Songs of freedom fill the air

Freedom and a patriotic fervour were the prevailing mood across campuses this week as students planned pre-Independence Day celebrations and programmes throughout the week. Also celebrated was the monsoon and its bounty as St Xavier's College students put up a Shravani mela on the campus and vied for customers. If Magadh Mahila College orgranised cultural programmes on the theme of Independence, Patna Women's College girls celebrated the occasion with underprivileged children in the city.

Monsoon fete

Fun, frolic and food marked Shravani celebrations on the St Xavier's College campus last Tuesday. Third-year commerce students developed their entrepreneurial skills with the Shravani Mela as they set up food and game stalls for their customers - the other students.

The purpose was to give the students an experience in entrepreneurship and marketing strategies, said coordinator of bachelor of business administration department Joel D'Cruze under whose guidance the event was staged.

Students made up groups such as Spreading Happiness, Feed the Bear, Seven Species, Mota Bhai Pasta Wala and Wow Momos treated one and all with delicious food like aloo puri, instant noodles and sandwiches among others. Housie and Jukebox were also organised for the students.

Principal Father T. Nishaant visited the various food stalls for a taste of the preparations.

Mission clean

Nearly 150 National Service Scheme volunteers from Patna Women's College took part in a Swachhta Abhiyan campaign on International Youth Day on August 12. The volunteers cleaned the campus and trimmed the grass on the college field under the supervision of principal Sister Marie Jessie, NSS programme officer Ameeta Jaiswal and programme coordinator Pushpa Sinha.

Sister Jessie said the campaign was aimed at creating awareness among the students about cleanliness. The fresher-NSS volunteers enjoyed the job at hand too.

Geography student Rachna Kumari said she had never cut grass before the programme and had no idea it would be fun. "It was a wonderful experience for me," she said. "We also made placards to create awareness about cleanliness. But I think we need to do these things often so that people get motivated."

Independence Day

Magadh Mahila College students started the I-Day celebrations early, on Saturday, to songs such as Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani, Desh Mera Rangeela and Maa Tujhe Salaam among others. College principal Asha Singh spoke to the students about the contribution of martyrs to the country's freedom struggle.

Students of LN Mishra Institute of Economic Development and Social Changes also celebrated Independence Day the same day with a poster-making and patriotic song competition.

Students of National Institute of Fashion Technology celebrated the occasion by putting up I-Day posters at a signature camp set up at Mauryalok Complex.

Sing freely

Patna Women's College on Friday organised a patriotic song competition on Friday for which eight groups came up with their best performances.

The history department bagged the first prize with their rendition of Vande Mataram while the team of the boarders and the commerce department were placed second and third, respectively.

Ameeta Jaiswal, the head of department, philosophy, addressed the students. "We should not feel great only on Independence Day but rejoice always," she said.

Principal Sister Marie Jessie said: "Unless you spread happiness around, it will not come back to you." She also narrated a short story of a bee and spider to express the meaning and feeling of freedom.

"Our aim was not to win the competition but to create the aura of patriotism," said first-year commerce student Anwesha. "I am glad everyone enjoyed the performances."

Day with kids

Patna Women's College education department held Bal Mela for children associated with non-government organisations to celebrate freedom on Sunday. Sister Marie Jessie inaugurated the event by releasing bunch of saffron, white and green balloons. The BEd students started the programme with a welcome song dedicated to the children. A dance show followed.

The participating children sat down for a drawing competition on the theme of independence. Upasana Singh, head of department, gave away prizes to the winners.

"We presented a patriotic song for the kids. It motivated them. They also sang along with zeal," said Archana Gupta, a first-year student.

The programme concluded with distribution of food packets that brought smiles to the children's faces. "It was a pleasant experience for us to dedicate the Independence Day celebrations this year to children from underprivileged sections of society," said Geetika Sinha, a first-year student.

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