Do School Students Get Holistic Learning?

As a parent, there are many pressing matters when it comes to your child’s future. Quoting something from the parenting manual would be, a dip in your child’s performance in a petty monthly test. The disappointment frown which follows and the thoughts of your child becoming a failure among their peers lingers in your minds. Parents always pin their dreams on the children and push them to study harder. Albeit, education should not just mean excelling academics but also becoming well-rounded individuals. Gaining knowledge has been set aside by acing tests or stack piling trophies and accolades. And this unfavourable situation has it’s roots well established by the education offered in schools.

As students what we learn constitute the major building blocks of our personality and character. The morals inculcated by parents contributes about one-fourth while knowledge provided by schools contributes to the rest. These become the impetus to one’s actions which defines a person. Tapping into a student’s artistic, poetic, spiritual or social approach should be something that schools should work towards and adopt a holistic approach in learning. In philosophy, holistic refers to a belief that all aspects of something are linked to one another and can be comprehended only as a whole. A Classic example of holistic learning is Nobel Laurette Rabindranath Tagore’s Shantiniketan.

(Clockwise) Rabindranath Tagore mid discourse; images of present-day Shantiniketan.

Shantiniketan (abode of peace) was Maharishi Debendranath Tagore’s brainchild. He stumbled upon the beauty of the area during his boat ride through Birhaum. What started as a spiritual centre welcomed everyone unbiasedly was transformed into a learning centre by none other than Rabindranath Tagore. He which envisaged a deep-rooted education for students from different cultures and connecting them to a wider world. His model school, was based on the Vedic tradition of Bhramacharya Ashram provided education end to end with teaching students their responsibilities, duties towards the community. The classes were held under the canopy of Chhatim trees, in open air scrapping the claustrophobia in a classroom. Thoughts and teachings would flow freely, a curriculum melding the traditional learning with western principles. Students were at a liberty to explore other unconventional talents, absorb about the nature and also fortified to give back to their society.

Holistic learning aims at developing a child’s physical, emotional, moral, psychological and spiritual intellect. It teaches children to create relationships with the environment, community and the people around them. Mainstream education deals with mechanical, scientific or logical aspect of a subject. For instance, a student is taught the processes of pollination in a flower and the botanical features, however schools ignore to teach them how to capture it’s beauty on paper, serenade about it’s attractiveness, pen down a poem on that fragrant garden or be entranced by it’s fragrance and escape into a moment of bliss. Dissecting a flower and plucking it to examine is easy, but there is an significant moral we disregard, ‘Plucking a pretty flower we love merely makes us more driven to be possessive over things we love, instead of caring and treasuring it.’ As an alternative of teaching them the harmful effects of global warming push them towards connecting with our nature emotionally and feel the sense of tranquillity in nature.

Dear readers, I’d like to ask a simple question that has popped in my mind. How often were you or your children taught in schools to respect it’s ancillary staff like the administrative staff, janitors, bus drivers or even those in your surroundings like the domestic help, the housekeeper, security men or even your usual vegetable vendors. The Government has definitely listed their services as ‘essentials’ but have we ever looked up to them with awe and not pity or even disgust. We often look spitefully at such professions, but left out on schooling them the value and contribution of every individual in the society. Shoving a few clothes or making generous contributions into a donation box for the distressed hit by a deluge is not identified as ‘social work’. Seldom do schools encourage students to visit an orphanage or rehabilitation centre, children learning centre in Singapore or a hospice for the aged to volunteer. Hardly any students have experienced the delight of giving a few moments of happiness to someone specially abled, helping them sketch a drawing, playing a hand at cards with an ignored veteran, the satisfaction after a good deed is fleeting yet cherishable. They are always trained to aim for more, best college or job opportunity.

Volunteering fosters a sense of responsibility and humanity.

Students need to be taught that nothing appears in black and white. As much as being determined to be successful is a positive approach, neglecting unconventional talents and tagging them as a distraction would just confine you to a small, mundane space in life. These interests help in escaping from the clock-tuned routine, keep you productive instead of slipping into a phase of depression, boredom and self-loathing; It helps you stand out from the herd, giving you those additional soft skills to make you a confident, strong-minded individuals. Your perspective of the surroundings changes with a different slant towards your society. For instance if you’re passionate on pursuing a career as a health professional but also have an interest for graphic designing, then it’s time to embrace it and hustle hard. Probably the future has an opportunity in store for you to open a clinic and guess who’ll be designing some catchy, promotional material for it.

Spanning through a few pages in History, we stumble upon many examples of the outcomes of a passé, regressive society. Adolf Hitler was a tyrant, ruthless dictator. However, his memoirs have mentioned his passion and dreams of pursuing arts. His father, like most parents detested his dreams and forced him to pursue a mechanical course. If his father gave wings to his dreams, probably events like the Holocaust would’ve never unfolded and Hitler would be known as a renowned peaceful and terrific artist.

If Hitler was an artist…

5 INFLUENTIAL female motorcycle Racers you should know about

Motorsport always been a men dominate sports you hardly ever heard about the female racers.Over the time there have been numerous amazing female bikers,but they all remain unmarked .

Here are 5 astonishing female bikers all around the globe who shares the passion for riding motorbikes.

Ana Carrasco

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Ana Carrasco is a Spanish motorcycle racer, she is only female competitor in MotoGP.

She made her debut on Team Kalvo KTM at the age of 16 and later that year in Malaysia she became the first female bike racer to achieve points in Moto3.

She who won the 2018 World Supersport 300 Championship riding a Kawasaki Ninja 400 with the David Salom Junior Team.

She becoming the first woman in history to win a World Championship in solo motorcycle road racing.

Jenny Tinmouth

Jenny Tinmouth is an English motorcycle racer.

She is the current female Isle of Man TT lap record holder, breaking the record during her first ever TT in 2009 and gaining a Guinness World Record for this achievement.

She then re-broke her own lap record during her second TT in 2010, with an average lap speed of 119.945 mph, gaining another Guinness World Record.

Jenny ran her own racing team known as Two Wheel Racing with Manx Glass & Glazing Ltd in support for the 2013 British Superbike Championship and today she runs her own team named Jenny Tinmouth Racing.

Maria Costello MBE

Marie Costello was only female motorcycle racer with the prestigious title Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) after her name ,which means she was really special.

She held a Guinness World Record for being the fastest female rider to lap the Isle of Man TT course at an average speed of 114.73 mph and was the first female to get on the podium on the famous mountain course.

Alongside this she’s also managed to accomplish being a Sports personality of the year, a published author, a character in a video game and even a stunt double in a Hollywood movie.

Costello has won a total of eight Manx Grand Prix Silver Replicas and one TT Bronze Replica and she is also a part of the Federation Internationale de Motorcyclist (FIM) Women in Motorcycling Commission .

Laia Sanz

Laia Sanz, is a Spanish sportswoman. She is a thirteen-time Women’s Trial World Champion and ten-time Women’s Trial European Champion in outdoor motorcycle trials.

Sanz has also dominated the Dakar Rally by becoming the woman who has completed more times the hardest race all over the world in motorbikes.

In 2011, she participated for the first time in the Dakar Rally winning the Female motorcycle category.

She gets an 9th absolute position at her fifth dakar.

Jane Daniels

Jane Daniels from the UK is one of the rising stars in the enduro racing.

She has earned her tag of UK’s number one female enduro rider , Jane has emerged as one of the most serious female enduro riders in the world.

She fought her way up to earn the overall second position in Women’s Enduro World Cup in 2013 and winning the final race in France beating Laia Sanz.

Please let me know if you know any other in the comment below.

COMPARTMENTS – ORGANIZE YOUR THINGS

Due to pandemic every single human have to change his/her style of living, like working from home, making different places to take out physical activity, therefore it has become important to modify your room so that you can make it comfortable with only doing some limited set up. That is why I always try new things for you. Today I came up with new concept of compartments because these days it is very difficult or we can say a stressful job to organize your belongings which used to remain here and there throughout the day, that is why i came up with the solution to all your problem by presenting a world class piece of luxurious compartment which will double up the space for your belongings and will give a eye appealing touch to your dream house. A compartment can have various uses in the house either it is used to keep your small things like books, laptops, wires etc or some uses it for keeping your kitchen glasses. The compartment shown to you by me is made of high quality of wood which is going to remain with you for a very long time. The compartment plays a major role if it is placed in your living room because it is the only thing that is going to represent your room. I always try to make your living room simple, clean and add a bit of glamour from our side so that we can make it comfortable for you that’s why i suggest white colour so as to give a architectural finish to your room. For that i have variety of colour in compartments so that we can make sure it can suit your interior too. The advantage if it is that despite having small compartments it has six large compartments so that you can place things in a large quantity and the beneficial point is that it has large surface on the top so that you can place any kind of artefacts or small statues over it. These is just a one must have compartment in our house because you have the right to customise it according to your need, style and creativity. I can also suggest you to have led lights inside the compartment so that to give it a modern and luxury look. We always try to make it classy for you that is why i introduce the wall hanging that will not only increase the importance of your living room but if placed above the compartments then it will give a glowing and a dashing look to your compartments after that the other thing I make sure must be perfect is your floor because it reflects your ambiance and decor of your home that is i also provide patterned wooden floors or sheet floorings which reflects your style. Therefore the choice is yours because life is an opportunity to make decision and if you want you can take it right or you just want to let it go

2020 a year to be remembered!!

As the World welcomed 2020 with open heart and happiness we never knew that this year of 21st century will lead us to the enormous experience which the World would remember forever and ever.The year 2020 has seen its fair share of major historic events in a little 5 months!! In the begining of the month January Australia was threatened by the bush fire 🔥 at the south coast of the country.A castarorphic outbreak of ‘Corona Virus’s was declared by WHO on 7th January which is known as ‘Covid-19’ which shocked the World. The 2020 summer Olympics which was to be held in Tokyo was postponed until 2021. United states and China tradewar which lead to deteriorating relation between the two biggest economies of the World.For the first time in the history of the world a lockdown was imposed by various countries in the World due to which huge losses were faced by the companies.So this year would be remembered and published in books!!hope for some good charm♥️

IT’S ALL ABOUT TECHNOLOGY

Welcome everyone today my topic is about Technology. So, you can see that now technology became a daily part of our life. Technology has changed our lives in many ways, like development in economics, or helps us to gain knowledge on machines or anything. As technology has advantages but also have disadvantaged to like influencing the value of society or deplete natural resources. Like it said, everything in the world has advantages and disadvantages likewise technology comforts our life, but internally it’s also causing disadvantage to us.

So what is the exact definition for technology? So technology is nothing but the sum of techniques used for production or services for our development. In current times we people produce desired products to solve our problems or fulfill the need for ourselves. The main problem caused by technology is unemployment. As we know that in every company and factory or any workplace the machines have been set up to finish the work fast and easy, so by using machines the labor is having many problems so this leading to unemployment. Also, because of technology, there are social sites which are a very common problem in youngsters nowadays as it is increasing loneliness and depression among themselves. However, we should always remember that innovations had been made for our help not to make victims of technology. It always depends on how do we are going to use technology. The way we use the technology we get benefits in that way.

So how we should use the technology that will not harm us? There are some thoughts on how we can use technology without hurting ourselves or others.

First, the main point and most important point is we should use the right technology because this decision impact whether technology is a blessing or a curse to our productivity.

The second way is using automation tools as it can reduce more than half of our efforts that we are doing manually.

Third use the technology when you need it most because if we always use technology we will get dependent on it, and we will always seek help from technology.

Fourth point use your calendar app for organizing your time of using technology. For example, if I am social sites most of the time then, I should reduce the use of social sites as it has a slow and severe impact.

Hence, there are many details but these details are most valuable.

There are some interesting facts about technology.

1. Do you Google rent goats? Yes, you read correct Google rents the goat to eat the grass at their Mountain View Headquarters.

2. Can you tell me the age of the Internet? You must be thinking how can the internet have age as the Internet is not a human being, so how can it have aged! Let me tell you that the Internet does have age, It is now 11410years old.

3. Do you know there is a day for computer security? November 30 is known as “Computer Security Day.”

4. World’s first 1gb hard drive was introduced by IBM in 1980.

5. Email is older than the World Wide Web.

6. Techno phobia is known as the phobia for technology.

7. Homophobia is the fear of being without mobile.

8. Cyberphobia is the fear of computers.

9. The first computer mouse was invented by Doug Engelbart in 1963 and it was made from wood.

10. The first television broadcast took place in 1925.

So, these are some facts of technology.

In the last, I want to say that it depends on us do we need to depend on technology or not. On the one hand, if it can save a life it can also take life. Thank you for reading my article I hope to find it useful and enjoyed it.

Please let me know in the comment what you think about technology. Thank you and have a nice day.

Unlock 1.0 or need of Self Lockdown…

“Unlocking of self lockdown”

Recently, Ministry of Home affairs has made announcement Unlock 1.0 and released advisory with all norms on 31 may 2020.Indian economy was suffering the virus impact from Janta curfew of 22 march and followed by different phases of the lockdown,mentioned here.

  • Phase 1: from 25 March 2020 to 14 April 2020 (21 days)
  • Phase 2: from 15 April 2020 to 3 May 2020 (19 days)
  • Phase 3: from 4 May 2020 to 17 May 2020 (14 days)
  • Phase 4: from 18 May 2020 to 31 May 2020 (14 days)
  • Phase 5 (only for containment zones) : from 1 June 2020 – ongoing (7 days) scheduled to end on 30 June 2020

The lockdown phase 1 was introduced in India when the Corona cases were near about 500 and government seemed to be much worried and imposed a strict lockdown while other countries Italy, Spain, USA were relaxed enough about the concern.This way of our government had showed a true responsible and dutiful spirit of the body governing.

Our government and people were folloing ICMR which was moving one step ahead of WHO in the prevention of the virus. ICMR stated to meet the peak of the live corona cases in the month of June and July and the same is happening.

Here above graph depicts out the harsh reality of Unlock 1.0. Italy, UK, Spain, Germany and many more countries have gone through unlocking process when they attained the decline in corona cases but Indian Unlock 1.0 doesn’t seem to have any decline but usual surge in cases.

Another thing is that ICMR is giving sign of community transmission which will put India in very difficult situation. The need of time is to stay home as much as possible and to put social distancing in habit to stay safe.

So keep updated and stay home, follow social distacing and remain safe not for youself but for family and grand citizens. You may be rich in immunity……may be you can fight well with corona but try not to be carrier.

Thanks for reading.

Lack of motivation during lockdown:let’s find ways to deal with it….

In the past few months, world has witnessed a wave of discontent with students expressing their lack of motivation in doing things and specially studies. One pertinent question here is the need for various motivational guidelines which are not hard to follow, and which can make our lives better in this lockdown.

The first and the best way to increase our motivational power is to avoid negativity. Do not let negativity overpower you. Moreover, in some cases this negativity is so high that one can be depressed due to it, so the best way to remove negativity is the “process of catharsis”, whatever negativity is bottled up in us could be removed by thinking why these thoughts came to our mind and finally talking it out with someone will surely take negativity miles away from us.

Second, creation of a support network is necessary to stay away from negativity. Whether it be friends, teachers, parents or relatives, our support network should be strong so that at times of negativity we could share our thoughts with someone to remove them. Same is the case with studies, we should talk about it to reliable people so that we could get motivation to give a kick start to our studies.

The best way to give a kick start to our day should be ” Get out of bed and out of pajamas”, the simple act of getting up is a good first victory of the day. By following this, we could concentrate on our studies more than before. We should always remember the concept of ” Don’t overschedule “, which means that if we add more and more tasks in our routine it becomes very difficult to perform even one or two tasks. Hence, we should stick to our routine always and forever. ” Congratulate yourself for every task or goal you complete, no matter how small”. By doing this we will not just feel motivated to perform more tasks, but also a feeling of accomplishment will overwhelms us.

These are some of the ways to keep intact our motivational power, if we follow these, we will not just feel good about us but also we will be able to perform our tasks in a more better way. Now, other things which will ensure you to follow a systemic way of studying is taking a proper diet, which will give you energy and to deal with yourself and others.

If you keeps away negativity you will be able to motivate yourself to study. Come up with a solid reason why you want to build better study habits, like getting better grades, doing well on tests, or having less stress around assignment deadlines. Create a routine you plan to follow every time you want to study, like going to a specific place at a specific time.

Hence, this is rightly said ” Push yourself because, no one else is going to do it for you”. Be high at motivation and you will do wonders. Be it be studies or any other task, you should always know that no one will understand you more than you yourselves.

kerela: GOD’S LAND ON EARTH

Kerala, known as the land of god is among the most popular tourist spots in India. It is located on India’s tropical Malabar Coast near the Arabian Sea and its prime attractions include serene beaches, compose climate, beautiful stretches of black water and exotic wildlife. These assets
are enough for Kerala to attract a huge amount of tourists from around the country and all over the world every year. In the first quarter in 2019, the total number of tourist arrivals was around 45 million. The total number of arrivals from abroad was more than 1.6 million in 2018.
Kerala is home to some of the most wonderful and serene waterbeds, estuaries, lakes, canals, rivers etc. This huge interlock network of waterways can be travelled and enjoyed on a houseboat, without compromising on a comfortable stay as these houseboats hold all modern facilities including furnished bedrooms, modern toilets, a kitchen and a balcony for angling.
Some of the famous backwaters that can be enjoyed on a houseboat are Kollam, Alleppey, Kozhikode, Cochin and Kazaragod. Alleppey is known as ‘The Backwater Captial of India’ and ‘Venice of the East’ and is located two hours south of Kochi, the prime city of Kerala. From Alleppey the houseboat starts its journey, taking the tourists on an adventure through places like Kumarakom, Kottayam, and Alumkadavu. The houseboats usually travel 40 to 45 km each day, letting the tourists have a wholesome experience of the bests that Kerala has to offer. The
best time to visit is from September to March. Kerala houses a number of beautiful hill stations which has a lot to offer, including their dense
green attractive locations, acres of tea, coffee and spice farms, profuse and thick forests, an unusual or weird type of flora and fauna, intersecting mountain small rivers, amazing waterfalls.
Some of the famous hill stations include Thekkady, Munnar, Ponmudi, Lakkidi, Vagamon and many more. Of these, Wayanad and Munnar seem to be the favourites among the tourists as
they receive the maximum viewers each year. These hill stations with their pure beauty and perfect weather are going to make the tourist’s journey extraordinary and memorable. These are the all-year-round destination and can be visited at any time of the year.
That is not all for the tourists because Kerala has a number of beaches at Cherai, Bekal, Kovalam, Dharmadan, Fort Kochi, Beyporeand Allapuza. Kovalam beach is a popular surfing destination in Kerala. Kerala wildlife sanctuaries house a huge variety of animals, marine life
and birds of all species. Around fourteen wildlife sanctuaries and two tiger reserves are destined in the elaborate forest of the majestic Western Ghats. The wildlife sanctuaries worth visiting are
Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, Eravikulam National Park, Periyar Tiger Reserve, Thattekkad BirdSanctuary, Idukki Wildlife Sanctuary, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary and Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary. Kerala also has endangered species like the Lion-Tailed Macaque, Bengal Tiger,
Nilgiri Tahr, Indian Sloth-Bear, Indian Bison etc. These wildlife sanctuaries and national parks not only just let the tourist enjoy a view of some of the rarest and exotic species, but they also offer other enthralling activities like elephant riding in jungle, lion and tiger safaris, trekking, boating and much more.
Kerala’s equable climate, natural abundance of the forest with the wealth of herbs and medicinal plants and a cool monsoon season which starts in June and ends in November are best suited for Ayurveda’s curative and restorative packages. In fact, today Kerala is the only state in India which practises this system of medicine with absolute dedication. This is the reason why Ayurveda is such an integral part of Kerala’s tourism. A number of notable Ayurveda Medical Colleges and Hospitals are spread all across the State. Panchakarma is a term given to the five prolonged treatment that Ayurveda has to offer. This includes medicated oil, herbs, milk and a special diet which could be beneficial in curing all kinds of ailments. The tourists can get famous rejuvenating therapies, Ayurvedic spa, Ayurveda Yoga to relax their mind and soul.
Another major part of Kerala tourism is its cuisine. The cuisine here could be described to have drawn inspiration from the fusion of French, Malabari, and Arabian influences and enhanced with a touch of Kerala’s unique culture. This is why tourists love to indulge themselves in the spicy flavours of Kerala. Some of the staple ingredients of Kerala’s food include rice, coconut and fish. The flavours are enhanced with chillies, ginger, cardamom, mustard seeds, turmeric tamarind, black pepper, clove, cinnamon curry leaves, and asafoetida. The plate their food on banana leaves which is a part of the South Indian culture. Some dishes that the tourists cannot miss on include Idiyappam, Puttu and Kadal curry, Parippu Curry, Erissery, Dosa with Kerala style Sambar, Nadan Kozhi Varuthathu, Ela Sadya etc. Bekal Fort is the largest fort in Kerala and one of the oldest and most beautiful forts in India. India
has developed the Bekal Tourism Development Corporation to promote this tourist location. Kerala also holds the fourth largest Hindu temple in India, called Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple. This temple is well known among the tourists for its magnificent charm and appeal. Munroe Island is formed by a cluster of eight islands and is interconnected by a turquoise network of canals. Other important tourist attractions include Fort Kochi, Athirapilly Water Falls, Vembanad Lake, Mattancherry Palace, Edakkal Caves, Napier Museum, Wonderla, Shree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, Santa Cruz Cathedral Basilica, Kowdiar Palace etc.
October to March is the best time to visit Kerala. All kinds of hotels and resorts, equipped with the latest amenities are available in Kerala. Kerala is well connected by roads, railway and air. One can reach Kerala from almost every part of the country because it has good rail connection and
almost two hundred railway stations. It has three international airports at Trivandrum, Kochi and Kozhikode. All the major tourist attractions in the state can be easily reached by buses, trains and autorickshaw. Kerala is an ideal option if the tourists are looking for a place to visit this
holiday season. Tourists have to visit Kerala to realize why it is known as ‘God’s own Land’.

LEGALITIES OF LOCKDOWN: an abstract law analysis.

By Kartik Sharma

Picture Credit: Starlineart, India Lockdown due to Coronavirus Pandemic Infection Outburst.https://en.clipdealer.com/vector/media/A:143289831.

Amidst pandemic, India joined the league of nations which declared country-wide lockdown. Following the ‘Janta’ curfew, which was a one-day voluntary curfew, India saw more than 70 days of lockdown. It involved shutting off all the economic activities except essential services. This step by the government pop crucial questions about its legality. From where did the Government derive this power and whether these restrictions are reasonable restriction under Article 19(5)?[1]

The Government derived this power from the Disaster Management Act, 2005 (DMA) and the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 (EDA).[2] Although none of them defines ‘curfew’ and ‘lockdown’, EDA grants powers to the Government to restrict movement to prevent the spread of disease.[3] It also grants the Government with the power to take necessary steps for the same.

Also, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) declared COVID-19 a ‘notified disaster’ under DMA.[4] This move gave power to the Union to create a three-tier Disaster Management Authority (National, State, & District) to discuss, plan and issue guidelines on issues arising from the disaster.[5] This declaration also opened the gates for the States to use ‘State Disaster Response Fund’, as described in DMA.[6] Hence, deriving such powers, the Union Government was able to formulate necessary guidelines and restrict movement across the country. At this juncture, another question arises. What if the state(s) did not agree with the Centre to impose lockdown? Or they revolted on the Centre’s decision?

Article 256 stipulates that “the Union can give directions to the State as may appear necessary to enforce a law enacted by the Parliament”.[7] So, having constitutional validity for directing state governments, the Union used EDA and DMA to lead the States on the implementation of guidelines and other policies. Although the Union decided lockdown in consultation with the States, these directions are not merely advisory, and the Centre can enforce them. The Centre could invoke National Emergency[8] or State Emergency[9] enshrined in the Constitution. Invoking emergencies will allow the Centre to take punitive measures against the States which are disobeying Centre’s directions.[10]

Now to discuss Freedom of Movement enshrined in Article 19(d),[11] I will say these are reasonable restrictions. Article 19(5) exonerates imposition of restrictions if it is in the interest of the general public,[12] which is the case. The imposition of lockdown was to prevent the uncontrollable spread of Coronavirus in the country. This imposition helped prevent a sudden spike of cases in India to a great extent. Therefore, the actions of the Government are neither illegal nor do they violate any Fundamental Rights. The restrictions imposed by the Government are reasonable.

[1] The Indian Constitution, 1949, art 19(5).

[2] Prashasti Awasthi, Centre Invokes ‘Epidemic Diseases Act’ and ‘Disaster Management Act’ to Prevent Spread of Coronavirus, The Hindu BusinessLine March 12, 2020, https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/national/centre-invokes-epidemic-act-and-disaster-management-act-to-prevent-spread-of-coronavirus/article31049161.ece#.

[3] Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, §2, 2A.

[4] Disaster Management Act, 2005, §6.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Id, §48.

[7] Supra note 2, art 256.

[8] Supra note 2, art 352.

[9] Supra note 2, art 356.

[10] Supra note 2, art 353, 357.

[11] Supra note 2, art 19(d).

[12] Supra note 2, art 19(5).

Universities hell bent on conducting exams at the cost of imparting education

The country went into a nationwide lockdown on March 24th because of covid-19 but universities in most of the country were locked down way before the national lockdown was announced. In Delhi, the lockdown was imposed on 2nd march in universities like DU, AU, JNU and others. Classes were stopped mid semester with a majority of the classes still left to be conducted.

After some haphazard planning and discussions where students were not consulted it was decided that the remaining classes will be conducted online. This came as a shock to many students who live in areas where internet connectivity is not very reliable and even restricted like in Kashmir. Not to mention the fact that not all students are privileged enough to have smartphones, laptops etc in their homes. Also, online classes conducted through zoom, hangouts, skype and other apps have come under lot of criticism because of technical issues like poor connectivity, low resolution, timed sessions and so on. Many students have also complained that teachers are in a rush to check off their syllabus by providing links to books, sources and other materials without a proper discussion and explanation on the topics.

IFLA -- Work/Study from Home (W/SfH) and Physical Distancing Prevention Efforts to Spread COVID-19 in Indonesia
Study from home is a challenge for many students- IFLA Images

In situations like these, the HRD ministry and University administrations are hell bent on conducting exams without considering these problems. Though Universities like DU has cancelled exams for all undergraduates except the final year students, exams for MA students are not ruled out yet. They are conducting Open Book Exams for final year students. Other universities are still working on how to conduct exams for students. Both the options of online and offline exams are being considered without consulting students and teachers. This will definitely affect the students who don’t have access to online facilities. Even the students who have access to these facilities will have to pray for steady internet connection and hope that their devices don’t malfunction. Offline it is another nightmare, as the risk of getting corona is very high with cases rapidly rising in Delhi and other major cities. Ensuring social distancing and safety practices will be tough for the universities and the students will have to write their exams in constant fear of getting infected.

The general disregard to these problems show that our education system lacks apathy and is solely focused on conducting exams and handing out degrees like a factory production line. Imparting education and learning is definitely not on the agenda of our universities.