Living on the edge: 72% have unprotected sex

MUMBAI: As many as 72 per cent of sexually active young people across the country have had sex with new partners without any protection, an international survey says.

At least 40 per cent of the youth polled in India say they had problems accessing contraceptives when they needed, while 36 per cent said they knew a close friend/ family member who has had an unplanned pregnancy.

Nearly a one-third got wrong information about contraception from friends.

The survey, conducted in April-May this year, focused on the issue of unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections. Eleven international NGOs, including International Planned Parenthood Federation, Population Council, and Women Deliver, were a part of the initiative, launched by Bayer HealthCare in 2007 to mark world contraceptive day (Sept 26).

This was the third such survey, the people covered were in the age bracket 15-35.

Titled 'Clueless or clued up: Your right to be informed about contraception', the survey shows alarmingly high levels of unprotected sex among the youth.

It also finds that respondents avoid asking healthcare professionals about contraceptives, and many cannot rely on their schools to provide comprehensive sex education. The online survey was carried out in 29 countries with over 6,000 participants. In India, the number of respondents was 200, with an equal breakup among both the genders, aged between 20 and 25, drawn from all the states. Worldwide around 41 per cent of the 208 million pregnancies which occur each year are unintended. In addition to this, one in 20 adolescent girls gets a bacterial infection through sex every year and the age at which infections are acquired is becoming younger and younger.

Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India's public awareness committee chairperson, Rajat Ray, said, "What the results show is that too many young people either lack good knowledge about sexual health, or do not feel empowered enough to ask for contraception, or have not learnt the skills to negotiate contraceptive use with partners. "It shows that young people are not receiving enough sex education or are exposed to the wrong type of information."

While India tops the list in unprotected sex (72 per cent say they have had sex with new partner without contraception), the percentage is over 50 in China, Estonia, Kenya, Korea, Norway and Thailand; over 40 in Australia, Chile, Colombia, Britain, Indonesia, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland,Singapore, Sweden and Turkey.

Universalisation of education in the state - Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: October 03 2011 -

The United Nations' Human Development Index is considered by many as giving a clearer picture of the progress or development of a country, how its citizens are faring, and how the national wealth is distributed, how it is being utilized and for whose benefits.

The Human Development Index (HDI) uses various indicators like literacy, education, health care, life expectancy, standard of living etc. All these indicators are equally important and equal emphasis need to be placed on each of these as lag in one would affect the other indicators.

Considering this, the enactment of Right to Education 2009 is a step in the right direction which might enhance in India's standing in the HDI ranking in future (at a lowly 121 in 2010 HDI report).

Education is considered the cornerstone of any society more so in this globalised contemporary world. The Act passed in August 4, 2009 by the Indian Parliament is, like the RTI Act, one of the most progressive legislations and will go a long way in universalisation of education in India if implemented in the right earnest.

The Act provides for free and compulsory education for children in the age group of 6 - 14. Significantly, the onus of enrolling the children, ensuring their attendance and completion of elementary school is on the government and not on the parents.

Under this Act no child can be held back or expelled from the school and they should not be made to appear for any board exams till the end of elementary school.

To make learning free from mental tension and pressure, the RTE Act has done away with annual exams and instead children will be evaluated based on the principle of Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation which is to be done throughout the year and will reflect all facets and talent of the child and not just competence on a few subjects.

There are certain other norms which would not only facilitate but also provide huge incentives to the parents to send their children to schools.

Other than free education, the Act talks about neighbourhood norms wherein a child should be enrolled in a school which is 1 Km walking distance for lower primary and 3 km for upper primary level.

As per this Act, the schools are required to maintain a teacher - student ratio of 1:30 for primary level and 1:35 for upper primary level. Another very significant provision in making education accessible to children of economically weaker section of the society is the reservation of 25% seats for them in private schools.

The Act also enjoins on the private schools not to take any donations, capitation fees and not to hold any interview of either the parents or the children at the time of admissions.

Though the fund required for implementing the RTE Act is going to be substantial, the North Eastern states have to bear lesser burden than other states as the Centre will be bearing 90% of the financial burden.

Manipur already has a good literacy rate; the majority of the parents are sending their children to schools. The RTE Act will enable those parents, who could not send their children to schools because of their economic condition, to educate their children.

But there are certain issues as far as this state is concern that we should be of concern to us and which the government should deal with. First and foremost, is the leakages and the misappropriation which takes place invariably in the implementation of any programme.

RTE Act is not likely to prove an exception to this rule but let us be proved wrong for once. Another is the question of quality. Government schools will shoulder the major responsibility of providing free and compulsory education and we are rather well aware of the quality of education they provide.

There is a need to do something about this aspect for quantity without quality is not the most desirable thing. Finally, there should be an effective mechanism to enforce compliance. 

Canada-India Education Holds Successful Fundraiser

Canada India Education Society (CIES) had a very successful fundraiser in Vancouver on Friday September 28. Formed in 1991, CIES has been promoting partnership between India and Canada in general and Punjab and BC in particular. It has been very successful in building transformative relationships through a variety of long-term projects. The main objective of this particular fundraiser was to raise money for Cops for Cancer and the Punjabi Language Program at UBC.The spacious banquet Hall was overflowing with enthusiastic supporters of both of these causes.
The Canadian Cancer Society’s Cops for Cancer annual campaign is a partnership with law enforcement agencies and emergency services personnel from BC. It seeks to make a difference in the lives of children with cancer, survivors and their families. Funds raised through donations are utilized for critical pediatric cancer research in order to find safer, more effective treatment for children. They are also helpful in learning more about how and why pediatric cancer develops.
In addition to a large number of community supporters, the audience also included prominent representatives of the Cancer Society, Cops for Cancer and UBC’s Department of Asian Studies’ Punjabi Language Program. A number of students in the Punjabi Program at UBC showed a video prepared by them about Punjabi in Canada. Also, they spoke about their experiences in learning Punjabi at the university. Dr. Ross King, Head of the Asian Studies at UBC spoke eloquently about the Punjabi Program at UBC.
Dr. King stated that UBC has the longest standing commitment to advanced study of Punjabi in North America. It has the largest and most extensive program in language, literature and related cultural history. In addition to the regular offerings of first, second and third year courses in Punjabi, UBC is also offering a variety of other courses. These include courses about the Sikhs, Punjabi Cinema and South Asian Studies. Currently, close to 250 students are enrolled in various Punjabi courses at UBC. It is interesting to note that a number of former students of Punjabi classes at UBC are currently teaching Punjabi at various public schools in BC.
Dr. King concluded his remarks by emphasizing that money raised by CIES at this fundraiser would go a long way in supporting UBC’s Punjabi Program. Furthermore, it will be of great help in student mobility to India on official bilateral exchange agreements via UBC’s Go Global office. In this context, CIES must be commended for bringing the community to-gather in support of such worthy causes.

R100-cr turnover floor for CMAT bid

With the ground being set for the computer-based Common Management Admissions Test (CMAT) 2012, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has fixed a minimum revenue requirement of R100 crore for education companies willing to bid for the project.

The bidder should have a minimum annual turnover of at least R100 crore in the past three years for global operation besides being a profit-making organisation during the same time-frame, according to the tender floated by the council.
AICTE, which will conduct the CMAT, may enter into an initial 3-5 year contract, but plans to retain overall control over test-generation and delivery mechanism.
As per the tender, CMAT-2012 will be implemented at all stages, including test announcement, registration, application processing, issuing admit cards, question bank development, test construction, test delivery, score processing and result declaration. The test will comprise four sections, namely QT and data interpretation, logical reasoning, general awareness and language comprehension.

TOI Social Impact Awards: Proud moment for the winners

NEW DELHI: The inaugural TOI Social Impact Awards were given away to winners at a glittering ceremony here on Sunday.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh graced the occasion and interacted with the winners. Several distinguished dignitaries, ministers and politicians were also present to applaud the winners.
The TOI Social Impact Awards, in association with JP Morgan, recognizes and celebrates the efforts of unsung heroes from across the country, who have strived in their own small ways to bring about a positive change.
For the winners, it was a proud Sunday as their efforts got recognition.
Many of them, who had all these years worked in oblivion, took the centrestage as they received their awards.
The hunt for the men and women making real change began six months ago. Soon thereafter, TOI invited applications from NGOs, government organisations and the social responsibility wings of corporates in five categories: livelihoods, advocacy and empowerment, education, health and the environment.

The response to this brand new initiative was startling; TOI received 1,500 applications from all over the country, from a remote tribal village in Madhya Pradesh to a posh south Delhi housing colony.

An eminent jury comprising Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, Magsaysay awardee and National Advisory Council member Aruna Roy, Union minister for rural development Jairam Ramesh, Unique Identification Authority of India chairperson Nandan Nilekani, HDFCchairperson Deepak Parekh and Centre for Science and Education director-general Sunita Narain spent an afternoon debating and discussing, before selecting the winners.

Indo-US education tie-up set to take off

New Delhi: The Obama-Singh higher education collaboration announced two years earlier will be rolled out this month.
Human resource development minister Kapil Sibal and US secretary of stateHillary Clinton will meet in Washington on 13 October to discuss the bilateral programme.
Bilateral ties: A file photo of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (left) with US President Barack Obama in Washington in 2009.

“It will give shape to the initiative announced jointly by Indian Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh) and US President (Barack Obama),” said an HRD ministry spokesperson.

The collaboration was announced during Singh’s visit to the US in November 2009.
India has already made public the modalities and some features of the cooperation.
Key collaboration areas will be energy studies, sustainable development, climate change, environmental studies, education and educational reform, community development and innovation, according to the HRD ministry’s proposal document, which Mint has reviewed.
India wants to set up 14 theme-based universities, promote research, train teachers and brand a group of leading educational institutes the Indian Ivy League under the Obama-Singh 21st Century Knowledge Initiative or OSI.
With an initial funding of $10 million (around Rs. 49 crore) shared by both partners, the knowledge initiative will promote increasing university linkages, junior faculty development exchanges and teachers training.
Sibal and Clinton were scheduled to discuss the programme in June but could not meet as they could not arrive at a mutually convenient date, a second HRD ministry official said requesting anonymity.
Leading higher education institutes in India are facing a 20-35% shortage of faculty, according to data available with the HRD ministry.
Central universities face a shortage of at least 30%.
To overcome this, institutes have been allowed to hire non-resident Indians and foreigners as well as opt for faculty exchange programmes.
A delegation comprising industry experts, academicians, vice-chancellors of some Central universities and representatives of industry bodies will accompany Sibal and his bureaucrats for the meeting with Clinton, the first HRD ministry official said.
“When you want to establish yourself as a knowledge economy, such cooperation are vital as we need to adopt best practices,” said S.S. Chawla, a senior director, education committee, Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India, an industry body.
Chawla said he is likely to be a part of Sibal’s delegation.
The HRD ministry’s proposal document details how specific jobs are to be executed.
“Projects focusing on curricular reform should describe the existing curriculum and the courses targeted for revision, and should explain how exchange activities will result in the restructuring of the current content to incorporate the new academic themes,” the note says. “The proposal should describe the topics and content of any new courses or educational materials that will be developed and introduced, and should identify those persons who will be responsible for developing the new courses and for teaching them,” it adds.
The programme will “foster institutional partnerships. It is a part of the larger strategic dialogue between India and the US,” said Adam J. Grotsky, executive director of the US-India Educational Foundation that will monitor the initiative. “Both countries recognize the importance of cementing relationships through the avenue of higher education, and the OSI grants will help seed new projects and programmes,” he added.

Future Group eyes a bigger play in Indian education sector

NEW DELHI: Future Group is aiming for a bigger play in India's education sector with plans to expand its training and skill development vertical Future Learning and become an autonomous entity providing professional courses across industry sectors.

It is planning to invest over Rs 20 crore in the next 2-3 years and add courses in areas such as healthcare, education and infrastructure.

"Our endeavour is to make Future Learning a one stop destination for training and education in sectors like retail, supply chain, healthcare, infrastructure and education... We want to be an autonomous body providing MBA and other degree and diploma courses that would be recognised by the industry," Future Learning CEO Muralidhar Rao told PTI.

The group has already invested Rs 25 crore in Future Learning in the last couple of years since it was set up to impart education to people across sectors like retail and supply chain.

"We want to create an Indian model of learning and offer courses and degrees designed by experts," Rao said.

Future Learning, which is affiliated to the Indira Gandhi National Open University, offers courses at its three centres located at Bangalore, Kolkata and Ahemdabad.

Asked about the Future Learning's current revenues, profitability and its contribution to the group's total business, Rao said, "The group does not consider this initiative as pure business...Future Learning is profitable, but investment for expansion is currently being funded by the parent organisation."

"In the next 2-3 years, we would like to double the company's growth," he said.

Last week, Future Learning had entered into a joint venture partnership with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) aiming to train seven million Indians in varied industries in the services sector in the next 10 years.

The two partners have earmarked Rs 58 crore for the next 10 years for the JV - to be named Future Sharp.

While Future Learning will hold 73 per cent stake in the JV, NSDC will hold the remaining 27 per cent stake.

Future Sharp is targeting a turnover of Rs 1,000 crore in the next 10 years, Rao added.