Inauguration of integration camp

Non-government organisation Nehru Yuva Kendra, Patna, on Tuesday inaugurated a five-day national integration camp at the Youth Hostel.

Close to 250 youths from 12 states, including Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Jharkhand, have come for the programme themed on culture, unity and brotherhood with an aim to forge a national bond between various communities and regions.

Participants on Tuesday took out a rally from the Youth Hostel and covered Fraser Road, Gandhi Maidan and Kargil Chowk before returning to the hostel. They held aloft banners and raised slogans of national integrity and unity.

The organisation's founder Prem Kumar said the camp sought to get rid of the sense of alienation from amongst people. "This camp is significant because youngsters from different states can meet and interact on the cultural and social aspects of India," he said.

Blood donation on campus

Central University of South Bihar organised a blood donation camp on the institution's Patna campus on Tuesday. The camp was held in association with the Indian Red Cross Society, Patna, blood bank. Pro-vice-chancellor O.P. Rai inaugurated the programme in the presence of registrar Gayathri V. Patil.

The first donor at the programme was 58-year-old Rekha Agrawal, the dean of the school of education.

Several participants also came for the blood donation camp from the adjoining Birla Institute of Technology campus. At the end of the drive, 102 packs of blood units were collected.

From the Patna campus of the central university, around 137 volunteers registered for the blood donation. However, 35 of them were disqualified because of low body weight and poor haemoglobin level.

Vice-chancellor HCS Rathore said the university would in the near future take steps to spread awareness about blood donation so that more volunteers came forward.