Participants at Innovision-2011 organised at National Institute of Technology in Rourkela. Telegraph pictures

Display of skill and talent

Apramita Chand and Anuja Tarini Mishra of Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, bagged the top two positions in the fifth inter-university Right to Information (RTI) debate competition that was held at Ravenshaw University, Cuttack on November 5. Apramita was awarded a running shield and a cash award of Rs 5,000 while runners-up Anuja got a cash prize of Rs 3,000. Dushyanta Panda of KIIT University bagged the third position and prize money worth Rs 2,000. The topic for this year’s debate was “The RTI Act is a New Frankenstein”, which was disclosed an hour before the competition. Around 15 students from about 10 universities participated in the debate competition, said Ravenshaw dean of students’ welfare, Partha Sarathi Mishra. It was organised by the Orissa State Information Commission (Osic). Ravenshaw hosts this event every year as it has signed an agreement with the Osic in this regard.

Techies at work

Innovision-2011, the annual techno-management festival of the National Institute of Technology (Nit), Rourkela was held from November 4 to 6. The fest brought out the best in budding engineers. Apart from the students of the host institute, more than 400 students from various technical colleges and universities participated here, said Sunil Kumar Sarangi, Nit-Rourkela director. An array of activities including robotics, junkyard wars, aero modelling show, debate, quiz, paper presentations, exhibitions, workshops and other fun events were organised. The major attraction, however, was a sand art and sand animation workshop by the renowned sand artist Sudarshan Patnaik. V. Narayan, head of liquid propulsion centre, Isro-Thiruvananthapuram, P.K. Mitra of Jadavpur University, Calcutta and Arnab Roy, aerospace engineering, IIT-Kharagpur, also conducted a series of guest lectures.

(Top) Students attend a seminar at Ravenshaw University in Cuttack. (Above) Students take part in Finomics-2011 at Xavier Institute of Management in Bhubaneswar. Telegraph pictures

Promoting Hindi

An “All-India Official Language Conference” was organised jointly by the Institute of Physics and the National Institute of Science Education and Research (Niser) on November 2 and 3 in Bhubaneswar. It was an initiative of the department of atomic energy to promote the national language, Hindi. Scientific talks were organised in Hindi, in which all students and staff members of Niser and the Institute of Physics participated. A cultural extravaganza followed it in the evening. The conference was last held in 2005. Earlier, Niser observed the Vigilance Awareness Week from October 31 to November 4. Two English essay competitions were held separately for the students and the staff. The topic given was “Corruption getting social acceptance”. Three winners from each category were awarded with certificates and prizes.

Storage for vaccines

Senior paediatrician Arabinda Mohanty Arabinda expressed concern over the maintenance of the cold chain required for preserva tion of different vaccines administered to infants and young children. Mohanty was speaking at a seminar held during the east zone conference of the Indian Academy of Paediatricians at the Institute of Medical Sciences (IMS) and Sum Hospital, Bhubaneswar on November 4. “A variety of vaccines are produced by pharmaceutical companies but no one knows if the proper cold chain necessary for the protection of the vaccine and to maintain its efficacy is maintained in all cases,” he said. Ignorance about the cold chain by many vaccine sellers, the non-availability of equipment to maintain the cold chain and frequent interruptions in power supply were some of the reasons why some vaccines might not work, Mohanty added. R.P. Mohanty, vice-chancellor of Siksha O Anusandhan University that runs the IMS also addressed the seminar, organised under the continuing medical education (CME) programme.

Finance & marketing

The Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar (XIMB), recently organised Finomics-2011, a panel discussion in which eminent personalities from the field of finance discussed topics related to the economic community. The theme for this year was “Emerging Trends in Risk Management”. The event was organised by X-Fin, the finance society of XIMB. The panel of speakers included C.S. Mohapatra, director of capital markets, Union finance ministry, Girish V.S., director at Institute of Supply Chain Management India, K.C. Mishra, vice-chancellor, Sri Sri University, Orissa and K. C. Samal, executive director (finance), Nalco. D. Venkata Ramana, professor of accounting and finance at XIMB, moderated the discussion. The event received an enthusiastic response from the students, who called it a “great learning experience”. The marketing department had also organised its flagship event, “Mercatique-2011”.

Sex education

A school health programme on “Challenges of Youth, Today and Tomorrow” was held at the Ravenshaw University, Cuttack on November 1 to create awareness among adolescent girls about various social evils including domestic violence and sexual abuse. It was organised by the Federation of Obstetrics and Gynaecological Societies of India (Fogsi) and was attended by eminent gynaecologists and officials of Fogsi. Durga Shankar Dash, eminent gynaecologist and Fogsi coordinator (eastern zone), said ignorance on the part of girls makes them vulnerable to sexual harassment and sexually transmitted diseases. “Proper education can help prevent unhealthy and irresponsible sexual behaviour,” he said. Another speaker, Gitanjali Rath spoke about various venereal diseases, their prevention and treatment process. Nachiketa Das, dean (administration), Ravenshaw University, had inaugurated the programme. On November 9, the chemistry department inaugurated the “Professor Gokulananda Mahapatra Advanced Organic Chemistry Laboratory” and a post graduation seminar library. Professor Gokulananda Mohapatra himself, eminent scholar and former vice-chancellor of Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT), Omkarnath Mohanty and Ravenshaw VC, Devdas Chhotray, attended the function.

RBI & the economy

A seminar on “Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and its role in Indian economy” was held at the JKBK College, Cuttack recently. Deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Harun Rashid Khan, stressed on the importance and functions of RBI. “India is a country where bullock carts and jet crafts co-exist and since ours is a cash-oriented economy, the role of RBI is paramount, “Khan said. According to Khan, India ranks seventh in terms of its foreign reserve with $312 billion and 557 tons of gold. Similarly, the inflation rate was around 9.8 per cent while the country was maintaining a growth rate of eight per cent. Other officials of RBI and other nationalised banks also attended the programme in which awareness was also created among students about fake currencies. Efforts are also being initiated towards introduction of “plastic money” for its durability and on e-transactions to track monetary transactions. Khan also inaugurated a UGC Resource Centre at JKBK. Later, a quiz competition on the functions and role of RBI was held.

Shilpi Sampad and Vikash Sharma