I don't agree with u on what's the best point about Gmail.
The best thing about gmail is that u can search through the gmail
archives just like u can search webpages on google.
Rediff does not have a search option. Yahoo has it but but u can't
do it straighway, u have to specify whether u want to search
inside the email or u want to search inside the subject of the
emails.
On the other hand, searching for a 6 months old email on gmail is
as easy as a click. Plus the other best point of gmail is messages
threading, so u can have all related email replies in one
thread.
Just my point of veiew. I hope other who use gmail heavily agree
on this.
regards
Sumant
On Sat, 26 Feb 2005 viplav wrote :
>
>
>hey i did not know so many people want gmail account.
>
>let me tell u all that gmail is no better than yahoo mail,
>infact
>yahoo is much easier and i dont think u will ever get to fill up
>ur
>250mb inbox, i have tried and have reached only 23% as yet. but
>still
>at 0% at gmail but have reached at 6% at rediffmail(which also
>provides 1gb, first in world to provide so)
>
>only thing good about gmail is that it does not give picture ads
>as
>yahoo or msn only text ads. google has also started with its
>groups
>services again and it is no mathch for yahoo. i m not a yahoo fan
>but
>this is my findings after using both the services
>
>
>
>regards
>viplav
>
>
>
>
>
>ShimlaHangout: Catch up with friends!
>
>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shimlahangout
>
>Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
Sumant Sood
http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~ssood
My first target is to watch and enjoy beauty of mountains and nature.
I am looking for train with big openable windows to see and enjoy outside beauty.
Did you have any idea if Shivalik Palace coach have openable windows ?
I don't want to use credit card over the phone or i.net. What is the other best way to make reservation while I am sitting abroad ?
Take Care
Rohit
Nitin <bnityin@...> wrote:
--- ROHIT BAGGA wrote: > The Deluxe Rail Motor Car, > The Shivalik Deluxe Express, > The Shivalik Palace (Tourist Coach) and > The Shivalik Queen Tourist Coach.
> So far I couldn't decide which one is the BEST. Can somebody help me to make my decision.Which one I should use to travel between Kalka-Shimla ?
If you want to travel in style then Shivalik Palace coach is the thing. Its a full coach attached to the Shivalik Deluxe Express train. You have a fully furnished coach at your disposal with an attendent. Other wise you can reserve seats in the Shivalik Deluxe Express train which is basically a Non a/c CHAIR CAR.
> Also how long in advance I should make reservation for the same ?
Normally reservations for Shivalik starts 60 days in advance from the date of journey.
> Secondly, I
am planning to stay in the hotel situated on the Ridge, next to the Chruch ( if am not mistaken, that hotel's name is Mayur ). is that hotel approachable by car or any other Transportation?
No, its not approachable by car! You will have to walk up. If you want a drive-in hotel try, Holiday Home or the Oberoi Cecil.
> Except that I also do have plan to stay one day/night in Solan. Is there anybody who know if there is any hotel to stay in Solan ?
I have heard about Himani at Solan, don't know how good it is but I can suggest Hotel Pinewood at Barog which is run by HPTDC. A great place.
--- ROHIT BAGGA wrote:
> The Deluxe Rail Motor Car,
> The Shivalik Deluxe Express,
> The Shivalik Palace (Tourist Coach) and
> The Shivalik Queen Tourist Coach.
> So far I couldn't decide which one is the BEST. Can somebody help
me to make my decision.Which one I should use to travel between
Kalka-Shimla ?
If you want to travel in style then Shivalik Palace coach is the
thing. Its a full coach attached to the Shivalik Deluxe Express
train. You have a fully furnished coach at your disposal with an
attendent. Other wise you can reserve seats in the Shivalik Deluxe
Express train which is basically a Non a/c CHAIR CAR.
> Also how long in advance I should make reservation for the same ?
Normally reservations for Shivalik starts 60 days in advance from
the date of journey.
> Secondly, I am planning to stay in the hotel situated on the
Ridge, next to the Chruch ( if am not mistaken, that hotel's name is
Mayur ). is that hotel approachable by car or any other
Transportation?
No, its not approachable by car! You will have to walk up. If you
want a drive-in hotel try, Holiday Home or the Oberoi Cecil.
> Except that I also do have plan to stay one day/night in Solan. Is
there anybody who know if there is any hotel to stay in Solan ?
I have heard about Himani at Solan, don't know how good it is but I
can suggest Hotel Pinewood at Barog which is run by HPTDC. A great
place.
> With Thanks
A pleasure always!
Nitin
Who does't know that our society has become thoroughly corrupt with.
all our Government departments with execption to none are included in free for all loot. A common citizen, unwilling to compromize with the system is dying and is given no respite from the problems created by corrupt gangs everywhere. Problems are really out of control thanks to corrupt regulating agencies and the staff in all departments not doing their job without the lure of money or some other considerations.
Looking at the facts that the Government lacks the will to enforce something to arrest the seathing sea of corruption- average man in our society has lost all hopes of revival to better days.
Chasing the Money Jinn, officials in Police, Civil Administration, Judiciary, Taxation and in almost all public dealing departments are running here and there ruthlessly and blatantly flouting rules at their will with no one to check them.One who cannot pay bribe has no chance and is an outcast in our society.
Offer the money and regulatory agencies within the government shall close their eyes to everything, be it toxic waste polluting our air, water and earth by the large companies, encroachments by unauthorized goons, taxes, police assistance or bare citizens rights..!. People are tired and sick of all this and I hear the rumbling of Corruption Valcano in different forms speeding up and brewing to unprecedented levels that may errupt any moment with devasting consequences yet to come.
Value system within the Sarkari confines has changed too and I see this everyday as everything we do is looked at in terms of monetary cost and not human cost.
The WHISTLEBLOWERS and their supporting groups who care to petition or lobby for a better society and groups of concerned citizen and progressive individual lack the muscle that these big corporations, corrupt people and others in power have and are regrettably looked upon very UNfavourably by the authorities.
The question I put forward to friends is- Is there any way to make our Whistle-blowers strong and respected in society.?
hey i did not know so many people want gmail account.
let me tell u all that gmail is no better than yahoo mail, infact
yahoo is much easier and i dont think u will ever get to fill up ur
250mb inbox, i have tried and have reached only 23% as yet. but still
at 0% at gmail but have reached at 6% at rediffmail(which also
provides 1gb, first in world to provide so)
only thing good about gmail is that it does not give picture ads as
yahoo or msn only text ads. google has also started with its groups
services again and it is no mathch for yahoo. i m not a yahoo fan but
this is my findings after using both the services
regards
viplav
just out of subject
google had startes its email under gmail.com, i have herd that it
will be publically available very soon
but i have about 50 invites, so anypne wanting it just mail me at
viplav022@...
i have been told its snowing heavly in shimla. good for apples crops
and our tourisim, but what abut people living there? is water and
other supplies propper
regards
viplav
Hi! Himachalies
I M Yarun Ghawana
I m Web Dsigner/Web Developer
and i m staying in Delhi, but actually i m from
Sandhole(Mandi).
Bye
Yarun
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
The all-new My Yahoo! - Get yours free!
http://my.yahoo.com
As there is a big hole in the ozone layer heating up our planet making us run out of the fresh water and resulting in extinction of many species, inviting storms, floods, quakes and Tsunamis to become more frequent so are we inviting another catastrophie of unprecedented magnitude by sticking to unrestrained Greed and by our preference to immoral ways of living. We have become too carelessly stupid and are inviting threats not only to our environment but the safe survival and right of fair living to our future generation as well. All this has resulted from the bad choices made by us during past few years.
God or Nature, whatever we call has given us a choice that prompts us to choose Life and a better future for OURSELVES AND OUR CHILDREN. The mandate to look out for good times for our future generations as well as for ourselves is clearly being ignored today and we are choosing dark future for our people by our gross neglect to some critical social issues.
We are threatened with nationwide manifestation of Corrupts in all walks of life and present conditioins are a direct result of non stop degradation of moral values and codes of ethics in our society.
Year after year continuously, all Governments formed by corrupt leaders and aided by the government officials, have churned out 'anti-people' policies that have led us to this end. How convenient that those who are in power and enabling their corporate cronies to plunder and pillage more and more with impunity, are increasing the numbers of their clan and are in league with the blessing of a large misguided body of Corrupts officials installed, encouraged and spread everywhere in India !
The people of India have allowed corrupts to rule the nation almost 57 years who have gathered controls, through a combination of stupidity, trickery and greed. They have made mockery of the rules of justice and a fair living and have interpretted the constitution as it suited their greedom.If we continue on this path any longer we are doomed.
If we wake up, and claim what is denied to society as our Right to live in a fair and just manner where constitution is implemented earnestly, law and judiciary functions for benefit of all people in quick and fair ways..and start cooperating with each other, we can be nearer to our cherished goals!
We still have a choice with us and can act to bring the needed improvements and reverse the path to where entire nation of over 1 billion is being hurled, to be sucked up in the inferno of greed of just a few thousands of people by their rampant acts and increasing devilish control over the society
Following can be planned in first stage :
Let us make full use of Internet expand our network-
Forge local level groups / meetings-
Bring district level groups in one chain under one Umbrella-
Discuss, conceive and adopt a shared common VISION for India-
Assemble in greater number in all attempts for personal gathering of small groups, forgetting self centered approaches and all previous hurts and move to next level of conscious thinking-
Try to act and work, as far as we can, like a Karmayogi-
Totally discard this corrupt visual and print media from our lives and rely more on internet news-
We can stop corruption and reverse nationwide warming and decay of moral values of our one billion population and get all along.
Ashok Sharma
Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail - now with 250MB free storage. Learn more.
and then click on Canada and then sign up and go on.
Hey....can you give me a call at 807-343-8888 Ext 5157?
I will give you more info on phone....
Richard
sarju5 <no_reply@...> wrote:
can you give me more info about this reliance thing Richard .. I mean some website that I could go to I use G3 telecom http://www.g3telecom.com/ It gives me 16 cents per minute to India ... and something like 5 cents per minute to UK and USA s
--- In Shimlahangout@..., Richard Chander <richard_shir@y...> wrote: > > If you guys use your credit cards online, then sign up with Reliance India Call telephone services to call India. It charges 13.9 cents per minute, both for ground and cell phones. Isn't it a great rate? This will reduce your phone bill. > > Let me know if any other company is charging less than this. > > Richard > > > >
Yes another thing that I have is this software Skype
http://www.skype.com/
its free and it lets me talk to anyone using this software for free
the sound quality is as good as we get on the telephone cards ....
well I find it much better though
cheers
sarju
--- In Shimlahangout@..., Richard Chander
<richard_shir@y...> wrote:
>
> If you guys use your credit cards online, then sign up with
Reliance India Call telephone services to call India. It charges
13.9 cents per minute, both for ground and cell phones. Isn't it a
great rate? This will reduce your phone bill.
>
> Let me know if any other company is charging less than this.
>
> Richard
>
can you give me more info about this reliance thing Richard .. I
mean some website that I could go to
I use G3 telecom http://www.g3telecom.com/
It gives me 16 cents per minute to India ... and something like 5
cents per minute to UK and USA
s
--- In Shimlahangout@..., Richard Chander
<richard_shir@y...> wrote:
>
> If you guys use your credit cards online, then sign up with
Reliance India Call telephone services to call India. It charges
13.9 cents per minute, both for ground and cell phones. Isn't it a
great rate? This will reduce your phone bill.
>
> Let me know if any other company is charging less than this.
>
> Richard
>
>
>
>
If you guys use your credit cards online, then sign up with Reliance India Call telephone services to call India. It charges 13.9 cents per minute, both for ground and cell phones. Isn't it a great rate? This will reduce your phone bill.
Let me know if any other company is charging less than this.
Richard
sarju5 <no_reply@...> wrote:
Great Job Rohit ... I don't think you left any expense out Bus Pass for students in Mtl costs around 33 dollors and phone is usually included in the shared accomodation, unless you want your personal one .... and yes Health might be an issue for Sohit since he will be an international student ... It is compulsory for them to take health insurance since they are not canadian citizens or residents and hence not covered by the Canadian health
cheers buddy sarju
--- In Shimlahangout@..., ROHIT BAGGA <rbaggaca@y...> wrote: > > dear > > in canada each province have different laws. e.g. in alberta you have to pay for health care while in ontario it's free. i lives in free so let me give you some detail of expenses,
Great Job Rohit ... I don't think you left any expense out
Bus Pass for students in Mtl costs around 33 dollors and phone is
usually included in the shared accomodation, unless you want your
personal one .... and yes Health might be an issue for Sohit since
he will be an international student ...
It is compulsory for them to take health insurance since they are
not canadian citizens or residents and hence not covered by the
Canadian health
cheers buddy
sarju
--- In Shimlahangout@..., ROHIT BAGGA <rbaggaca@y...>
wrote:
>
> dear
>
> in canada each province have different laws. e.g. in alberta you
have to pay for health care while in ontario it's free. i lives in
free so let me give you some detail of expenses,
Hi sarju,
Thanks a lot for the info.I'll keep in touch with you.
Regards,
Sohit
On Wed, 09 Feb 2005 sarju5 wrote :
>Hi Sohit
>$ 800 ... should be pretty alright if it is okay with you to live in
>a shared accomodation and you do not plan to go to bars that
>often ... lols ... by shared accomodation I mean that you will have
>your own room but you will have to share the kitchen and washroom
>with other people.
>I can not say for sure what would be a better option for you,
>staying on the campus might be a bit expensive, ... it is very
>expensive in Ottawa I am not sure about Mtl .... i have heard that
>Mtl is much cheaper than Ottawa though
>Lots of university students go to field camps or their home towns in
>the summers (May to August).... so I don't think that finding a
>furnished accomodation could be a problem for the months that you
>intend to stay ... (I think you should be able to get a very decent
>shared accomodation for less than $400/month in mtl) ...
>in case you do come ... try to take some french lessons
>Quebec is all french ... In mtl you can survive on english though
>I have quite a few friends in Mtl....
>let me know once your programme finalizes ... i can ask them to send
>me the links to find good shared accomodtions in Mtl
>cheers man
>Hope the info helps
>sarju
>PS: Regarding food ... i think you can get fairly good groceries in
>200 dollors (including the booze)
>--- In Shimlahangout@..., "sohiit karol"
><sohit_unplugged@r...> wrote:
>>
>>
>> HEY GUYS....
>> I belong to shimla and might be visiting montreal from June to
>August, for an internship in McGill.Right now I'm enrolled in final
>yr of mechanical engg. at NIT Jalandhar and which wud be completing
>by May.
>> Cud any anyone give me an idea abt. living costs, room rents, etc.
>in Montreal........those guys wud be paying me 800 Ca $ pm.
>ShimlaHangout: Catch up with friends!
>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shimlahangout
>Yahoo! Groups Links
>To visit your group on the web, go to:
>http://in.groups.yahoo.com/group/Shimlahangout/
>
>
>To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
>Shimlahangout-unsubscribe@...
>
>
>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the
>Yahoo! Terms of Service
>.
>
in canada each province have different laws. e.g. in alberta you have to pay for health care while in ontario it's free. i lives in free so let me give you some detail of expenses,
you may have to incurred in canada as per alberta's living style. i will suggest you to find shared accomudation either basement or appartment which may cost you anything between $250-$300.
While on food you may have to spend $100-$150
for transportation if you use public.transportation like buses and LRT ( train ) and pass cost about $60 but if you go for private car. a second good hand car may cost $3000 or above, plus gas (petrol), maintance and insurance ( which may may be very high geing new driver in canada ). so private car is out of question. but even if you chose public transportation you may have to spend on taxi etc. in case of emergency as winter is really hard here.
next one is health care i don't know if health care is free or not in provience you are moving to or not but if not this may cost around $100 ( not sure ).
as for medicines these are covered upto 80-100% by most of good companies only if you decide to work as part time or full time. also if you works here health care may also be covered by the company you works in. but not all the companied covers health care.
also even if you have covarage still you have to pay for over the counter drugs and about $20-$40 per month should keep as reserve for that or depends upon your health.
next one is telephone, if you don't make any long distance calls basic phone charges starts from about $30 plus you can use long distance cards for making calls to India.
and for other misc. expenses ( like shaving stuff, tooth paste, cloths, and other regular/irregular expenses ) you should keep $100 p/month on side.
i have no idea how much you need to spend on study, books etc
all i can say $800 my be good for Survival but not good enough you have to work either part time or full time, for better living.
if you have any further question don't hesitate to ask.
take care.
rohit
rbaggaca@...
sarju5 <no_reply@...> wrote:
Hi Sohit
$ 800 ... should be pretty alright if it is okay with you to live in a shared accomodation and you do not plan to go to bars that often ... lols ... by shared accomodation I mean that you will have your own room but you will have to share the kitchen and washroom with other people.
I can not say for sure what would be a better option for you, staying on the campus might be a bit expensive, ... it is very expensive in Ottawa I am not sure about Mtl .... i have heard that Mtl is much cheaper than Ottawa though
Lots of university students go to field camps or their home towns in the summers (May to August).... so I don't think that finding a furnished accomodation could be a problem for the months that you intend to stay ... (I think you should be able to get a very decent shared accomodation for less
than $400/month in mtl) ...
in case you do come ... try to take some french lessons Quebec is all french ... In mtl you can survive on english though
I have quite a few friends in Mtl.... let me know once your programme finalizes ... i can ask them to send me the links to find good shared accomodtions in Mtl
cheers man Hope the info helps sarju PS: Regarding food ... i think you can get fairly good groceries in 200 dollors (including the booze)
--- In Shimlahangout@..., "sohiit karol" <sohit_unplugged@r...> wrote: > > > HEY GUYS.... > I belong to shimla and might be visiting montreal from June to August, for an internship in McGill.Right now I'm enrolled in final yr of mechanical engg. at NIT Jalandhar and which wud be completing by May. > Cud any anyone give me an idea abt. living costs, room rents, etc. in
Montreal........those guys wud be paying me 800 Ca $ pm.
Hi Sohit
$ 800 ... should be pretty alright if it is okay with you to live in
a shared accomodation and you do not plan to go to bars that
often ... lols ... by shared accomodation I mean that you will have
your own room but you will have to share the kitchen and washroom
with other people.
I can not say for sure what would be a better option for you,
staying on the campus might be a bit expensive, ... it is very
expensive in Ottawa I am not sure about Mtl .... i have heard that
Mtl is much cheaper than Ottawa though
Lots of university students go to field camps or their home towns in
the summers (May to August).... so I don't think that finding a
furnished accomodation could be a problem for the months that you
intend to stay ... (I think you should be able to get a very decent
shared accomodation for less than $400/month in mtl) ...
in case you do come ... try to take some french lessons
Quebec is all french ... In mtl you can survive on english though
I have quite a few friends in Mtl....
let me know once your programme finalizes ... i can ask them to send
me the links to find good shared accomodtions in Mtl
cheers man
Hope the info helps
sarju
PS: Regarding food ... i think you can get fairly good groceries in
200 dollors (including the booze)
--- In Shimlahangout@..., "sohiit karol"
<sohit_unplugged@r...> wrote:
>
>
> HEY GUYS....
> I belong to shimla and might be visiting montreal from June to
August, for an internship in McGill.Right now I'm enrolled in final
yr of mechanical engg. at NIT Jalandhar and which wud be completing
by May.
> Cud any anyone give me an idea abt. living costs, room rents, etc.
in Montreal........those guys wud be paying me 800 Ca $ pm.
In Canada cost of survival is not expensive. Cost of ration for single person can range between $ 150 -250 depending on your taste. About room rent it depends where you get a room. If you share the room with someone it would cost less. The rented accomodations are rarely without fridge and stove. Search the site of McGill University and you will find links for accomodations.
I am studying in Lakehead University in Thunder Bay at the head of Lake Superior. I am staying on university campus.
Good luck and feel free for any help.
Richard
HEY GUYS.... I belong to shimla and might be visiting montreal from June to August, for an internship in McGill.Right now I'm enrolled in final yr of mechanical engg. at NIT Jalandhar and which wud be completing by May. Cud any anyone give me an idea abt. living costs, room rents, etc. in Montreal........those guys wud be paying me 800 Ca $ pm. Regards, Sohit On Mon, 07 Feb 2005 sarju5 wrote : >Seems like we are going to have quite a few Himachalis in Canada >now ... thats cool >Welcome to the club Lovinia >by the way .... I am also staying in Canada (Ottawa to be precise) >and doing my masters in GIS (Geographical Information Systems) >How is the winters treating you Richard ..... I am having a blast >over here by the way .... I do lots of skiing and snowshoeing and >also some skating on the Rideau canal >http://www.canadascapital.gc.ca/skateway/index_e.asp > >... so winters are
kind of really fun for me .... neways I hope that >you guys are doing well too ... not just hibernating in the Canadian >winters and getting depressed >I just returned from Carnaval de Quebec and found it kind of >awesome ... ppl this is the only place in Canada that has some >culture associated with it .....i will post my photos on the net in >few days >Vande Mataram >cheers >sarju >--- In Shimlahangout@..., rohinlovina <no_reply@y...> >wrote: >> >> Name: Lovina Sharma >> >> Profession: Computer Tech. >> >> Country of residence: Canada >ShimlaHangout: Catch up with friends! >http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shimlahangout >Yahoo! Groups Links >To visit your group on the web, go to: >http://in.groups.yahoo.com/group/Shimlahangout/ > > >To unsubscribe from this group, send an email
to: >Shimlahangout-unsubscribe@... > > >Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the >Yahoo! Terms of Service >. >
HEY GUYS....
I belong to shimla and might be visiting montreal from June to August, for an internship in McGill.Right now I'm enrolled in final yr of mechanical engg. at NIT Jalandhar and which wud be completing by May.
Cud any anyone give me an idea abt. living costs, room rents, etc. in Montreal........those guys wud be paying me 800 Ca $ pm.
Regards,
Sohit
On Mon, 07 Feb 2005 sarju5 wrote :
>Seems like we are going to have quite a few Himachalis in Canada
>now ... thats cool
>Welcome to the club Lovinia
>by the way .... I am also staying in Canada (Ottawa to be precise)
>and doing my masters in GIS (Geographical Information Systems)
>How is the winters treating you Richard ..... I am having a blast
>over here by the way .... I do lots of skiing and snowshoeing and
>also some skating on the Rideau canal
>http://www.canadascapital.gc.ca/skateway/index_e.asp
>
>... so winters are kind of really fun for me .... neways I hope that
>you guys are doing well too ... not just hibernating in the Canadian
>winters and getting depressed
>I just returned from Carnaval de Quebec and found it kind of
>awesome ... ppl this is the only place in Canada that has some
>culture associated with it .....i will post my photos on the net in
>few days
>Vande Mataram
>cheers
>sarju
>--- In Shimlahangout@..., rohinlovina <no_reply@y...>
>wrote:
>>
>> Name: Lovina Sharma
>>
>> Profession: Computer Tech.
>>
>> Country of residence: Canada
>ShimlaHangout: Catch up with friends!
>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Shimlahangout
>Yahoo! Groups Links
>To visit your group on the web, go to:
>http://in.groups.yahoo.com/group/Shimlahangout/
>
>
>To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
>Shimlahangout-unsubscribe@...
>
>
>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the
>Yahoo! Terms of Service
>.
>
Seems like we are going to have quite a few Himachalis in Canada
now ... thats cool
Welcome to the club Lovinia
by the way .... I am also staying in Canada (Ottawa to be precise)
and doing my masters in GIS (Geographical Information Systems)
How is the winters treating you Richard ..... I am having a blast
over here by the way .... I do lots of skiing and snowshoeing and
also some skating on the Rideau canal
http://www.canadascapital.gc.ca/skateway/index_e.asp
... so winters are kind of really fun for me .... neways I hope that
you guys are doing well too ... not just hibernating in the Canadian
winters and getting depressed
I just returned from Carnaval de Quebec and found it kind of
awesome ... ppl this is the only place in Canada that has some
culture associated with it .....i will post my photos on the net in
few days
Vande Mataram
cheers
sarju
--- In Shimlahangout@..., rohinlovina <no_reply@y...>
wrote:
>
> Name: Lovina Sharma
>
> Profession: Computer Tech.
>
> Country of residence: Canada
Despite stunning enrollment and literacy figures, Himachal Pradesh doesn’t offer the educated a future, argues Diptosh Majumdar
Posted online: Sunday, January 30, 2005 at 0000 hours IST
SARASWATI needs Lakshmi to survive. Education, when delinked from livelihood, cannot ensure its own future.
Having powered its way into record books with nearly 100 per cent enrollment in schools, Himachal Pradesh is facing a crisis. Where are the jobs for the educated? All the encouraging data about reaching education to everybody and applause for the massive government efforts have nothing to do with wealth creation and employment generation in the Himalayan province. Unemployment is mounting. Admitted Sudripto Roy, the state’s former education secretary and now its resident commissioner in Delhi, ‘‘At present, the jobless total around 15 per cent of the population.’’
It has indeed been an extraordinary effort over the past two decades, a massive governmental exercise carried out with great sensitivity and innovation, which has almost eradicated the scourge of illiteracy.
Himachal Pradesh was carved out of Punjab in the early 1970s. A separate state called for a separate administration and thousands of government jobs; not just in Shimla, but also in every sub-division and tehsil. Suddenly, there was a great demand for school and college education. Successive governments, irrespective of political leanings, did their best to meet that challenge. The result is one of the finest enrollment figures in the country.
An example of the state’s commitment to education for all is the way it resolved the problem of teaching the children from nomadic Gujjar and Gaddi tribes: by ‘embedding’ a travelling teacher with every group of nomads. Today, only a few itinerant Gaddi families throw up a small number of children who are not going to school.
The state has created too many graduates and postgraduates in the liberal arts and the general sciences who are simply unemployable. It would have done better to set up a JNU or an IIT or IIM
Himachal Pradesh has also had its share of luck with bureaucratic talent, with some excellent academic administrators taking charge as secretaries of its education department. More than 15 years ago, M M Kaw, who later went on to become the Education Secretary of the country, was the one who really planned out the state’s education perspective. In the last decade, C Balakrishnan—currently joint secretary (planning) in Arjun Singh’s HRD team—introduced key administrative changes as the state’s education secretary. Sudripto Roy carried on with the good work till late last year.
AT first blush, there was no confusion till literacy and enrolment targets had to be met: The first objective was to ensure everybody went to school. But gradually there was talk of quality. At present, questions are being asked why education is not really changing the living standards in the hill province.
Now that there are no vacancies in government jobs, the dynamics of the education movement have suddenly been considerably weakened. In retrospect, education planners say that probably the Himachal experience was not really an ideal one; it should not be replicated elsewhere. Cosy government jobs should never be the focus of an education boom.
As Shimla-based bureaucrats point out, Himachal would have done better to create centres of academic excellence like a Jawaharlal Nehru University or proper professional institutions like an IIT or an IIM or at least a couple of medical and engineering colleges. The state has created too many graduates and even postgraduates in the liberal arts and the general sciences who are unemployable. ‘‘There are simply no jobs,’’ said a HP bureaucrat.
He felt there should be better political vision on linking education to the two major industries in the state: tourism and food/fruit processing. ‘‘First generation graduates prefer to be pen-pushers, rather than self-employed entrepreneurs. They will not sweat it out in the open.’’ It explains why Himachal has been importing labour from other states not just for construction sites but even for its private sector agro-processing farms.
Education has definitely gone a long way in improving the human development and social indices in Himachal Pradesh, but as long as it is not regarded as the first stepping stone towards wealth generation, there will always be the fear of the most backward slipping back to illiteracy. ‘‘We have to find a use for education,’’ Roy agreed.
Some bureaucrats felt that at the plus two level itself there should be more interaction between students and industry. The students would know what are the options before them and decide whether they should go in for an ordinary degree or train themselves in a skill that they could apply to make a living.
Another area where the lack of foresight shows is education in English. Since the quality leaves much to be desired, it explains why the BPO trade has not spread to Himachal. The non-existent computer infrastructure and lack of government interest did nothing to woo the BPO business.
A Himachal civil servant agreed, ‘‘Himachal has to move on to the more advanced stage of education, which will generate a greater degree of creativity and wealth creation.’’
But a way has to be found for Himachal to move into next gear. It will be a shame if some much effort comes to naught and Himachal Pradesh remains immersed in its educated mediocrity.
Building blocks
Manraj Grewal
Schools 10,2652 Teachers 32,000 Students 6,17,685 Figures for 2004
IT was the Public Report on Basic Education in India (PROBE) by Anuradha De and Jean Dreze, a honorary professor in the Delhi School of Economics, in 1999 that first brought to light the spectacular success of schooling in the hill state of Himachal Pradesh.
The HP Human Development Report 2002 records how the state, which had one of the lowest literacy levels (4.8 per cent) in the 1950s, emerged as the fifth most literate state of India in 1991, and now stands next only to Kerala in this field.
But when it comes to universalising education at the level of primary schools, the state is arguably the tops in the country with an enrollment rate of 98.7 per cent, and an unmatched access to primary schools despite its hilly terrain.
The dropout rate, too, is one of the lowest in the country, at two per cent, while the student: teacher ratio stands at a handsome 23:1.
Now the state, whose primary schooling is oft-quoted as a success story by Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, is determined to achieve cent per cent enrollment by the end of 2005 with the Education Guarantee Scheme, under which it is setting up mobile and cluster schools, the former for the itinerant communities and the latter for students of construction workers, labourers, et al.
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh says the schooling revolution in the state has taken place mainly due to the missionary zeal with which every successive state government has pursued primary education. The state spends around 16 to 17 per cent of its Plan budget on education. At Rs 215, its per capita expenditure on education, according to 1995-96 data, is also much higher than Punjab (153), Haryana (127), Uttar Pradesh (71) and the national average of 137.
In his report, Dreze attributes the success to a combination of factors, including state initiatives taken to promote schooling, the egalitarian, gender bias-free society in the hills, and a community that sets great store by education.
With these factors remaining constant, it’s one revolution that shows no signs of flagging.
From the bottom of the literacy heap five decades ago to Himalayan heights, education is writing a new chapter in Himachal Pradesh. Manraj Grewal finds out the score. Photos: Swadesh Talwar
Posted online: Sunday, January 30, 2005 at 0000 hours IST
IDYLLIC. The word cartwheels in the head on the skid-slide-jump way down to the Kathleeghat Primary Centre School in Solan district. Perched on a ledge amid a straggly carpet of green, the gleaming white building is an apt metaphor for the state of primary education in Himachal: It is shining.
And unlike the subject of the devalued electoral slogan of 2004, the shine here extends beyond the surface.
A class in progress under a tree behind the school falters a little with the intrusion: A last-minute revision takes the backseat for the brief while. ‘‘It’s for the last exam,’’ explains Sunita Sharma, a teacher.
That’s why this school, with a strength of 11 children—Class I has just one little boy called Ashish—and three teachers, is all abuzz though the bird calls still manage to drown the voices of the children.
Set up on land donated by a Kathleeghat family in the early ’50s, this school became a ‘centre school’ in 1980, when the government decided to bring five to six primary schools under its care. Since then, centre schools across the state not only conduct annual exams for the schools it governs, but also disburses salaries.
Which is why one gets to meet zonal kabaddi champ Vipul Sharma at Kathleeghat even though he is from the Basha school. The boy with ruddy cheeks leaves his teachers smiling as he reels out the correct answers to an off-the-cuff GK quiz.
‘‘Independent primary schools (or schools in small clusters of four or five) have benefited not only the students, who get individual attention, but also junior basic teachers, who can now look forward to promotion as centre heads and block primary officers,’’ says the greying Jagdish Sharma, head of the centre school in Basha, also in Solan district.
‘‘It’s just one of the series of primary education initiatives undertaken by successive state chief ministers with missionary zeal,’’ says B N Nenta, director of primary education in Himachal Pradesh. The state spends 16 per cent of its Plan expenditure on education, and the ‘‘schooling revolution’’ in hill country wowed none other than Nobel laureate Amartya Sen and author of the Public Report on Basic Education (PROBE) Jean Dreze.
Schools multiply TRAWL the Himachal countryside, and a primary school crops up every few kilometres, each one boasting not only well-kempt clasrooms but also a healthy student-teacher ratio of 25:1, or even lower, all for a handsome fee of Rs 2 a month.
Neelam Chauhan, a teacher at the Dhyarighat primary school, recalls that the first visible signs of change appeared in the early ’90s, when schools began to proliferate. ‘‘Earlier, there was one school for seven to eight villages, now there’s one after every kilometre or two.’’
It is the fallout of a 1993 policy decision, which decreed that no child should have to walk for more than 1.5 km in the hills and 2 km in the plains to reach his school.
Besides jacking up the enrollment rate to a handsome 98.7 per cent, this also brought down the dropout rate from 33 per cent in 1994-95 to two per cent in 2003. Keen to pull this down to zero, the government has decided that no student with an attendance of over 80 per cent should be flunked till Class III.
The education department has also spiced up teaching by introducing co-curricular activities, a la private schools. ‘‘Come Saturday and the last two periods are devoted to Bal Sabha, in which the students get to sing, dance, and even stage plays,’’ says Hemlata Sharma, a teacher at the Shoghi primary school, showing off a long line of trophies her students have won at zonal-level competitions.
This is not all. All too aware of the challenge posed by private primary schools, the Virbhadra Government has now introduced English from Class I, instead of Class IV, where it used to be taught first earlier. Hemlata, who herself graduated from the prestigious St Bede’s in Shimla, says it’s made their schools much more attractive to English-centric parents.
After setting up schools every 2 km, the government is focusing on nomadic and special children. A teacher is embedded with each of 50 itinerant groups Ambika Chauhan, a young teacher at the Shoghi primary centre school in Shimla district, knows this only too well: It’s the one subject that comes up for eager discussion at the weekly Mother Teacher Association (MTA) meetings. Unlike other states which have Parent Teacher Associations (PTA), Himachal has MTA which, experts believe, is a key to its schooling success. At Shoghi, they have even begun collecting an MTA fund with a contribution of Rs 5 from every mother. ‘‘Later, we’ll decide how to use the money for upgrading the school,’’ says Ambika.
Balance the equation SITTING on a slope, a few hundred yards away from the road to Shimla, the Shoghi school does seem to require some brushing up, though you can see the signs of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) funds. ‘‘We got a new toilet thanks to it,’’ says Ambika.
The girls and Scheduled Caste students have also been given free notebooks and textbooks, though they are yet to get the promised desks and chairs. Inside the dank classrooms, the students sit cross-legged on a red mat, bent double over their answer-sheets.
‘‘We’re told that chairs are on the way,’’ says Ambika, who has a touching faith in government schemes. ‘‘They work,’’ she smiles, giving you the example of the all-new mid-day meals under SSA.
This, however, is one scheme Ambika and her colleagues find hard to digest. ‘‘It’s a big drain on our time and patience,’’ Ambika pulls a face, describing interminable afternoons spent serving pulao or khichdi to unwilling children, many of whom prefer to bring their own tuck boxes.
Interestingly, here, too, woman power has come to the rescue. Take the case of the Kathleeghat school, where the local mahila mandal has pitched in with utensils and a local maid who cooks the food for a paltry Rs 100 a month.
In fact, most villages have a Village Education Committee— usually headed by the pradhan—which plays an active role in running these schools. Vandana Sharma, a teacher at the Premnagar primary school in Sirmaur district, is all praise for pradhan Kalyan Singh, who’s now getting toilets constructed under the SSA.
The pradhan also has the authority to appoint voluntary teachers or sahayak adhyapak, a practice introduced by the government in the ’80s to make up for the teacher deficit.
Social science A LONE voluntary teacher runs the show at the primary school in the Jaypee Institute of Information Technology in Waknaghat. Tucked away in the institute’s temple on a hillside, the state government set up the school this January as part of its Education Guarantee Scheme (EGS), under which it appoints teachers wherever it comes across a cluster of children not going to school. ‘‘The idea is to mop up all the non-schoolgoing children,’’ says Nenta.
A visit late in the afternoon finds a frisky bunch of urchins rattling out ikyaasi, byaasi after their harried-looking teacher, Ramesh Dutt Sharma. A former dealer in vegetables, he got this job on contract for a meagre salary of Rs 800 a month. It isn’t easy disciplining this naughty bunch which he’s divided into two classes, but hope of a regular job sustains him.
For the 40-odd children, whose parents are labourers at the Jaypee construction site, the cluster school, as it is called, is godsend. ‘‘They get free books, notebooks, pencil, eraser, lunch... what more can they want,’’ asks a pujari of the temple.
Mention this to Nenta, and he reels out two other initiatives launched last year, one for the itinerant communities like the Gaddis, and the other for special children.
‘‘The Integrated Education for Disabled Children (IEDC) helped us zero in on 3,000 special kids, who will now be educated at home,’’ says Nenta, who is also very proud of the 50-odd mobile schools, each of which has one teacher who travels with a specified nomadic community.
Vandana Sharma, a teacher at Premnagar government primary school in Sirmaur district, is among those who has done a capsule course for teaching special children. ‘‘We don’t have one in our area, but I am prepared,’’ says this pretty woman, who’s a postgraduate in commerce, but is still on contract.
She is not an exception. Most primary school teachers—nearly 50 per cent of them are women—are over-qualified. Kusum Sehgal of Kathleeghat, for instance, is a post-graduate in political science and education. This perhaps explains why absenteeism is not commonplace although a water carrier (read, peon) attributes it to regular inspections by district education officers.
Plus and minus NONETHLESS, the teachers were present in full strength at all the schools this team visited, though almost everywhere they rued their low numbers. You may think three teachers for 11 students at Kathleeghat is on the higher side, but they let you know that it isn’t a cakewalk, for they have to teach classes I through V.
Most teachers felt they would be able to teach better if the government were to allot one class to a teacher. And this, they contend, can be possible if the government were to combine a couple of schools instead of opening new ones. Frequent transfers—once every three years—are also a grouse.
There are other dissenting notes as well. Subhash Medhapurkar, who runs Sutra, an NGO at Kasauli, rues that the state is laying more stress on quantity than quality. ‘‘It is high time the government addresses Generation II issues—instead of sticking to the old paradigm of taking education to the doorsteps of children—now that the ground realities have changed.’’
In the setting sun on the mountains, however, everything looks unchanged. And then we spot a lone woman standing on the roadside. That she is a teacher is evident from her keds, her tote bag, and above all, from her look. We slow down and ask her if she knows the way to the nearest primary school, and she smiles, ‘‘Why, I teach there,’’ pointing to a white building atop a bump.
Even in the shadowy light, the slogan painted on its wall says it all: Sab padein, sab badein.
Offline 
Send Email
in Oct. 2005 with family and looking for some info. on Kalka-Shimla Train and Hotels in Shimla.
SARASWATI needs Lakshmi to survive. Education, when delinked from livelihood, cannot ensure its own future. 
lil belz say`s good day 