People

Devolution duo

For the past 11 years Lok Mitra, a Rae Bareilly-based NGO promoted in 1997 by the husband- wife team of Rajesh Kumar and Priya, graduates of the Institute of Rural Management, Anand (Gujarat) and Patna University respectively, has been working to upgrade primary schools in Uttar Pradesh (literacy: 57.3 percent), and make them more accountable […]

People

English advocate

With a national consensus building that English language proficiency is a vital prerequisite of employment and survival in the globalised world — never mind protestations of untrustworthy politi-cians to the contrary — Indias middle class in particular is willing to invest time and money to master this globally endorsed lingua franca. Consequently a host of […]

People

ICT missionaries

A silent revolution is transforming school and collegiate education around the world. Social networking, web technology, mobile phones and internet gaming are rendering the time-tabled inflexibility of school education in particular, obsolete. With the convergence of information technology, wireless telephony and the internet, the era of ICT (information communication technologies) is here and its infusion […]

People

Thespian educator

For Bangalore-based thespian Jagdish Raja, popularising drama, extempore debate and elocution in schools is a natural extension of his vocation. A veteran stage director and actor, Raja founded Bangalores first professional English theatre company, Artistes Repertory Theatre (ART), in 1982, which has since staged over 70 productions in India and abroad. ART is also the […]

People

Daly College driver

In the five years he has been principal of Daly College, Indore (estb.1882), Sumer Singh, widely regarded as among the countrys most respected and experienced principals, has helped the CBSE-affiliated co-educational boarding school regain its reputation as a centre of excellence, embrace contemporary pedagogies and benefit from international best practices in school education. Appointed principal […]

People

Parenting teacher

Contrary to popular belief, some of the best education is delivered at the family dining table. It is not the sole obligation of schools and class teachers. Life offers the unique joy of parenting a child and helping realise her true potential, says Manoj Lekhi, co-founder of the Infant Siddha Program (ISP-Art of Parenting), one […]

People

Teller of simple tales

Is it true that your wife writes the books that come out in your name? Why does India not feature in your books?
These were some of the questions lobbed at Jeffery Archer, author of best selling novels such as Kane & Abel, Shall We Tell The President and The Prodigal Daughter, who was in […]

People

Purposive philanthropist

For socio-economically disadvantaged higher secondary school students in Tamil Nadu‚s rural Erode district (pop. 2.5 million) pursuing tertiary education was a distant dream until Ram Duraiswamy, a US-based NRI (non-resident Indian), decided to lend a hand. In December 2003, he promoted the Toplight Educational and Social Trust in Chennai to identify academically bright but economically […]

Young Achievers

Sarika Sehrawat

Sarika Sehrawat (28), acclaimed as Indiaâ€™s most famous woman car racer and rallying enthusiast, is poised to make a comeback on the racing/ rallying circuit after a break of nearly two years due to a freak accident. Now happily married to Arush Vohra, an automobile engineer with whom she has promoted a car modification and performance […]

People

UEI Global driver

On August 27, the United Education Institute Global (UEI Global) â€” an education initiative of the New York-based Berggruen Holdings (valuation: $1.5 billion) â€” formally established its footprint in India by inaugurating the first UEI Global vocational training institute in Delhi. Promoted at a project cost of $10 million (Rs.40 crore), this state-of-the-art instituteâ€™s first […]

People

Motorola awards driver

The winners of the inaugural Motorola Scholar Awards 2005-06 are Dhiren K. Patra, Rakesh J.S., Ritesh N. Phalak, Shulin Todkar (K.K. Wagh Institute of Engineering Education and Research, Nasik); Sourabh Nirmal, Abhinav Khandelwal and Abhishek Sharma (Global Institute of Technology, Jaipur) and Ajay S. Nath and S. Ashwin (Sri Venkateswara College of Engineering, Sriperum-budur). Prof. […]

People

Dell ambassador in academia: Alekhya Talapatra

In an economy experiencing the pains of double-digit industrial growth in terms of an acute shortage of skilled manpower, industry professionals ready, willing and able to lend a helping hand to academia by volunteering to assume the additional responsibilities of visiting faculty are more than welcome. Alekhya Talapatra, director sales (government and public sector) of […]

People

Grover logs in

It is arguable that one of the major causes of the abysmal learning outcomes which is a defining characteristic of Indian education is the low self-esteem and poor social standing of the teachersâ€™ community. Uninspiring teacher training curriculums, grudging pay packages, overcrowded classrooms and unsupportive environments apart, the countryâ€™s 5.5 million academics tend to be islands […]

People

Visionary Grace

When Grace Pinto, managing director of the countrywide Ryan Group of education institutions and director of the St. Xavierâ€™s and Ryan Group of Schools (XRGS) took to education as a vocation in 1976, one of her driving objectives was to introduce innovations in primary and secondary school systems. Today 30 years later, her philosophy is that […]

People

Schools salesman: Sanjeev Bolia

About a dozen years ago, schools salesman Sanjeev Bolia, then 21 and academically equipped with a modest B.Com degree from St. Xaviers College, Kolkata took a momentous decision. He decided to stop hunting for a job. “I faced a problem that frustrates millions of youth in this country and decided to start doing my own […]