ‘’The Hindu, Sikh and Jain Society had two clear goals; spread the awareness of the cultural diversity within the two schools through 15 energetic performances and raise as much money as possible for the chosen charity – Veerayatan, a UK registered charity. ‘’

The first half of the night, consisted of a wide variety of multicultural performances including dance, drama, singing and more! The performances ranged from jazz bands to traditional Gujarati dance to the re-enactment of the Ramayana. Every performer was a volunteer and had a chance to express their creativity in different forms.

Understanding the value of good education, Veerayatan stood out as being the perfect charity with their fundamental aim of providing education by building schools for underprivileged children in rural India. Veerayatan is a charity that strives to uplift and empower humanity through the three jewels of humanitarianism (Sewa), education (Shiksha) and inner development (Sadhana).

The organisers informed that money raised would go to the building a new library in Tirthankar Mahavir Vidhya Mandir school in Palitana, India.

It was observed that the event allowed many AGSB and AGGS students to gain invaluable experiences. The chance to be on stage in front of many familiar and unfamiliar faces improved the confidence of the performers. In addition, the HSJS volunteers were able to develop as leaders through managing the various aspects of the event; decorations, food and drinks, tickets, and performances.

To find out more about the event, be sure to check out @agsb.hsjs on Instagram!

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Pandemic never stops education, proves Vedanta

Currently, more than 2,700 NandGhars in 12 states across India are reaching out to more than one lakh children…reports Asian Lite News.

Anil Agarwal foundation, the philanthropic arm of mining company Vedanta Group directly impacted education of more than 4 lakh children during the pandemic.

Through its project e-kaksha, Vedanta collaborated with the government of Rajasthan to develop e-content for Hindi medium schools, providing free and quality education through digital platforms and offline desktop applications. It ensured continuity in education for 2.68 lakh students from government schools during the pandemic.

Under its flagship social initiative, Project NandGhar the foundation partnered with the Ministry of Women and Child Development, providing e-learning content through WhatsApp and IVRS; supplementary nutrition in the form of dry take home rations to its beneficiaries along with the telemedicine helpline throughout the pandemic.

Currently, more than 2,700 NandGhars in 12 states across India are reaching out to more than one lakh children.

“A good education and a nourishing diet are essential for children to have a productive future. On Children’s Day, let us pledge to support the efforts being made by the government. Our NandGhar initiative is impacting over a lakh children and reimagining the anganwadi network across India,” said Vedanta Group Chairman Anil , on the occasion of Children’s Day.
(https://twitter.com/AnilAgarwal_Ved/status/1459834119341309957_)

Agarwal also emphasised on the importance of education and the overall development of a child. In the wake of the pandemic which unprecedentedly sabotaged the learning experience of crores of children across the nation, Vedanta was quick to deploy alternative learning methods ensuring that no child losses on their education.

Not only did Vedanta curated content but also imparted it. The employees of Vedanta also took to the field, imparting free education with a special focus on developing the arithmetic and linguistic skills of the children under its project connect.

Vedanta also ensured that the children with special needs do not miss out on their educational journey, virtual sessions on Indian sign language were conducted for children with hearing and visual impairment through project jeevantarang.

The company has spent Rs 331 crore in the last financial year on various CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) activities with focus on pandemic relief works, children’s well-being and education, women empowerment, health care, sustainable agriculture and animal welfare, market linked skilling of youth, environment protection and restoration, development of community infrastructure among others.

As part of its many interventions, Vedanta also committed Rs 201 crore in the battle against Covid-19, including Rs 101 crore donation to PM-CARES Fund and an additional Rs 100 crore corpus for supporting communities, daily wage workers, preventive healthcare and welfare of employees, contract partners or business partners. As many as 15 lakh have benefitted from Vedanta’s Covid Care initiatives.

ALSO READ-Girls’ education in limbo despite Taliban’s promises

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Education India News

104-year-old woman scores 89 out of 100 in literacy test

She attended Saksharatha classes and teacher Rehna taught her how to read and write. “The teacher taught me everything like reading and writing letters in Malayalam,” said Kuttiyamma…reports Asian Lite News.

A 104-year-old woman from Kerala’s Kottayam has become an inspiration for all and proved that age is just a number as she scored 89 marks out of 100 in the Kerala State Literacy Mission’s Test.

The test, also called the Saksharatha test, was organised in the Ayarkunnam Panchayat of Kottayam district. Kuttiyamma, a resident of Kottayam Thiruvanchoor Ayarkunnam panchayat had never been to school and attended literacy classes at her home only now and by scoring 89 marks out of 100 and has become eligible to write the class 4 exam. Her husband T.K Konthi had passed away in 2002.

She attended Saksharatha classes and teacher Rehna taught her how to read and write. “The teacher taught me everything like reading and writing letters in Malayalam,” said Kuttiyamma.

“She can write letters now and is very happy,” says her teacher, Fehra John.  Kuttiyamma also sings many prayer songs and reads a newspaper every day. Kerala State Literacy Mission Authority is an autonomous institution under the General Education Department, Government of Kerala.

The program aims to develop literacy skills through continuing education, provide chances for each and everyone interested in learning, enable the learners to make use of their learning in their daily life and ensure Secondary-level education to the whole of Kerala.

The main beneficiaries of this programme are illiterates, neo-literates, school drop-outs and those interested in lifelong education.

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Indian Students Target UK, US & Canada

Before the pandemic, international education contributed A$40 billion ($29 billion) to the economy, making the sector the fourth-largest export after iron ore, coal and gas, the report said…reports Asian Lite News.

As Australias decision to shut its borders in March 2020 pushed people to look elsewhere, international enrolments plummeted by more than 200,000 in the 20-month period up to August of this year, according to Department of Education, Skills and Employment data, Al Jazeera reported.

Students from China, India and other Asian countries have long been drawn to Australia to study due to its high-ranking universities, English-speaking environment and comfortable lifestyle.

Before the pandemic, international education contributed A$40 billion ($29 billion) to the economy, making the sector the fourth-largest export after iron ore, coal and gas, the report said.

International students made up 21 per cent of all university enrolments in 2019, compared with an average 6 per cent among developed countries, according to Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) figures, the report added.

In August, the number of students from overseas sank to its lowest number since 2015, at just over 550,000.

Chinese nationals made up the biggest proportion of foreign students, followed by those from India, Nepal, Vietnam and Malaysia.

Earlier this month, recruitment platform Adventus reported that applications by international students had declined by 51 per cent since March, whereas applications to Canada, the UK and the US had soared by 148-422 per cent, the report added.

Although Australia reopened its borders to citizens and permanent residents on November 1, the government has not provided any timetable for when international students will be able to return to the country en masse.

States and territories including Victoria and New South Wales have announced pilot schemes to welcome international students in extremely limited numbers from next month. Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge said in October he hoped tens of thousands of students would be able to return sometime next year.

About 145,000 student visa holders currently exist in limbo overseas after deferring their studies or opting to do their coursework online.

Andrew Norton, an expert in higher education policy at Australian National University, said international enrollments would not return to 2019 levels any time soon but it was difficult to predict the longer-term trajectory, the report said.

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