sudhir Kumar -Cobbler’s son scraps rebel wish, cracks IIT -JEE

Patna, June 19: Thrashed by local criminals for resisting their bid to extort money from his cobbler father when he was just 12 years old, Sudhir Kumar wanted to join the Naxalites to take revenge on those who had humiliated him. He didn’t after his father advised him to instead focus his energies on studies. Now, six years later, Sudhir’s efforts have paid off as he has cleared the JEE-Advanced exams, the gateway to admissions to IITs and other top engineering colleges of the country. Sudhir has secured 3900th rank (SC category) in the test, the results for which were declared today. A resident of Hilsa in Nalanda district, around 100km southeast of Patna, Sudhir is a product of Super 30, an institution set up by mathematician Anand Kumar to coach students from economically and socially weaker sections for clearing the IIT entrance examination free of cost. While studying in a government school, Sudhir (18) learnt about Super 30 through newspapers after which he contacted Anand. “Had Anand sir not been there I would not have been what I am today,” he said with a grin on his face. Super 30 students have performed very well this year as well with 27 of the 30 boys and girls who are taught free clearing the JEE-Advanced exam. Sudhir said that being the son of a cobbler was a big challenge. “I used to help my father in polishing shoes. Even filling up the form of the engineering entrance examination was a big ask because my father didn’t have the money. My elder sister helped me by mortgaging her ornaments for raising the money to fill the form,” said the lad, who wants to join the Indian Administrative Service after completing his engineering. Sudhir’s father Sanjeevan Ravidas was overwhelmed by his son’s success. “The credit goes to Anand sir who, like a messiah, helped my son in guiding him to success,” he said, his eyes welling up. Sudhir though said that but for his father, he would have ended up joining the Maoists after the humiliation and terror they underwent at the hands of the local criminals. Ravidas convinced him that achieving something in life would be a befitting reply to his tormentors. “My father’s words changed my orientation,” Sudhir said. Super 30’s Anand played down the credit being given to him. “I just guide the students who have fire in the belly to achieve something in their lives. The success belongs to them,” he said. Another Super 30 success story this year is Abhijeet of Nawada district. Son of marginal farmer Awadhesh Chandra Rajak, Abhijeet has secured 693rd rank. Attributing his success to Anand, Abhijeet said: “I didn’t have the money to buy books. Some of my friends used to lend me books.” source :The Telegraph

Shivanand learnt by heart the Bhagavad Gita when he was seven ,Proud on Shivanand from Bihar cracks IIT-JEE.at the age of 14th.

Patna : He was a religious preacher at the age of seven, but now at the age of 14, Shivanand Tiwary of Dharampura village in Rohtas district is among the youngest students in the country to crack the prestigious IIT entrance examination.

So young he is that he had to take permission from the court to write the IIT entrance examination, as boys and girls below the age of 15 are not allowed to appear.

Talk to him, and he himself will say that till four years ago he had no inkling that he would be going to study at IIT. But his father Kamlakant Tiwary, a farmer by profession, as well as, people of his village and neighbouring areas had no doubts about his talent.

The boy had learnt by heart the Gita and other Hindu religious scriptures at the age of seven. He started travelling all around and preaching on religion and scriptures. The discourses were well attended.

“I have been a spiritual person since my childhood days and have always wanted to serve God. I started preaching from a stage at Buxar when I was seven year old. The people loved it and I was called to various places to give discourses. I also enjoyed it,” said Shivanand.

Though his father Kamlakant also wanted Sivanand to lead a life of sainthood, but there was a change when director of a coaching institute based in Patna and New Delhi spotted him in 2011. He was so impressed that he convinced the boy’s father to allow him to take up studies.

“I was taken by Naraina IIT – PMT Academy director U P Singh to New Delhi. He and his academic director in Patna Deepak Singh devised a special curriculum for me and I completed my school studies successfully from Delhi and prepared simultaneously for IIT. They made me focus much on English also so that I could read and understand books in this language,” said Shivanand.

source : By FPJ Bureau,

Bihar's son of the soil Divyanshu Jha and Utkrisht "Utkrisht might be youngest of the lot," strategy cracking IAS exam

    

From 648th to 9th rank in the civil services examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission is no mean an achievement. Bihar's son of the soil Divyanshu Jha did it, and his family members are on cloud nine.

"My son has always been a meritorious student. He represented India in the International Physics Olympiad in 2005 and won a bronze medallion for the country," said a proud B S Jha, father of Divyanshu who was schooled at Don Bosco Academy and St Michael's High School at Patna before moving to IIT-Kanpur from where he did engineering in computer science.

This was Divyanshu's third attempt. He wrote the Mains in 2011, but did not get the interview call. "He was down with dengue just before the Mains then," his dad, an AGM with PowerGrid Corporation Limited, explained.

Divyanshu always aspired to become an IAS officer. He studied for around seven hours every day and also cracked CAT. "My son turned down a job offer from Deutsche Bank which had offered him a pay package of over Rs 40 lakh per year," Jha said and added Divyanshu did not opt for coaching classes, but would do private test series. He attributed his son's "poor performance" last year to his "overconfidence".

Another technocrat hailing from Patna, Utkrisht Prasoon, has ranked 101st in the prestigious examination in his very first attempt. All of 22 years now, he applied for the civil services examination not as a graduate but as an "appearing graduate". The result of his BTech information technology from Delhi College of Engineering came in June last year.

Son of Prof Damodar Singh of B S College-Danapur and Prof Abha Singh of A N College-Patna, Utkrisht did not intend to pursue engineering as a career. "I used to prepare for the UPSC examination when my college friends would write placement examinations of various companies," the DPS-Patna and DPS-R K Puram alumnus told TOI over phone from Delhi and credited his success to his parents and elder brother Abhinav Prasoon, who is an Indian Information Service officer.

Utkrisht aspires to join the IAS. "For now I don't know if 101 will get me the IAS," he said and added he has so far not thought about second attempt to better his rank in case he doesn't get the coveted IAS.

Prof Damodar Singh, needless to say, is proud of his son's feat. He is also proud of the fact none of his sons ever went for private coaching. "Utkrisht might be youngest of the lot," he said, pride and pleasure writ large on his face. Prof Singh is hopeful of his son getting the IAS. "My elder son told me there were 94 IAS vacancies for general category aspirants last year and even 116th rank holder got it," he said and added this year there are 90 vacancies.

source:TOI

Daughter of Uday Singh,executive engineer, road construction department,Bihar got 46th rank in IAS exam.

ARARIA ,Bihar : Udita Singh, an alumnus of Delhi Public School (DPS), Patna, has secured 46th rank in the UPSC's Civil Services (main) examination-2013. She is the daughter of Uday Singh, presently posted as executive engineer, road construction department, here.

Her family originally hails from Goradih village under Rajaun police station of Banka district in Bihar. But her family presently lives at Ashiana Nagar in the state capital.

Udita completed her matriculation from DPS, Patna with 94% marks in 2004. She did her inter from Kota (Rajasthan) with 88% in 2006, and then joined IIT-Delhi in electrical engineering stream. She completed BTech from there in 2011. Thereafter, she prepared to take the Civil Services examination but could not succeed in her first attempt in 2012. In her second attempt, she secured 46th rank and is sure of getting Indian Administrative Service.

Her mother Sangita Singh is a homemaker and her younger brother Shubham Suday is a medical student. Despite being a student of engineering, she opted for public administration as her main subject, Udita told TOI. She used to study for 15 hours daily.

Udita advised Civil Services aspirants never to adopt shortcut methods, but study with utmost honesty. It is sure to succeed, she added.

source :TOI

Charge d'affaires US embassy Michael Pelletier and Consul General Helen G LaFave, along with officials of the USA consulate, visited Super 30

Deputy chief of mission of US embassy Michael Pelletier and consul general Helen G LaFave being welcomed by founder of Super30, Anand Kumar in Patna on June 17, 2014. (TOI photo by Pramod Sharma)

students during a question and answer session and returned impressed with mathematician Anand Kumar's pioneering initiative and commitment.

"I had heard a lot about Super 30 and so made it a point to be here during my Bihar visit to see it for myself. And indeed, it is more than what I had imagined," said LaFave, adding, "Super 30 was a surprising project for the Americans and that is what had brought him here."

He said it was such individual initiatives that were making a difference in India and such. Endeavours should be recognized and appreciated. "It is surprising because poor boys and girls are preparing for India's elite institutions and making it with unbelievable regularity with their hard work and guidance of Kumar, his team and his family. Kumar's entire family is into it and that is a big thing," he added.

In 2011, US President Barak Obama's special envoy Rashad Hussain had also visited Super 30 and interacted with the students and Kumar. He had described Super 30 as the best school in India. 

After returning, he had also written about Super 30 in his blog quite highly.   

aFave also held an interactive session with the Super 30 students and answered their varied questions, which revolved round the difference in education systems of India and US, opportunities for Indian students in America and how could Indian students go there for higher studies and research.

LaFave was quite open to the. "You all are bright students. Once you clear your B.Tech from IIT, there will be plenty of opportunities for you all. Just like Super 30, in US there is equal opportunity to all, irrespective of any consideration. Only merit counts," he added.

source ?TOI

वट-सावित्री पुजा ( vat-savitri puja ) Tradition, modernity can go together in Indian wedding.

While women gathered near a banyan tree on Boring Canal Road to perform Vat Savitri puja a few days ago and tied the holy thread around the tree, a newlywed young woman who entered the scene with an elderly woman, who appeared to be her mother-in-law, grabbed their eyeballs. She wasn't too pretty to attract attention, rather but it was a tattoo showing from under her bangles that made all other women raise their eyebrows. 

A woman whispered into another ear, "She is too modern. Look, she has her husband's name etched on her right hand." The other retorted, "She is also traditional, as she has put a long mark of vermilion from her nose till the hair parting and her 'Aanchal' too is intact on her head." 

The soft sound of anklets from beneath the pair of denims of young women and the glimpse of sacred janeu thread around the neck of men in their late twenties or early thirties, new age brides and grooms in the city are a blend of both tradition and modernity. They know how to look cool and trendy while not being aloof from their culture. 

Shravan Upadhyay (name changed) fell in love with a girl who was his college mate in Ireland. They got their parents' approval and tied the nuptial knot last year. While Shravan after completing his studies came back to the city a few months ago to help his father in his automobile business, his wife still has a year left there. But the surprising element is that his wife, a Punjabi, is a part-time bartender in one of the clubs there. "It's her part-time job and she has been doing it for the past three years. And now that she is married in a Brahmin family, she has stopped taking alcohol as well as non-vegetarian food," said a proud Shravan. 

When asked if his parents ever expressed their displeasure over her job, he said, "They don't know about it but we will reveal it to them after a while. But I strongly feel to become a good 'bahu', it is not necessary for her to change her calling. Abandoning alcohol and non-veg food was her own choice." 

City's Abhishek and Shivya, who have been married for more than five months and are now based in Australia, say though being miles away from their own people, they do not miss celebrating the festivals popular in their family. "We both wear traditional dresses during festivals and do video chat with family members," Shivya told adding this Vat Savitri Puja, though she could not worship a banyan tree there, she performed the puja at her home and called up her mother-in-law for her blessings. "Even my mom-in-law told me to become a Roman while in Rome. Being traditional does not mean proclaiming the tradition but is about respecting our tradition in our hearts," she said and added, "However modern we become, 'dil' will always remain Hindustani."

source:TOI

Drink sufficiently large quantities of water keep away summer illness.

  

The heat and humidity in the state has led to a spurt in summer illnesses. City hospitals are flooded with patients seeking treatment for heat exhaustion, severe dehydration, unexplained fever and skin ailments such as boils and dermatitis. Doctors advise the general public to remain indoors during daytime and drink plenty of fluids. Juicy fruits are also handy to keep dehydration at bay. 

Eating healthy is important to keep away water and food-borne illnesses such as diarrhoea, typhoid and jaundice. Doctors say drinks prepared by roadside vendors are often unhygienic. The ice used in them might be made of unclean water. 

Doctors also busted the myth that energy drinks can help one reduce dehydration. Any cold drink or energy drink has concentrated sugar. When that goes to body, it may lead to osmotic dehydration, promoting water from a cell to come out to absorb extra sugar. That is the reason one feels thirst after a while after taking such drinks, said Dr Diwakar Tejaswi, adding one might instead take electoral powder. 

He advised one should avoid strenuous work, including exercises, during the warmest part of the day. "Many heat emergencies are experienced by people exercising or working during the day such as sales executives," the doctor said. He said drinking plenty of water can help ward off many heat-related illnesses. 

One should also avoid sudden change in temperature. Doctors say the tendency of people walking straight out of airconditioned rooms and cars into the hot sunshine or gulping cold drinks to beat the heat is harmful. "The best way to identity the symptoms of the sun being harsh on you is looking out for weakness, a dry tongue or cramps in your legs. One should opt for the shade and have lots of liquids," a doctor advised. 

Hypertensive people need some special precaution. President of Bihar chapter of Cardiological Society of India, Dr U C Samal, said the dosage of medicine given to heart patients might need a change due to loss of salt from body during summer. If proper monitoring of medicine is not done, a hypertensive may even suffer kidney shut down. Blood pressure patients also need to manage drug doses during summer as per doctors' advice. 

Sweltering heat can affect the skin, too, if precautions such as wearing of appropriate clothing and application of sunscreen are not taken. "Fungal allergies are also common during summer because of excessive sweating," said Dr Amarkant Jha 'Amar' who advises one should take bath twice a day, wear cotton clothes and use anti-fungal powder. 

Cross-infection from swimming pools is another major problem. Doctors suggest that one should have a good bath after swimming to avoid them.

source :TOI

'Free Wi-Fi Zone of Patna' will appear on the screen. If one clicks on it, another page will appear asking for a user name and mobile number. 10,000 people are logged in at a time

PATNA: If all goes well, a free Wi-Fi zone on the lines of Patna's may be created in all state capitals of the country. Confirming the buzz, Beltron MD Atul Sinha toled that in the last week of May, some senior officials of the communication ministry's telecom department contacted Beltron and asked for details related to the free Wi-Fi zone of Patna. 

On May 26, the officials from the Union ministry of communications and information technology contacted Beltron and asked for information related to expenditure, number of access points and black hole networks of the free Wi-Fi zone of Patna. "The ministry, probably, plans to create such Wi-Fi zone in every state capital of the country," Sinha said adding in Delhi, the plan is in its concept stage and officials are working out the expenditure on creating the Wi-Fi network. This may be an initiative of Union communication minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who belongs to Bihar. 

The 18-km-long Wi-Fi zone, which is the world's longest free Wi-Fi zone, covers a stretch from NIT Patna to Saguna Mor on the western end of Bailey Road. Inaugurated by then Bihar CM Nitish Kumar at a function in February last, one can use the network at a maximum speed of 512 Mbps and currently it has a bandwidth of 20 Mbps. 

"We have a capacity of 1,000 simultaneous users. However, the possibility of 1,000 users at a time is too low as even when 10,000 people are logged in at a time, there can't be 1,000 simultaneous users," said Sinha, explaining simultaneous users are those who type the URL and click enter at a given time, so it is practically impossible to have 1,000 simultaneous users," he said. 

To use the Wi-Fi network, one has to be in the range of the network, which is 300 metres from the arterial roads under the coverage area, with any Wi-Fi enabled phone or a tablet. A tab of 'Free Wi-Fi Zone of Patna' will appear on the screen. If one clicks on it, another page will appear asking for a user name and mobile number. After feeding the info, the mobile number will receive a message giving the password for the user name. With the same user name and password, one can browse the Internet. 

The biggest advantage of such a Wi-Fi network would be free Internet access to those who seldom used Internet and to increase the number of Internet users in the city. "The number of telephone users is too high in our country, but against that number, those using Internet is too less. Even the Union telecom department officials asked about the advantage of such a network and we said, this free service would enable us to increase the number of Internet users in our country," said Sinha. 

Security aspect, too, has been taken care of, as state telecom department is keeping a tab on all the sites people are browsing. No one can browse pornography through this Wi-Fi network as these sites are blocked by the department.

source :TOI