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VAISHNAVI SOOD

To be in front of a camera, watching a busy newsroom and being in a television studio is a part of every Journalism student’s wish list. Students of the School of Journalism and Mass Communication got this opportunity when they visited the News18 Television studio in Chandigarh on April 26.

Located in the Industrial Area, Phase-2, News18 studio is one of the most advanced TV stations in the region including Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana. As the Journalism students, accompanied by Ms Ranjna Thakur, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Management Sciences and Liberal Arts, arrived at the studio, Mr Sumant Kumar Issar, a Senior Executive (Admin) with the News 18 group gave us an overview and took us for a round of the Programme Control Room (PCR), studio and the newsroom.

In the PCR, we were told about the basic working of the audio console, the process of how the entire content (ticker, headlines, logos, audio-visuals, chroma or the background, etc.) is managed and how the panel coordinates with the reporters and anchors. Students were most excited to visit the TV studio where there were two different sets for the news bulletins and debates. We were told about the various technicalities including how the camera is operated, frames are set for different news programmes, lighting is adjusted, the teleprompter is managed, etc.

In the newsroom, we were briefed by Mr Ritesh Lakhi, Senior Editor, News18 Punjab as he told us about the various departments in the editorial section and their functions. The newsfloor was also divided into various departments like input and production staff, senior editors, graphics department and archives.

We were amazed to know that over 30 to 40 editors work on the desk in various departments at all times while most people often tend to ignore this aspect of the news process in the electronic media. Coincidentally, all the girl students also got an exciting opportunity to shoot a small sequence with one of the News18 anchors for the promotional video of one of their special shows ‘Mahila Rath’.

It was a bright summer day and the weather was extremely hot but getting that feeling of being in front of the camera for the first time (even if for a couple of minutes) was an exciting experience. We also got to interact with Mr Jyoti Kamal, Cluster Head and Senior Editor, CNN News18, News18 Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, Network18. He shared many important insights into electronic media and also gave useful career tips.

Responding to queries by the journalism students who aspire to be TV anchors, he said that the first step is joining a TV studio and doing all the work and assignments allocated to them. He noted that the most common problem he faces with the new joinees is that they wish to start anchoring right away but it is important to understand that they need to enhance their knowledge and skills and learn other technicalities as well before they can go on to host shows or news bulletins.

He also recommended students to do internships if possible, to utilise various opportunities provided by their institution and also to create and share their content using various digital platforms like YouTube and blogs. All of them were very generous to share their experiences, patiently listen to our queries and clear our doubts. The visit to the TV studio was definitely an exciting learning experience for all of us.

Parul Mittal, MBA final year student, placed with Hindustan Unilever Ltd.

Incredible and extraordinary are the two words that define my journey with Shoolini University. The two years of my post-graduation have been the best years of my life. The MBA programme has not only improved me academically but also helped me transform into an individual who is now ready to join the corporate world. The responsibilities of the student coordinator for the Placement Committee have been the highlight of my journey.

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to Dr Kuldeep Rojhe and Dr Nitin Gupta. Their unconditional support has made me grow into a more responsible and proficient person. It was their trust in me that helped me to get placed with Hindustan Unilever Limited, the biggest MNC in the FMCG Sector.

I have no words to describe how grateful I am to Shoolini University, all the faculty members and all those who supported me in my journey. It has been my immense pleasure to associate with this University and to achieve a chance of getting hired by HUL as a part of the Campus Placement Drive.

Placed with ICICI Securities

Life at Shoolini University has been a great experience and I plan to make the most out of the time that is left. My experience at Shoolini University, by far has been amazing. I have learned and experienced so many new things during the last 5 years of my graduation and post-graduation.

In July 2014, I undertook the B.Com (Hons) course, after that, I pursued my studies in MBA and am specialising in marketing and finance. Now, I have been placed in one of the leading financial sector companies, ICICI Securities. I would like to extend my huge thanks to Shoolini University, especially thanks to all the Faculty of Management Sciences for their immense support and guidance.

Placed with Eazy Diner

Coming from an entirely different place, Patna in Bihar, I had an amazing experience with Shoolini University. I came to know about Shoolini University through one of my friends and through internet. It has a diverse and friendly environment, a world-class infrastructure, an experienced faculty as well as a great study module.

Shoolini University puts in a lot of efforts for the placement of its students. I have been placed with “Eazy Diner”, a 3 years old start-up which will provide me with ample opportunities to grow in the marketing field.

Looking at myself two years back, I see a lot of positive changes. I have enhanced my public speaking skills, my stage fear has lessened to a great deal, along with the enhancement of my technical skills in the field of marketing.

VAISHNAVI SOOD

Thyroid is a chronic disease that’s becoming increasingly common. The potency of medications increases for a patient with time. However, there is no permanent cure for the disease. Experts at Shoolini University are working on yoga techniques for thyroid. Dr Subodh Saurabh Singh and Dr Mala Tripathi of Shoolini University have filed a patent titled ‘Specific yoga protocol effective for hypothyroidism patients’.

What is Thyroid?

Caused by a small gland in the neck that makes thyroid hormones, Thyroid is a common health concern. Generally, these hormones are necessary for all the cells in the body to work normally. Sometimes the thyroid makes too much or too little of these hormones. Too much thyroid hormone is called ‘hyperthyroidism’. It may cause many of your body’s functions to speed up.

Thyroid disorders are common and tend to occur in women. However, men, teenagers, children and babies can be affected too. Data shows that one in 20 persons has some kind of thyroid disorder, which may be temporary or permanent.

The 23-minute yoga techniques for thyroid is a protocol that includes four asanas. These include Ustrasana, Marjariasana, Singhgarjanasana, Suptavarjasna (or Matasayaasana), and Sarvangasana and one pranayama, Ujayi Pranayama.

What is the Yoga techniques for thyroid Protocol?

Dr Subodh said, “This yoga protocol has shown positive results in patients with thyroid levels below the threshold.” He added that patients are asked to start yoga exercises along with their prescribed medications. “In many cases, patients are also able to regulate the thyroid levels with the decreased dosage of their medicines over time,” he added.

While these yoga techniques for thyroid have long-term effects, it is strongly recommended to continue yogic exercises even after the initial results, he said. That is because the effects start diluting after an individual stops regular practice.

Further, Dr Subodh said, “Yoga is very effective but is very sensitive too. So, people should practise yoga in the presence and guidance of a good yoga expert to avoid reverse side effects.” Moreover, he also noted that yoga is the only discipline that fulfils all the six dimensions of well-being. It is known to prevent diseases and promotes mental and social well-being as well.”

About the researchers

Dr Subodh and Dr Mala Tripathi have completed their master’s in Yogic Science and holistic health from Dev Sanskriti University, Haridwar and PhD from Mahatma Gandhi Chitrakot University, Satna. They have worked in Morarji Desai National Institution of Yoga, New Delhi for eight and six years respectively and joined Shoolini University as Assistant Professors in the School of Yoga and Naturopathy in May 2018.

VAISHNAVI SOOD and RONIKA ANGELINA

We are also the sum of stories we have grown on and stories we have lived,” said the well-known storyteller Nikhil Taneja while interacting with students at Shoolini University. Nikhil is a writer, producer, entrepreneur and a teacher, who likes to refer to himself as a storyteller.

He has a wide experience of working in the media field and has worked with Hindustan Times, MTV, Yash Raj Films and has now started his own organisation, ‘Yuvaa’. Yuvaa is a story telling platform that aims to listen to and share stories of the Indian Youth and make people feel less alone.

“Yes, everyone’s story matters. Everyone has something or the other thing to narrate. Before we live our stories, we post them. We are always in a rush to be somewhere. Let’s not be harsh on ourselves. Let’s be patient”, he said.

Hailing from Baharain, Nikhil initially joined an engineering course on his parent’s insistence but soon realised that engineering was not something that he wanted to do. He jokingly remarked, “A successful engineer has to do two things i.e. – to leave engineering and to find a partner and I did both so then I started writing as it gave me true happiness.”

He said that stories empower people while identities and labels given to individuals without a choice by the society constrains and divide people. He shared many anecdotes from his own life including stories behind his various professional choices as well as their destination wedding stories and the usual fights between the in laws. He recalled that his perspective changed completely after his mother explained why a son’s marriage is so important for his mother as it is the last time a mother gets to take decisions for her son.

He said, “One-Late-Night-Conversation makes the shift from good friends to best friends as stories that we share in those moments leads to empathy and brings people closer. This empathy and all these stories make us human.”

Nikhil also shared many inspiring stories that he has come across from his classrooms and how these stories would suddenly change the perspectives of classmates for each other helping them to raise above their initial and superficial judgements. He said that every story is important and encouraged the Shoolinians to respect and to take time to listen to each other.

In the end, he invited students to share their stories in which a few students came up and shared their stories of choosing different career paths, adjusting to the university life in a new state to their concerns for their friends from their native states.

The Yuvaa team goes around nationwide to hear each youngsters’ story. The team has been to Pune, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Chandigarh, Shimla, North East, Indore, also Port Blair. It has covered over 30 cities and about 100 colleges to encourage all the youngsters, who have their own story, inspiring story, to tell.

NAINA SINGH

A recent survey by Nielson revealed that Indian women are the most stressed out in the world – 87 percent of our women feel stressed out most of the time! This statistic itself caused me to stress out. Even in the workaholic America, only 53 per cent of women feel stressed.

What are we doing to our women? I may be biased, but Indian women are the most beautiful in the world. As mothers, sisters, daughters, colleagues, wives and girlfriends, we love them. Can you imagine life without these ladies? It would be a universe full of messy, aggressive and egomaniacal males running the world, trying to outdo each other for no particular reason. There would be body odour, socks on the floor and nothing in the fridge to eat. The entertainment industry would die. Who wants to watch movies without actresses?

Children would be neglected and turn into drug addicts and psychopaths by the age of ten. Soon, all male world leaders would lose their tempers at the slightest provocation and bomb the guts out of each other’s countries. In short, without women and their sanity, the world would perish.

Yet, look at how we Indians, a land of spiritual people treat them. At an extreme, we abort girls before they are born, neglect their upbringing, torture them, rape them and honour kill them. Of course, these criminal acts are performed by a tiny minority. However, a majority of us are involved in lesser crimes. We judge our women, expect too much out of them, don’t give them space, and suffocate their individuality. Imagine, if you did this to men, wouldn’t they get stressed out?

At a broader level, this isn’t just about our women. We Indians have a habit of exploiting anyone without power. As a flip side, we are suckers for anyone with power. We look up to the corrupt politicians, keep voting them back and feel they are entitled to loot us silly, just because they are in power.

In fact, we love power so much that when the power comes to a woman, we automatically begin to regard her well, too. Goddesses, female politicians, senior mothers in a household with a firm grip on family power – they all get our respect. Anyone else doesn’t.

Women have to become more ambitious, dream bigger and have a fire in their bellies. Perhaps because of the way the Indian society is structured, our women are not encouraged to be as ambitious as men. However, for their own sake and the nation’s sake, all Indian youth must have ambitions and aspirations to do well and reach their maximum potential in life.

Many Indian women have done much better than men. Women can be truly capable and talented as men are and sometimes, even more so. And yet, when a woman sacrifices her dreams and career for a man, it is expected of her. It is time that all this changes. Indian men need to keep their dominating, inflated male egos aside and assist them in their dreams. After all, a woman’s life is not all about making hot chapattis and spending her entire life in the kitchen.

In some ways, women endure disguised slavery. In the civilized, developed world, where women have choices, they do not choose to live like this. We need to be more comfortable with the idea of an Indian woman expressing herself. We think we care for them, but we suffocate them in the name of security, safety, morality, tradition, or culture.

Ask some questions. Where have we gone wrong in our traditions and what do we need to change? We need to unshackle our women. As a woman, it is very important to feel empowered. She needs to be capable, independent and career oriented. Being successful and strong is what will make Indian men respect women more. Help them play their part. Don’t just tolerate, but accept and celebrate our successful women. They take our homes ahead and our countries forward. Every girl deserves a journey of self-discovery. Let’s present a better India for our little girls.

Dean-cum-Professor at Faculty of Basic Sciences, Shoolini University, Dr Adesh K Saini is one of the most experienced teachers associated with Shoolini University and deals with the research and scholarships. Dr Saini talked to KHYAATI SHARMA on a wide variety of topics. Here are excerpts from the interview:

How long have you been associated with Shoolini University and what all institutions have you worked with?

I’m with the University since August 2011. I completed M.Sc. Zoology from Kurukshetra University and then I cleared the NET JRF exam after which I joined IGIB in Delhi for research. Subsequently I completed my PhD. from University of Delhi and thereafter I joined NIH for Post Doctorate. I was there for five years during which I also worked with John Hawkins Medical School. Then, I joined Shoolini University as an Assistant Professor in Biotechnology.

How was working with Shoolini different from other educational institutions?

I think it is pretty much the same but the kind of work which I do here revolves around genetics and hence I feel much comfortable here. I also get funding from Government of India and hence I have four projects currently with me.

What opportunities are there for Shoolini to operate on the global stage in terms of research ?

Shoolini is located in the Himalayan region which is the biggest benefit we have. We can use Himalayas as a resource. There are many challenges Himalayas are facing right now starting from socio economic and health related issues. In a way I would say, Himalayas give you topics of research. For example the cancer Biologists have the material and the plants that cure cancer here. Shoolini has another advantage that it is an institution where cross thinking takes place. The different schools work together which is a great thing.

What are the issues or concerns in conducting research?

There are certain challenges and issues that deal with research. The most important aspect for any institution is to have the right faculty which I think, Shoolini has it all. We have great faculty from diverse fields. Coming back to the issues dealing with research, the biggest challenge is funding. Irrespective of any size of the lab, the issue is that if your lab does not have funds you will lag behind. Government of India is very fair and generous in giving proper funding to every situation based on their research capabilities. Innovation is the other major challenge in research. You cannot work on the topic or question that is already been chosen by somebody else. Also, labs are run by funding as well as great students. Developing research ethics in a student is very important.

What are the steps involved in Research Process? How can a student proceed with the idea of research in the university?

For a researcher, based on their interest and training, he or she needs to develop questions and then eventually find out what he or she can work on. Show the first steps by asking the right questions and then eventually designing the correct experiment for answering the question and then also looking to how the world is answering the question. And at last, the conclusion you draw from your research is very important as well.

What are the types of research?

There are different kinds of research. One is the descriptive science where you observe things different phenomenon and try to describe them. Then there is research to discover in which you come forward with some inductive idea. Similarly, some resources are hypothetically driven. Also, there are other kinds of researches which engineers do where they try to solve the real world problems. In Shoolini, all these four kinds of research are doing really great.

What experiences does a student get during his/her academic career that will benefit them for a career in research and development?

As a career, research is passion driven. I would like to quote one of my Post Doc superior’s lines that resources are already difficult and unless and until you are driven with passion, it will become more complicated. So, my advice to every student is that that he or she should be passion-driven and once you enter this field, then sky’s the limit. Failing is also an important part of research as when you fail, you also develop as a researcher. Research is not merely early experimenting – rather it is solving the problems of the mankind.

What does leadership mean to you? What are your views on making a strong team?

For me, leadership means making the team happy, full stop. If your time is focused and you are heading in the right path, then you are developing is a leader. If your team is not inspired to work with you, then you fail as a leader. And a leader should grant specific goals to every team member which they should work on.

What is your message to the students?

Student should find a good leader for themselves whose interests match theirs. Write interpretation and being honest with the results are very important for students. It is really alright to fail; it will develop you as a good person.

KHYAATI SHARMA

Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) have attained major significance in the modern day world and the 2nd Annual IPR workshop to be held in the campus on March 15 would focus on filing patents and exercising these rights.

The workshop is aimed at creating awareness of IPR and how it can help the students and the faculty for patents searching and drafting. The Chief Guest and Guest of Honour for the workshop are Dr. A Mukhopadhyay, Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi and Mr. D C Rana, Member Secretary, HIMCOSTE respectively.

Dr R.S.Paroda, Dr R.C.Mahajan, Dr Mukhopadhyay Ex-Advisor DST and Dr Dinesh Singh, former VC Delhi University have been invited to chair different sessions during the Workshop. Dr Suman Bala Beri has also been invited as a resource person.

Mr. Shashi Dharan, in-charge, HP Patent Information Center, HIMCOSTE will be talking on the topic of overview of IPR with special reference to Geographical Indications. Also, a workshop on Prior Search and Patent Drafting by Mr. Somitra Kumar, Advocate and Patent Attorney, Delhi will be held in the afternoon.

Shoolini University had made its mission clear from the very beginning to be among the top 200 global universities. In the last nine years, it has made rapid strides in establishing appreciable good infrastructure, adequate quality faculty, reasonable teaching curriculum and delivery system, SPRINT for aptitude change and employability of graduates.

In citation research, its findings have outclassed even the ten best Indian Universities as per the NIRF ranking. Nevertheless, there are many gaps at the criteria of different ranking system of global universities. Therefore, it has been decided to organise a workshop vis-?-vis to discuss the methodology of different ranking systems, status of Shoolini University in comparison to different criteria regarding teaching, research, citation, income generation, international outlook, industry-academic outlook, career development of students, etc.

Placed with ICICI Bank

The experience of studying in Shoolini University is fairly enriching. After doing B.Sc. Biotechnology from Shoolini University, my sister inspired me to join MBA programme of Shoolini. So, I applied for MBA programme and grabbed the scholarship for the same. The kind of professional as well as personal development that I have gone through during MBA is phenomenal.

I also got an opportunity to work with LG Electronics and Federal-Mogul during my internships. Recently I got placed in ICICI Bank as a Deputy Manager. I want to dedicate my success to my parents as well as to my teachers. I am really glad that I took the decision to do MBA from Shoolini University.