 |
| Students from various institutes take part in the state-level youth parliament competition organised by the school and mass education and parliamentary affairs department of Odisha government in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday. Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee |
Psychedelic lights, riveting music and celebrity performances made for a heady cocktail at Ritaanz-2013, the two-day annual festival of Khurda-based Radhakrishna Institute of Technology and Engineering, last weekend. The first day was reserved for competitions and activities for students while the second day saw power-packed performances by popular TV artistes from Mumbai. Former contestants of musical shows Rex D’Souza and Yashita Yashpal Sharma gave a rocking start to the cultural night as they crooned evergreen Hindi songs in their own distinct style — some duets, some solos. From Kishore Kumar and S.P. Balasubramaniam to Sonu Nigam and Mohit Suri, Rex covered the most popular tracks of the celebrated Bolly singers as the audience bobbed their heads to the music. Yashita, on the other hand, chose some fast paced songs, which made the crowd shake a leg. Odia singer Navya also set the stage on fire by singing some local songs. It was then the turn of the Amit dance troupe to pep up the audience with their moves. A special appearance by leading Odia actor Sabyasachi Mishra towards the end of the programme provided the perfect finish to the star-studded night. Commissioner-cum-director of the technical education and training directorate Hemant Sharma and chairman-cum-managing director of Nalco Ansuman Das were the guests on the occasion.
Against addiction
Students of the National Institute of Technology (NIT)-Rourkela took up cudgels against drug addiction and abuse by conducting an awareness programme on their campus on April 13. Through skits, poster-making competitions and other activities, volunteers of the institute’s Rotaract Club spread the message of de-addiction among their fellow classmates as well as teachers. Students from two local schools — Deepika English Medium and Delhi Public School — also took part in the event. The student-organisers said tobacco and alcohol consumption accounted for nearly five million deaths worldwide every year. “This figure will only go up as the substances are widely marketed and distributed in developing countries. Drug abuse is seen mostly in younger people, and so, we wanted to start a campaign at the college level,” said a volunteer. NIT-Rourkela director S.K. Sarangi, director of Ispat General Hospital S.K. Mishra and Rourkela superintendent of police A.N. Sinha attended the programme and sensitised students about the ill effects of drugs.
Musical journey
Governor S.C. Jamir unveiled Bansuri Guru, a 60-minute documentary on flute maestro Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia at a glittering event at the Institute of Technical Education and Research (ITER), Bhubaneswar, on April 14. Describing the musician as a “living legend”, who was capable of making the flute talk, Jamir felicitated Chaurasia along with eminent sculptor and Padma Vibhushan awardee Raghunath Mohapatra. The governor also inaugurated a new auditorium at ITER christened Bansuri Guru Auditorium. The documentary, capturing the unknown facets of the maestro’s early life in Allahabad and his rise from an All India Radio artiste in Cuttack to an icon in the world of music, has been produced by the government-run Films Division of India (FDI), and directed by Chaurasia’s son, Rajeev. Bansuri Guru, which has an introduction by actor Amitabh Bachchan, has been shot in Mumbai, Bhubaneswar and Rotterdam, the maestro’s three preferred places of stay. It provides a glimpse into his personality, moods and memories. It also includes his students, friends and well-wishers. The documentary contains extensive interviews with Pandit Chaurasia, santoor maestro Pandit Shivkumar Sharma and tabla players Ustad Zakir Hussain and Vijay Ghate and was screened in selected theatres across the country last Friday. ITER director M.K. Mallick felicitated Rajeev on the occasion. Annual gala nTalent, creativity and ingenuity were the catchwords on the campus of Aryan Institute of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar, as it celebrated its annual function, Aryansh 2013, on April 11 and 12. After competing in several challenging activities, it was time for the students to soothe their frayed nerves at their cultural extravaganza. The two-hour show brought the best out of the participants as they danced to popular songs, presented skits on socially-relevant issues and tickled the funny bones of their friends and teachers through a stand-up comedy show. Odia actress Prakruti Mishra added the celebrity touch to the event and set the stage on fire with her oomph-loaded performance. This was followed by a prize-giving ceremony, in which students were felicitated for their achievements in sports, academics and cultural activities. The faculty members were also given awards and certificates in recognition of their services. Dean of students’ welfare D.P. Rath presented the annual report while institute chairman Madhusmita Parida, director Satyananda Swain and principal R. Bhima Rao addressed the gathering.
Knowledge upgrade
KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, organised a two-day Librarians’ Development Programme on April 12 and 13 to equip participants with latest technological knowledge for better management of their day-to-day activities. Inaugurating the event, university vice-chancellor P.P. Mathur outlined the 700-year-old history of the library system and its present digital form. He said access to the best libraries of the world and getting information from them was just a click away. IIM-Ahmedabad professor Anil Kumar, who was a guest on the occasion, said the readership in India must grow, so that the number of libraries could also increase, like in foreign countries. Chairman of the KIIT Central Library Committee A.K. Rath, IIT-Gandhinagar’s T.S. Kumbar and other library scientists from various universities of Odisha also attended the programme.
