It was the United Nations that designated October 15 as a day to celebrate Dr Kalam’s birthday as World Students’ Day, symbolising his legacy and encouraging the values he championed.

“To succeed in life and achieve results, you must understand and master three mighty forces — desire, belief, and expectation.”

This famous quote is said by India’s 11th President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. His love and trust in the young generation of India and beyond is not hidden. Every year on October 15, the country and beyond celebrate, ‘World Students’ Day’ in honor of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, who was a beloved teacher, and a scientist.

It was the United Nations that designated October 15 as a day to celebrate Dr Kalam’s birthday as World Students’ Day, symbolising his legacy and encouraging the values he championed.

Known as the ‘People’s President,’ Dr Kalam dedicated much of his life to inspiring and guiding young students, and his passion for teaching and learning left a profound impact on India and beyond.

He was known for his humility, his belief in the potential of the younger generation, and his advocacy for science and education as pathways to national development.

Dr Kalam was born on October 15, 1931, in a Tamil Muslim family in Rameswaram on Pamban Island. Pamban Island was then in the Madras Presidency and is now in Tamil Nadu. Although Dr Kalam had average grades in his school years, he was always a bright and hardworking student with a strong desire to learn. He spent hours on his studies, especially mathematics.

Dr Kalam received numerous awards, including the Padma Bhushan in 1981, the Padma Vibhushan in 1990, and the Bharat Ratna for his contributions to research, the field of science, and his work with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/education/world-students-day-2024-why-is-october-15-celebrated-as-students-day-apj-abdul-kalam-9619414/?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
According to LinkedIn’s ‘Jobs On The Rise 2024’ report, ‘Sustainability Manager’ is one of the top 25 most sought-after roles in India.

New Delhi: Shiny, brand-new red benches that popped up one day in Delhi University’s North Campus led 20-year-old Sneha Chopra to a career in environment. Initially thinking they were a PR stunt by a brand, Chopra, then a zoology student at Khalsa College, ignored them. But then she saw that these benches, installed by Zomato, were made of 100 per cent recycled plastic waste as part of a sustainability campaign.

“It was my first time seeing a company take concrete action for the environment, and I realised there’s so much scope for sustainable action in the corporate world,” said Chopra, who is now pursuing a master’s degree in Environmental Studies and Resource Management from The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in Delhi. She wants to graduate and work as a sustainability manager for a big corporation like Zomato, helping reduce their carbon footprint.

Chopra is one of the many new ‘climate aspirants’ in India – she wants a career working in the climate action sector, and the avenues to choose from seem endless. LinkedIn’s Jobs on the Rise 2024 report named ‘Sustainability Manager’ as one of the top 25 most sought-after roles in India. Climate change has permeated every sector and industry, from environmental, social, and governance (ESG) consulting and environment law to climate agriculture science and renewable energy policy. Colleges are perking up at the opportunity, introducing new courses on climate sciences. Companies, on the other hand, are offering workshops on sustainability to their employees.

Source: https://theprint.in/ground-reports/climate-action-is-hot-new-career-consultancy-communications-colleges-all-in/2310166/?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
Scientists are concerned that the Atlantic Ocean’s system of currents may be about to reach a tipping point. If it does, it’ll have severe consequences for all of us.

Icy winds howl across a frozen Thames, ice floes block shipping in the Mersey docks, and crops fail across the UK. Meanwhile, the US east coast has been inundated by rising seas and there’s ecological chaos in the Amazon as the wet and dry season have switched around… The world has been upended. What’s going on?

While these scenes sound like something from a Hollywood disaster movie, a new scientific study investigating a key element of Earth’s climate system – the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) – says this could occur for real as soon as 2050.

So what is it and why is it important? Are such catastrophic events, like those mentioned above, likely to happen if it disrupted, and what – if anything – can we do about it?
Why the AMOC matters and what's changing

The AMOC – often called ‘the great ocean conveyor’ – is a large system of ocean currents that includes the Gulf Stream. It circulates warm, salty water from the tropics northward into the North Atlantic, where
it cools and becomes denser. As this water cools, it sinks and flows back southward at deeper levels, before eventually rising back to the surface throughout the rest of the ocean, creating a continuous loop
of circulation.

It transports vast amounts of heat around the Atlantic – equivalent to boiling about a thousand billion kettles. It’s responsible for 25 per cent of the total heat flowing into the northern hemisphere by the ocean and atmosphere. This heat warms the winds that blow in off the Atlantic over Northwest Europe, contributes to the relatively mild climate these regions experience and helps to stop Arctic sea ice from spreading down beyond Norway.

But its effects are felt more globally, too. If the AMOC gets weaker and causes the northern hemisphere to cool, all the climate belts of the world – including the equatorial rainfall belt – will be shifted further south.

It is therefore a key component of the stability of the global climate system. As global warming continues, the surface of the high-latitude North Atlantic is getting much warmer. It’s also getting fresher because of the melting of the Greenland ice sheet and Arctic sea ice, and due to increased precipitation. This makes the surface ocean less dense, which prevents it from sinking, in turn weakening this important climate system.

Changes in the location and strength of winds blowing across the ocean can also alter the AMOC. During the Ice Age, stronger winds led to a stronger Gulf Stream, helping strengthen parts of it. In the opposite case, a future warmer world, models predict that winds may contribute to a weaker AMOC.
Is it definitely changing?

Direct instrumental measurements of the strength of the AMOC only began in 2004, when the RAPID array was installed across the Atlantic. After nearly 20 years of continuous measurements, the data show a 10-per-cent decrease in its strength, but because the observations show such a lot of change from year to year, we can’t be sure that this is a meaningful, long-term decline.

Source: https://www.sciencefocus.com/comment/atlantic-current-collapse?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
Hi, I’m Paige Vega, Vox’s climate editor. Over the past few months, I’ve been working with Joseph Lee, a New York City-based journalist and member of the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe, on a series exploring Indigenous solutions that address extreme weather and climate change. And today, on Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we’ve published the project’s latest feature, a story that takes us to Idaho, where the Coeur d’Alene Tribe is undergoing a sweeping, multi-decade effort to restore an important wetland on the reservation. Their restoration, guided by the return of ancestral food sources, could serve as a model for the rest of the country. You can read it here.

Stories like the Coeur d’Alene’s highlight the value of Indigenous solutions as we face increasingly extreme weather and natural disasters and navigate the brutal effects of the climate crisis.

Around the world, Indigenous people have the smallest carbon footprint, according to the United Nations, but are more vulnerable to the impact of climate change because they disproportionately live in geographically high-risk areas.

At the same time, these communities are also key sources of knowledge and understanding on climate change impacts, responses, and adaptation. Their traditional knowledge — focused on sustainability and resilience, from forecasting weather patterns to improving agricultural practices and management of natural resources — has increasingly gained recognition at the international level as a vital way to tackle climate change.

I talked with Lee about the process of exploring several tribes’ climate dilemmas, and why the alternative posture they’re taking can offer us uniquely humble, approachable, and nature-first holistic approaches — something we could all take to heart.

Our conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

 

Source: https://www.vox.com/climate/377683/colonial-solutions-to-climate-change-arent-working?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl

 
How do you account for the hours in a day? Even when my workday isn’t consumed by meetings, I often look up and feel surprised to find that it’s already afternoon and I don’t have nearly as many things crossed off my to-do list as I planned. Distraction is a big culprit. The constant pings of emails and Slack notifications certainly feel like work, but I’m usually left with little to show for attending to them.

Over the years, I’ve found a few things that work for me when I need to focus: instrumental music in big headphones, shutting off notifications, and using a timer to stay on task—and taking a 10-minute walk outside.

Here are a few ways to figure out your personal productivity style:
Figure out your cognitive style

Fast Company contributor and business consultant Carson Tate says there are four distinct productivity styles: Prioritizer, Planner, Arranger, and Visualizer.

Prioritizers prefer logical, analytical, fact-based, critical, and realistic thinking. A Prioritizer is at their best when processing data and solving complex problems.
Planners like organized, sequential, planned, and detail-oriented thinking. They budget the time required to complete projects, organize tasks, create detailed project plans, and complete work ahead of deadlines.
Arrangers prefer supportive, expressive, and emotional thinking. An Arranger likes to partner with people to get work done and is good at building relationships and selling ideas.
Visualizers think strategically about projects and can manage multiple ideas simultaneously. They see the big picture and don’t want to spend time on the details. They can serve as a catalyst for change, brainstorm solutions to problems, and drive innovation.

Knowing your strengths and weaknesses can help you figure out the best way to work, both on your own and with your colleagues.

Source: https://www.fastcompany.com/91202276/how-to-figure-out-your-productivity-style?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
According to a source, the Department of School Education & Literacy, has released an in-depth analysis of the 2023 Secondary and Higher Secondary Board Examinations. This report offers a comprehensive overview of student performance across the nation.

A total of 59 boards participated, including three national and 56 state-level boards. Out of these, 41 boards cater to both secondary and higher secondary levels, while nine are standalone boards for either level. Six state boards, including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, and Tamil Nadu, still adhere to independent syllabi, rather than the national NCERT curriculum. Karnataka, in a major reform, merged its SSLC (Secondary School Leaving Certificate) Board with the PU (Pre-University) Board, streamlining its education structure.

The exam duration varied greatly across states, with Class 10 exams lasting between 8 days (Bihar) and 34 days (CBSE). For Class 12, durations ranged from 10 days (Bihar) to 63 days (Punjab), reflecting the diverse educational practices in different regions.

In terms of performance, the Secondary Board exams recorded 18.5 million students, achieving an overall national pass rate of 84.9%. Hindi medium students performed the best, with an 85.8% pass rate, while English medium students followed at 84.2%. Similarly, the Higher Secondary Board exams recorded 15.5 million students, achieving a pass rate of 82.5%.

For regular students, 190.8 lakh were registered, with 157.3 lakh passing the exams, reflecting a success rate of 84.9%. Open board students showed lower success rates, with 4.2 lakh registered and a pass rate of 49.6%.

The findings highlight the resilience of India’s education system and its ability to handle large-scale examinations while maintaining consistent student performance across various mediums and boards. These results underscore the adaptability of students and institutions in ensuring high academic standards across the country.

Source: https://www.financialexpress.com/jobs-career/education-indias-education-system-demonstrates-resilience-in-2023-exams-with-consistent-national-performance-3588728/?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
 

The storied institution has made crucial contributions to social sciences research and policy. Now, faculty say, the government is choking its autonomy.

In 1936, a Parsi philanthropic organisation, Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, established the Sir Dorabji Tata Graduate School of Social Work in Mumbai. It was the first institution, not just in India but in Asia, dedicated to the study and practice of social work and the social sciences.

From the start, the institution, renamed the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in 1944, was committed to rigorous work on the ground, current and former professors said. In one of its first projects, it dispatched relief teams of students and faculty to refugee camps in the aftermath of the Partition in 1948.
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Over the decades, the institute sent teams for both research and relief work to several places, including Ahmednagar in Maharashtra during a drought in 1972, Bhopal in the aftermath of the 1984 gas leak, Mumbai after riots in 1992, Gujarat after an earthquake in 2001, Nicobar Islands after the 2004 tsunami, and Uttarakhand after the 2013 cloudburst. It helped the government develop schemes and programmes, as well as audit and evaluate their performance.

For faculty members and staff, the institute’s socially-engaged work and contribution to national life have been a source of pride. “TISS has the ability, conviction, authenticity, competency and sincerity to tell the government if things are not going right. And over the years the government has accepted our analysis and findings,” a professor said.

But in recent years, this confidence has been unravelling, as the institute has come under tremendous financial strain, coupled with what current and former staff described as an erosion of autonomy.

The turbulence made headlines two months ago.
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On June 28, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences sent termination letters to more than 100 teachers and non-teaching staff. It stated that it had taken the decision because it was facing a shortage of funds from the Tata Trusts – while the Indian government has been the primary source of funds for the institute, the group has also been a significant funder over the years.

Two days later, the institution withdrew the termination letters, claiming that the group had released Rs 4.79 crore to it.

But rather than reinstate the staffers, the new letters that the institute sent out merely extended their terms for another six months.

Faculty from the women’s studies department have been particularly anxious – three teaching staff and one non-teaching staff were issued termination letters and are yet to receive extension letters. This was despite the fact that the department was not reliant on Tata funds – on July 30, a circular of the University Grants Commission noted that funding for the department would continue for 2024-’25.
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“We wonder why TISS is taking so long to withdraw the terminations,” one professor told Scroll. “Even our students are concerned and worried about the future of the department.”
In 1936, a Parsi philanthropic organisation, Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, established the Sir Dorabji Tata Graduate School of Social Work in Mumbai. In 1944, it was renamed the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. Photo: Facebook

Despite the shock of these events, to many in TISS, and others familiar with the institution, they were part of a much longer pattern of decline.

To understand the build-up to the present crisis at TISS, Scroll spoke to several current and former professors and associate professors, all of whom asked to remain anonymous because they feared a backlash from the management. They said the erosion of autonomy at the institution has led to those on campus increasingly censoring themselves.

“We are terrified to talk to anybody about the situation here, especially to the media,” another professor said. “We don’t even feel safe talking to each other on campus. Word always gets out and we are so scared we will be targeted by the institution.” One professor was at first fearful of even answering Scroll’s phone calls inside campus, and only spoke over the phone when they had left the campus. All the professors asked repeatedly for assurances that their identities would not be revealed.

Many argued that the crisis at TISS was not just about the functioning of one premier institution, but was symptomatic of a larger problem with the way the Modi government views higher education, particularly in the social sciences. “Everything to do with social sciences is to ask questions about where we are and where we are heading as a nation,” a professor said, adding that the current government did not want academics to raise uncomfortable questions.
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Scroll emailed questions about the problems at the institution to the vice chancellor, pro vice chancellor and other senior management of TISS, as well as to the education ministry. This story will be updated if they respond.

This story is part of Common Ground, our in-depth and investigative reporting project. Sign up here to get these stories in your inbox as soon as they are published.

T
he roots of the present crisis at TISS lie in changes made after 2014 in the way the institution is funded.

While it was funded by the Sri Dorabji Tata Trust in its first few years, TISS began to receive funds from the Union government from the late 1940s. In 1964, the University Grants Commission recognised it as a “deemed to be university” and became its primary funder.
“The Union government recognised TISS as an institute of repute and decided to fund it,” the first professor said. “The state government of Maharashtra also gave it some nominal funding around the same time.”

For many years after, TISS remained a small institution with a few postgraduate diploma courses that mainly focused on social work, health administration and labour welfare.
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In 2004, with the arrival of S Parasuraman as the institute’s director, the institution began to evolve rapidly. Faculty told Scroll that Parasuraman had high academic and social aspirations for the small campus. “We had internal discussions about reimagining the institution,” the first professor said. “A lot of restructuring took place during this time. New schools and centres were established.”
In 2004, with the arrival of S Parasuraman as the institute’s director, TISS began to evolve rapidly. Faculty said that Parasuraman had high academic and social aspirations for the small campus. Photo: TISS

Between 2006 and 2014, the institution launched 32 new courses, including masters programmes in women’s studies and media and cultural studies. Today, TISS has undergraduate, postgraduate and PhD programmes, as well as programmes in continuing education and skill education. As part of these, faculty offer a wide range of courses, in fields such as education, rural development, gender, environment, anthropology and ecology.

“One of the reasons why the idea of restructuring arose was because we had so few programmes and so many students applying to study here,” the first professor said. “Students aspired for a career in social sciences and applied social sciences. The expansion helped make these courses more accessible to a larger number of students.”

Members of the faculty said that unrest at the institution began in 2014, and was linked to decisions of the Narendra Modi-led government that affected TISS’s governance.
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Among these decisions was the dissolution of the Planning Commission, which was set up in 1950 with Jawaharlal Nehru as its first chairperson. In his first Independence Day speech in 2014, Narendra Modi announced that the commission would be replaced by a new body.

Under the commission, the Central government formulated five-year plans, through which it allocated resources to fulfil economic goals within fixed time periods. In the first ever five-year plan, TISS was allocated funds that it used to develop a department of tribal welfare in 1951.

The first professor explained that during these years, the government funded universities through “plan grants” and “non-plan grants”. Typically, new centres and programmes would be established through the former, while subsequent funding would be allocated under the latter. “All grant approvals and disbursals had formats, procedures and evaluations by external review committees,” they said. They added that this systematic approach “enabled universities to steadily grow and also respond to changing educational demands and national human resources requirements.”

With the tenth five-year plan for 2002-’07, the University Grants Commission sanctioned faculty and staff positions for a TISS campus in the town of Tuljapur. This was the institution’s first “off-campus” – centres overseen by the same governing body, but with independent programmes and activities. The centre had been established in 1987, and its initial activities focused on rural development projects. With the funding from the five-year plan, it expanded into academic programmes and launched a master in social work and PhD in rural development.
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Faculty explained that TISS’s funding was determined by the University Grants Commission’s assessment of its needs and performance, based on which it would make recommendations to the government. Under Parasuraman, TISS began to receive increased funds from non-governmental sources, particularly the Tata Trusts, for new initiatives, including off-campuses and new schools in the Mumbai campus. “The understanding was that these new initiatives will be covered through the plan and non-plan grant framework,” the first professor said.
Throughout, the professor said, “The fees at TISS were affordable to students and thus candidates from different backgrounds were able to apply.” They added, “TISS was a classic example of a public-private entity. Both sectors coming together for the social sciences.”

With the dissolution of the planning commission, the five-year plans ceased to be formulated, and TISS’s funding became unpredictable.
In his 2014 Independence Day address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the dissolution of the Planning Commission. With this, the funding patterns for several institutions, including TISS, became unpredictable. Photo: Ahmad Masood/Reuters

In a letter to the higher education secretary in 2015, Parasuraman wrote: “The current financial year has commenced and we are yet to receive grants even to meet the salary and pension of March and April 2015 and other critical operational costs like electricity, water, security, annual maintenance contracts, etc. It has come to a situation that we had to take loans to pay salaries and pension for these months.”

TISS repeatedly urged the human resource development ministry to directly provide it with funds, since the University Grants Commission was not doing so. “When the government dismantled the planning commission, they did not come up with an alternative framework that actually addressed the financial requirements of public funded universities to grow,” the first professor said.
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Soon, the financial pressures on the institute intensified. In the years that followed, the government urged institutions across the country that received government funds, TISS among them, to become self-reliant. “The old programmes under the non-plan grant were still supported. But for new courses, the government wanted institutions to raise their own money,” the first professor said. TISS, like many other institutes, was encouraged to launch “self-financing” courses, members of the faculty said – that is, courses that were fully funded through fees, with no assistance from the government.

Many saw this as an ill-advised move for an institute like TISS. “Spaces like TISS have for years tried to enable students from marginalised communities to study social sciences by making it financially accessible,” the first professor said. “Self-financing courses with high fees would be making education inaccessible again.”

Faculty noted that this was also a period during which the University Grants Commission was encouraging TISS to start more off-campuses. The Tatas Trusts provided significant funds to establish two such campuses, in Telangana and Assam.
“The understanding was that the government was asking us to go to scale and that we had the competence to do so,” the first professor said. “So the Tatas were ready to offer financial support.”

The administration initially assumed that while the Tata Trusts would be supporting this expansion, the institute would also be receiving funds from the University Grants Commission for it. However, to their shock, when the approval letters for these off-campuses arrived, the commission announced that it would not provide any financial support. “This was a disappointing step from the government,” the professor said.
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The first major signs of financial strain started to show in 2017. That year, at TISS’s Mumbai campus, 35 staff were fired because the institute did not receive funds it needed from the University Grants Commission.

Other measures to cut costs followed. In 2018, the institution announced that it was ceasing financial aid programmes that provided assistance to students from Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Class communities – it stated that it was doing so because it had not received funds for the programmes from the University Grants Commission. In response, students protested across four of the campuses. The commission subsequently released funding for the programmes.

Other news of TISS’s financial problems had also begun to be reported – for instance, that teachers were going without salaries. It was as these troubles began to foment that Parasuraman resigned from his post, in 2018. A former assistant professor at the Mumbai campus and founding chairperson of an off-campus centre in Nagaland wrote that “the changed political situation and TISS’s increasing financial woes” had left Parasuraman disheartened.

Even so, the institute resisted pressure from the government to increase fees, the third professor recounted. “Social sciences institutions cannot charge high fees,” they said. “It will exclude a large section of students. Most students at TISS come from disadvantaged backgrounds.” Further, they said, TISS lacked an incentive to increase its fees, because “they knew that if they did end up raising enough funds, the UGC would reduce its funding”. They added, “It didn’t make any sense.”

W
hile these struggles continued for the next few years, they boiled over in June 2023, when the University Grants Commission compelled five institutions across the country to which it provided more than 50% funding, including TISS, to sign new agreements.
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Previously, TISS had a governing body, whose chairperson was selected by the Tatas and was often an individual from the Tata Trusts. The trust could also select the director of the institute, and usually had two or three seats on the governing body, while the remaining members were representatives from the Union and state governments, and from the institution.

The governing body made all major decisions at TISS. “Promotions, centres, schools, opening of new centres, campuses, academic results, ensuring quality of the institution, finances, governance structure and programmes – all of this was taken care of by the governing body,” the third professor said. “Everything had to be justified in front of the governing body before approval was given.”

Faculty were largely satisfied with the role that the Tatas played in the institution. “Through a search committee, they recruited people to these leadership posts with due diligence,” the third professor said.
The professor described the Tata Trusts as “benevolent”, and said the institution was “proud” of its relationship with the group. “They were a wonderful support to us,” the professor said. “If there were delays in salaries, we could approach them for funds and pay them back later.”

But the new memorandum of agreement stated that since the University Grants Commission provided more than 50% of the funds to the institution, it would now appoint a vice chancellor, and pro vice chancellor, a key post under the vice chancellor. These posts had not existed before. The new agreement did away with the post of the director, and reduced the number of board seats the Tata Trusts had to one.
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After the new agreement was signed, the Tatas were left with almost no role at TISS. “We have treated them very badly in recent months,” the third professor said.
A student protest underway in 2018. That year, TISS announced that it was ceasing financial aid programmes that provided assistance to students from Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Class communities. Photo: TISS Students’ Union

The Tatas had given faculty considerable autonomy, teachers said. Faculty also said they could challenge opinions and decisions of the Tatas without fearing repercussions. As the Union government has sought to displace them, this freedom and transparency has been jeopardised, they noted.

“We used to be able to walk into the office of the director whenever we wanted. We were able to voice out our opinions,” the third professor said. “Today, we have to take appointments and most of the time we don’t get the chance to even meet the pro vice chancellor.”

The problems were exacerbated six months ago, when the director of the Indian Institute of Management Mumbai, Manoj Kumar Tiwari, was given the additional charge of vice chancellorship of TISS. Faculty Scroll spoke to said that since Tiwari’s appointment, many of them had not even seen him. The third professor said that faculty “did not even have the slightest clue” about the appointment, though they were “usually always kept in the loop about these things”.
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A fourth professor said, “He took over in September, it is nearly a year and we haven’t had the chance to meet him. How can this be okay?”

Most of the work is overseen by the pro-vice chancellor. “He has taken over several other charges, he’s also a dean, part of the CSR committee, director of a major project, part of another coordinating committee. It’s simply impossible for someone to be taking on as much as he is and still do a good job,” the third professor said. “We can see easily that he is failing.”

Faculty said that of late they have been kept in the dark about many administrative decisions. For instance, the facilitation committee, which, according to the institution’s website, “ensures alignment in decision-making, management and coordination amongst schools, centres, administrative units, and the general administration” has become “defunct”, the third professor said.
“All the deans and heads of the schools were a part of this committee and took crucial decisions on campus,” the professor added. “Now it doesn’t even exist.”

In another instance, on August 6, the administration issued an order stating that the Centre for Excellence in Teacher Education and the Centre for Studies in Sociology of Education would be merged with the School of Development Studies. “This decision again was taken without consulting any of us. We have no idea why the merge even happened,” a fifth professor said.
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With this loss of transparency, faculty have grown wary of expressing themselves freely about the institution. “We used to be able to say what we feel – about TISS, about politics and other affairs. Now we are so scared to share our opinions. We feel we are always being watched, and it’s true because word always reached the top,” the third faculty said. “If we criticise something, we are immediately targeted.”

Teachers also began to have serious concerns about inefficiencies, delays and incompetence. For instance, teachers are required to obtain approval from the institute when they plan new projects, or apply for new grants – they observed that since the change in leadership, they are typically forced to wait for long periods to get these approvals. “These projects and grants are good for the institution yet there are long drawn-out delays,” the third professor said. “The pro vice chancellor will sit on it for weeks and months together.”
Students at a workshop in TISS. Faculty noted that under the current administration, process have become increasingly inefficient, and that approvals for new projects and grants are severely delayed. Photo: Pavanaja/Wikimedia Commons

Teachers also said that the pro vice chancellor follows a system of functioning wherein he constitutes committees for the smallest of purposes. These committees oversee the nitty-gritties of activities like organising events and seminars. “In the past we had the freedom to invite people to give talks and organise events, but these days we have a committee that screens everything,” the third professor said.

The professor added, “It makes us feel as if we are doing something wrong. Recently they also put together a committee to ‘lower our workload’. I can’t understand the point of all this.”
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Teachers said that the worst impact of this new kind of administration has been on the work that TISS produces. “There have been many instances when the Supreme Court has directed TISS to develop protocols, frameworks to analyse certain issues or cases,” the first professor said. “TISS has been part of government projects including Prime Minister’s Rural Development Fellowship programme, MNREGA, social audits, water and sanitation programmes, entrepreneurship development, evaluations and reviews of government schemes and programmes.”

However, the government’s attitude has changed in the last ten years, teachers observed. “The current government doesn’t like that we ask questions or submit data that might portray them in a bad light,” the professor said.

The third professor noted, “We are losing our autonomy.”

T
ISS, and other social science institutions, have also been negatively affected by the Central government’s National Institutional Ranking Framework, launched in 2015.
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Faculty noted that the parameters set by the framework would not allow TISS to secure a high rank.
“These parameters measure the student population, number of labs, the size of the campus, number of teachers and students, the ratio of the two, number of patents, publications, the proportion of students who go abroad, their salaries,” the first professor explained. “But when it comes to social sciences, students have different priorities.”

The problem is significant, faculty explained, because the National Institutional Ranking Framework doesn’t merely rank institutions, but also affects their future prospects.

Among the schools and centres that are feeling the pressure most keenly are the school of gender studies and the centre for study of social exclusion and inclusive policies. “TISS women’s studies department had contributed greatly to the women’s movement in India and also contributed greatly to policy interventions,” the second professor said.

The faculty explained that the ranking framework’s parameters are inadequate to measure the efficacy of programmes in a discipline like women’s studies. “They want to know the employability capacity of a discipline like women’s studies,” the professor said. “But the graduates from these disciplines go on to play crucial roles in various state and non-state sectors and contribute greatly to discourse about women’s rights. That may not translate to big paying jobs.” They added that they fear that under the new norms, “particular disciplines are being targeted”.

Many faculty members argued that clear steps needed to be taken to safeguard the institution’s autonomy, such as granting it a special status. “It would help if the government recognised it as a one-of-a-kind institution, one of the oldest institutions of social work and sciences,” the first professor said. “A special status like an institute of excellence or national importance will help the institution get the importance it needs and thus get proper funds.”

Source: https://scroll.in/article/1072240/how-the-government-undercut-tiss-over-the-past-decade?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
 

COVID-19 may increase our risk of depression, anxiety and other mental health concerns, new research suggests. Vaccination appears to reduce the risk of developing these adverse psychiatric side effects, while those who had been hospitalized by the infection saw significantly higher rates of mental illness.

"Awareness of the higher incidence of mental illnesses for up to a year following severe COVID-19 leading to hospitalization may encourage both patients and health professionals to monitor for these conditions, and seek early treatment if appropriate," the study's first author, Venexia Walker, a research fellow in epidemiology at the University of Bristol in the U.K. and the University of Pennsylvania, told Newsweek.

Post-viral symptoms following SARS-CoV-2 infection are not uncommon, with roughly one in 10 of those infected suffering from long-COVID, a study published in the journal Nature Review Microbiology estimated in January 2023. Among the more than 200 symptoms associated with long-COVID, fatigue and brain fog are some of the most widespread, and long-lasting.

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However, increasingly, mental-health conditions like depression, anxiety, PTSD, eating disorders, addictions and self-harm are seen to be elevated in the weeks following SARS-CoV-2 infection.

In a new study, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, Walker and colleagues studied three areas of data, with a total of 18,648,606 participants, to explore these associations. The first group of data was collected between January 2020 and June 2021, before widespread vaccine availability, while the second and third groups were collected between June and December 2021, separated into those who were vaccinated and those who were not.

What the researchers found was that mental illness incidence was elevated for up to a year following severe COVID infection. Walker said that those with a history of mental illness were particularly vulnerable, as were older individuals and men. However, vaccination appeared to mitigate these effects.

"The main benefit of COVID-19 vaccination is that it provides substantial protection against severe COVID-19," Walker said. "Vaccination likely mitigates the adverse effects of COVID-19 on mental health through preventing severe COVID-19 that leads to hospitalization."

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As this study was purely associative, it is difficult to pinpoint a specific mechanism for these patterns, and it is too early to say if this correlation is actually indicative of causation. However, Walker said that several potential mechanisms had been suggested.

"Potential mechanisms reported in the literature include physiological pathways, such as inflammation and microvascular changes, and psychosocial effects, such as anxiety about the consequences of COVID-19 including long COVID," she said.

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While more work is needed to understand the biochemistry behind these associations, the study has important implications for public health and will hopefully help identify patients who may be at higher risk of these conditions.

References

Davis, H.E., McCorkell, L., Vogel, J.M. et al. Long COVID: major findings, mechanisms and recommendations. Nat Rev Microbiol 21, 133–146 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41579-022-00846-2

Walker, V. M., Patalay, P., Coronado, J. I. C., Denholm, R., Forbes, H., Stafford, J., Moltrecht, B., Palmer, T., Walker, A., Thompson, E. J., Taylor, K., Cezard, G., Horne, E. M. F., Wei, Y., Al Arab, M., Knight, R., Fisher, L., Massey, J., Davy, S., Mehrkar, A., Bacon, S., Goldacre, B., Wood, A., Chaturvedi, N., Macleod, J., John, A., & Sterne, J. A. C. (2024). COVID-19 and Mental Illnesses in Vaccinated and Unvaccinated People. JAMA Psychiatry. https://doi.org/jamapsychiatry.2024.2339

Source: https://www.newsweek.com/covid-vaccine-mental-illness-depression-anxiety-1942306?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
Many of us were using focus music long before it had an official name or any trending playlists. Jazz and downtempo have been my go-tos for tuning out distractions and centering on the task at hand since my college days. Today, more people are gravitating toward this music and its ability to boost concentration—no question that it’s going mainstream. Focus music can be defined as anything that helps you pay attention, reduce distractions, and maintain productivity.

As a society, we have never been more distracted. According to the American Psychological Association, 86% of Americans say they constantly or frequently check their emails, texts, and social media accounts, leading to higher stress levels. A University of California, Irvine study found that it takes people about 23 minutes on average to return to their task after an interruption, highlighting the negative impact of digital interruptions.

To help combat the endless list of technological distractions, people are turning to music. Many stats showcase the ascent of the focus genre over the last few years. Spotify shared a 50% increase in listening time for focus playlists in their 2023 Wrapped report and Pandora had a 47% increase in focus music stations created in 2023 compared to the prior year.
Why is this music growing so rapidly?

The trend is not due to demographic changes—as the data shows, the interest is not confined to a single age group. We do know that the pandemic and the shift to working from home certainly play a part. The pandemic created a perfect storm of circumstances that allowed focus music to flourish, meeting the need to be more centered during challenging times. The music resonates with people who struggle to concentrate while studying or working from home with multiple stressors and disruptions.

The genre was also well aligned for musicians who weren’t able to get into studios. As more people were tuning in to focus music, it paved the way for more artists to create it. The styles of music typically found in these playlists are instrumental and often lo-fi. Since there were no tours happening, there was no need to fill large venues and festivals with vocal-fueled anthems. Many artists found opportunities to experiment with these instrumental soundscapes from the comfort of a socially-distanced studio.
How does it impact our productivity?

We know that sustained attention is required for performing creative and business tasks, but sustaining concentration on task-relevant information over an extended period of time is mentally rigorous. People tend to experience attention lapses that fall into two general camps: mind wandering (hypo-arousal) or external distraction (hyper-arousal). The power of focus music is its proven ability to sustain attention by reducing both types of lapses.

A 2020 study from Goldsmiths University of London “provides evidence for music’s ability to improve focused attention and performance—by increasing arousal to an intermediate level optimal for performance—and suggests that people can derive benefit from music listening while performing low-demanding tasks.”

Mike Savage, artist relations lead for our Feed Originals science-backed music catalog, works closely with producers to create effective focus music. He has a well-researched set of criteria he’s looking for when commissioning music. “One of the most important components is a stable rhythmic groove that keeps your mind engaged enough to be productive, but not so engaged that it is distracted from the task at hand. We look for repetitive rhythms and steady melodies that don’t demand too much attention, which can be counter-intuitive for artists, but really work in this context,” he shares.
Why is focus music being embraced by more brands and businesses?

Wellness trends such as mindfulness, yoga, and functional medicine are gaining popularity as people across the globe fight burnout and anxiety. Brands in every sector are incorporating these trends into their offerings to stay relevant and appeal to health-conscious consumers. Recent examples include Whole Foods, which started offering wellness clubs and classes on topics like stress management, meditation, and holistic nutrition. Even Urban Outfitters now sells a range of products from supplements and health foods to yoga mats and focus/study music.

As consumers are becoming more aware of the importance of overall wellbeing, they seek tools for stress management and increased performance. Focus music is a readily available tool with no side effects and massive upside.

There are reasons to expect that listening to music in this genre will rise even faster in the coming years. HR departments are looking for new solutions to help their remote workers stay productive and connected; advocating for focus music playlists is an easy way for employers to help promote sustained attention and create a shared experience among their employees. Consumer streaming services will meet the rising demand for this music by expanding the development and promotion of focus music playlists, further increasing consumption. As new research studies validate music’s effectiveness in enhancing concentration levels, the genre will become more refined and gain even more momentum to help combat the scourge of digital distractions.

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Source: https://www.fastcompany.com/91173682/the-rise-of-focus-music?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl
 

Dietary fibre – you need it for a healthy gut, maintaining weight, controlling blood sugar levels, keeping the heart healthy, and keeping constipation woes at bay. Found in legumes, whole grains, and a variety of fruits and vegetables, fibre is an essential part of a balanced diet.

It is basically a type of carbohydrate that our digestive system cannot break down. It keeps us full for longer as it slows the movement of food in the digestive tract and also slows down the quick absorption of sugar and hence reduces blood sugar spikes. Another important thing that fibre does is bulk up the stool and help it pass through the intestines more easily, reducing constipation.
An array of research-backed benefits of a high-fibre diet has also led wellness companies to add another product to their shelves – fibre supplements. Available in the forms of powder, husks, and tablets, these supplements claim to boost the daily fibre consumption that might be compromised owing to several reasons like traditional diets and the craze for processed foods.

According to ICMR’s Dietary Guidelines, almost 40 per cent of a day’s food should be vegetables (30 per cent) and fruits (10 per cent).
Balanced Diet recommendation by ICMR

 

However, in eastern regions like West Bengal and Odisha, low-fibre foods such as rice and seafood dominate the traditional diet.It's no surprise that this region leads the market for Isabgol (psyllium husk), a type of dietary fibre commonly used to relieve constipation, according to an IMARC report - much like its dominance in the Gelusil market.

“In arid regions like Rajasthan, the limited variety of fresh produce can reduce fibre intake from fruits and vegetables. Diets in these areas may rely more on grains and legumes, which can affect fibre content depending on how they are prepared. In contrast, tropical regions like Kerala have a rich variety of fruits, vegetables, and legumes, leading to higher fibre intake. However, the predominant use of rice may lower fibre intake from grains,” says Dr Rohini Patil, MBBS, nutritionist and founder of Nutracy Lifestyle, Pune.

She adds, however, that it can all be sorted with a mindful approach to meal planning.

In May 2023, a study supported by the Protein Foods and Nutrition Development Association of India (PFNDAI) revealed that 69 per cent of Indians consume less fibre than their recommended daily allowance.

"Low fibre intake can lead to elevated cholesterol levels, digestive issues, and a higher risk of chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease. To support overall health, it’s crucial to incorporate more fibre-rich foods into the diet, such as fresh fruits, legumes, and whole grains," says Parmeet Kaur, Head Dietician, Marengo Asia Hospitals, Gurugram.

But, does an Indian diet need fibre supplements?

With a variety of local foods available across the country, diet and nutrition experts say that an Indian diet high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes usually provides enough fibre. But it can go wrong if one doesn’t follow the concept of a balanced diet or heavily relies on processed foods.

"A trend towards processed foods due to modern lifestyle changes has decreased the consumption of natural fibre," says Parmeet Kaur.

Lovneet Batra, a Delhi-based nutritionist, believes that Indian diets across all regions are rich in fibre as they contain whole grains and vegetables, but it is the urban Indian diets that require fibre supplements. “They (urban Indian diets) often lack vegetables, fruits, and whole grains,” says Batra.

Ultra-processed foods like chips, fries, burgers, instant oatmeal, bread, and even breakfast cereals are all part of this urban diet. Not only do they contain low fibre, but excess consumption can also lead to a lot of health issues.

“Whether you need a fibre supplement depends on individual dietary habits and health conditions. For instance, if a person’s diet is low in fibre due to reliance on refined grains, low fruit and vegetable intake, and lack of legumes, then they might need the help of these supplements,” Dr Patil adds.

“Those who suffer from constipation or have limited time to prepare fibre-rich meals because of busy lifestyles might find fibre supplements a convenient option,” she adds.
Fibre supplements v/s fibre-rich foods

However, taking a fibre supplement is not equal to eating a fibre-rich food.

“Fibre from food comes with antioxidants and phytochemicals that have anti-inflammatory effects,” says Lovneet Batra.

“When you rely solely on fibre supplements, you typically receive only fibre without the additional nutrients, vitamins, and antioxidants found in whole foods. These supplements often lack the variety of fibre types and are less effective in promoting overall gut health compared to diverse, fibre-rich foods. On the other hand, dietary fibre from whole foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes offers a range of fibres that support various aspects of digestive health,” explains Dr Patil.

She suggests some ways to increase fibre intake in your diet:

Including whole grains like millets instead of refined grains and products made from maida or polished rice.
Adding legumes and pulses, such as moong, chana, toor, and masoor dal, to your meals. These can be used in curries, soups, or as side dishes.
Incorporating vegetables like leafy greens, carrots, beans, cauliflower and cabbage into your meals, either in curries or as soups.
Eating a variety of fruits like apples, oranges, bananas and berries as snacks, or adding them to yogurt or smoothies.
Consuming dried fruits like figs and dates (in moderation due to their high sugar content). You can soak them overnight and eat them in the morning.
Using seeds and nuts, such as chia, flax and sunflower seeds, in snacks, smoothies, yogurt, or even in chapati dough. Eating almonds, walnuts and cashews, as snacks (in moderation)
Opting for high-fibre snacks and making stuffed parathas or pulao with a variety of chopped vegetables.

Remember, excess intake of fibre can also cause bloating and discomfort. Experts suggest aiming for 25-40 grams of fibre in a day.

The secret to ensuring excellent digestive health and general well-being is consuming a balanced diet from various sources. As for the Indian diet and fibre supplements, it all depends on how you plan your meals because Indians, across regions, have access to high-fibre foods. Think whole grains (oats, whole wheat flour, bajra, ragi), legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas, kidney beans), and variety of vegetables, fruits, seeds and nuts.

Source: https://www.indiatoday.in/lifestyle/food/story/does-an-indian-diet-need-fibre-supplements-2585771-2024-08-21?utm_source=pocket-newtab-en-intl

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