Yogesh Avasthi

Goods train from Mundra shoots across destination Nadiad, stops 11 km away due to miscommunication. It was sheer luck no other train was scheduled on the busy Ahmedabad-Mumbai route during that hour Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Saturday, August 28, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=20100828201008280355388711887a18a ) A tragedy was averted on the Ahmedabad-Mumbai rail route on Thursday night when a goods train ended up several kilometres away from the station it was supposed to stop. More than 25 passenger trains ply on this route between 10 pm and 3 am. The incident occurred at midnight on Thursday. The train was carrying fertilisers from Indian Potash Limited in Mundra Port to Nadiad. The 58-wagon train crossed Ahmedabad, Geratpur, Barejadi, Kanij, Memdavad and reached Gothaj where it was given the clear signal to Nadiad. The train hurtled on till the driver and guard realised they had overshot Nadiad and reached

Food at the Ahmedabad railway hospital canteen is prepared next to a morgue; lack of refrigeration for life-saving drugs puts the medicine’s potency at risk Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Thursday, August 26, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=20100826201008260416485118102d7 ) Healthcare at the Ahmedabad divisional railway hospital in Sabarmati is in a disarray. A visit to the hospital will speak volumes about the negligence and lackadaisical attitude of the hospital authorities. Life-saving drugs meant to be refrigerated between 2 and 20 degree Celsius are stored in open racks, putting the medicine’s potency at risk. The hospital also provides a unique facility: To partake a meal with the dead. The hospital authorities have converted a parking lot into a temporary canteen as their designated canteen is still to be inaugurated. The canteen is situated right next to a mortuary. Most relatives of patients forgo a visit t

Built with much fanfare two years ago, Gujarat University’s five new academic buildings have cracked walls, leaking roofs and sunken floors today By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Saturday, August 21, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=20100821201008210322366821e4e7c49 ) Major cracks on its walls, leaking roofs and sunken floors are in stark contrast to the hype and fanfare with which Gujarat University’s new academic buildings came up two years ago. The buildings in question: Defence Bhavan, MSc in Clinical Research, Forensic Science, Home Science and Human Genetic Research Centre were built sometime in 2008 at a cost of around Rs 3.5 crore. Today, all these buildings are in a sorry state. Despite most buildings being empty, their walls have developed major cracks, with the main pillars at some places in very bad condition. The Kota-stoned floor at a couple of places has literally sunk in. The university authority adm

Nine colleges are on the verge of closure; students from these institutes running from pillar to post in wake of expiry of admission deadline By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Saturday, August 21, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=2010082120100821031857858c4b476eb ) Gujarat University’s (GU) myopic view on sanctioning more BBA and BCA colleges for professional courses has jeopardised future of more than 20 students. On July 16, executive council of university had sanctioned nine colleges, and within a month, half of them have decided to shut down for lack of admissions, while remaining are on the verge of closure, for this academic year. What is surprising is that the university had allegedly went out of the way to oblige a handful of influential politicians to grant them permission for the institutes without even getting a feasibility report. Sources in the education sector believe that the university committee for sa

The survival of pharmacy, mgmt, PTC and BEd colleges is at the mercy of bargain hunters. These private institutes are offering huge discounts to fill thousands of seats lying vacant By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Thursday, August 19, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=201008192010081902411883480619fb ) Education has not been in a more sorry state than this in Gujarat. The colleges that once charged not less than Rs 2 lakh for a management quota seat, are now offering hefty discounts in a desperate race for survival. Reason: There are more seats available than the number of students wanting them. The problem of plenty is being faced by pharmacy, management, PTC and BEd colleges in the state. There is no other option, really, for these cash-starved colleges except offering discounts. The Admission Committee for Professional Courses (ACPC) recently wrapped up the admission process for engineering and pharmacy colleges a

Recession blues gone, students offered starting salaries in the range of Rs 3.5 lakh to Rs 5.5 lakh by ace firms By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Wednesday, August 18, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=20100818201008180310394515cd7df58 ) L D Engineering students are clearly on a high. Unlike their less fortunate seniors who had to make do with not-so-impressive pay packages offered during the placement process in the backdrop of recession last year, the current students are lapping up lucrative offers. The starting salary on offer is in the range of Rs 3.5 lakh to Rs 5.5 lakh. On Tuesday, the companies that scouted the campus to hire the crème de la crème were Tata Motors, L & T, Shapoorji Pallonji and Cybage to name a few. As many as 75 students bagged offers after placement interviews on Tuesday; the most impressive packages were offered by Tata Motors. These firms interviewed students from mechanical, civil and

College officials ask the police to step up patrolling near the campus to prevent harassment of girl students By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Sunday, August 15, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=20100815201008150210083402f92aeaa ) Officials of MG Science Institute have asked the police to increase patrolling near the college during daytime to prevent harassment of female students. In the past 10 days, many incidents of teasing have taken place near the college, which is located on a sprawling campus with cricket grounds opposite Gujarat University (GU). Recently, a student hailing from a north-eastern state faced offensive remarks from a group of rowdy bikers. One of them, in fact, stopped her and gave her a ‘gift’. The incident left the girl completely shaken. She apparently didn’t attend college for a few days. There have also been instances when some youths drove their motorcycles very close to girl students on fo

Education Commission to organise exhibition from Sept 4 to 8, at Gujarat University Convention Hall By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Saturday, August 14, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=2010081420100814033209547f68813f4 ) In a step towards value-oriented education system, Gujarat Educational Innovations Commission will hold an exhibition on the philosophy of education of visionaries like Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Swami Vivekanand, Shri Aurobindo, Rabindranath Tagore and Mahatma Gandhi. Aimed at integrated development of students, the four-day techno-expo will showcase e-poster, e-panel and CD that will look into the educational systems propagated by these five great Indian personalities. “We want to incorporate values and morals in present education system. This exhibition is an effort to revive the spirit of India’s spiritual knowledge and robust intellectuality. It will be held at Gujarat University Convention Ha

The 8-yr-old student of Mirambika School, who ran away to escape torture at home, faced more blows after he was found in Vatva By Yogesh Avasthi and Dhwani Pathak Posted On Thursday, August 12, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=2010081220100812033303563938cb2a7 ) Can corporal punishment by parents get worse than this? The eight-year-old student of Mirambika School, who ran away apparently fed up with the frequent spankings at home, received a kick from his father and another sound thrashing from a cop after he was found. Shockingly, it was Kshitij’s (name changed) parents who asked the Naranpura cop to beat him in order to teach him a lesson. The boy and his classmate had gone missing after school hours on Tuesday, triggering an intensive search by the police and school authorities. The kids, who had hopped on an AMTS bus, were spotted by a rickshawallah near Vatva GIDC. He dropped them home from where the boys

A class IV student of Mirambika School ran away from home for the second time in 15 days. This time he took along his friend. Both were later found from Vatva By Yogesh Avasthi and Zahid Qureshi Posted On Wednesday, August 11, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20Latest§id=2&contentid=201008112010081103021816660e32887 ) A depressed eight-year-old boy, reportedly a victim of corporal punishment at home, went missing on Tuesday, sending authorities of Mirambika School in Naranpura into a tizzy. Kshitij (name changed), a class IV student, ran away with his classmate Geet (name changed) after school hours. This was the second time in 15 days Kshitij had left home without informing anyone. Both kids were later found from Vatva GIDC. The teachers and other staff members of the school spent the entire day looking for the missing children, worried they could have been abducted. Wireless messages giving description of the boys were flashed to al

Institute authorities say the tie-up of IIHT with Oracle has expired, which is causing the delay in issuing the certificates By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Wednesday, August 11, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=20100811201008110252369277847427d ) The dreams to work as an Oracle specialist abroad have been put on hold. For, the eight students of a city-based institute are still waiting for their Oracle certification for the past nine months. Rajasthan-based students, Rahul Bhandari and Arvind Lakahra, along with six other students, had enrolled in a certificate course on Oracle at one Prakshal Infotech on Satellite Road. Prakshal Infotech, claimed of being affiliated with the Indian Institute of Hardware and Technology (IIHT), Bangalore, is involved in providing various certificate course in the city. It had assured the students of providing them with certificate at the end of the course. According to the institute

Out of use for two years, the gymnasium has turned into a dilapidated structure By Yogesh Avasthi Posted On Saturday, August 07, 2010 ( http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=2010080720100807035048205a13873b5 ) Rain water seep into the LD Engineering College gymnasium where canteen staff members sleep and equipment lie unused Set up to boost students’ fitness level, the gymnasium at the LD College of Engineering is now yearning for its own good health. Out of use for two years now, the gym has virtually turned into a dilapidated structure and looks nothing more than a junkyard. Moreover, its equipment are either gathering dust or are being used for other purposes by canteen staff. As the gym is not frequented by students, the canteen staff has made it their rest room and use it according to their convince. For example, the TT table has become a bed where staff relax. This is not all. The incessant rains have caused leakage a