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Lucknow: The School of Management Sciences (SMS), Lucknow, organised a two-day national conference focusing on sustainable business approaches for a collective future.
At the collaborative event with the Indian Society for Training & Development (ISTD) and the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) , institute director Ashish Bhatnagar said, "Sustainability is not an option, it is a necessity."
Speakers, including former chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh R Ramani, former director of IIM Kozhikode Krishna Kumar, and TERI SAS New Delhi Associate Professor, Shruti Sharma Rana, led discussions on sustainable finance, circular economy, and ESG practices. TNN
Read MoreProminent environmental experts have challenged the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) report declaring Triveni Sangam water unfit for bathing during the Mahakumbh. The experts argue CPCB report is incomplete citing missing data on nitrates and phosphates.
New Delhi: Prominent environment experts have countered Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report claiming poor quality of water at Mahakumbh. The CPCB report said that Triveni Sangam water is not fit for bathing. The CPCB cites high levels of biological oxygen demand (BOD) in the water.
Prof Umesh Kumar Singh, who teaches at Centre of Environmental Science at the University of Allahabad, said that water at Sangam is fit for taking a bath keeping in view the current set of data.
‘CPCB needs to work more’
“A few days back, the Centre Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report stated increased levels of faecal coliform (bacteria) in the water. I believe that the CPCB needs to work more on the report because their data is not complete,” Professor Singh said. “The level of nitrates and phosphates are missing from the report. The level of dissolved oxygen in the water, as shown in the report, is good. And on the basis of the current data, I can say that the water at Triveni Sangam is fit for taking a bath,” Professor Umesh Singh told ANI.
“Report very inconsistent”
Similarly, another professor RK Ranjan termed CPCB report “very inconsistent”. According to RK Ranjan, who is Associate Professor Central University of South Bihar, the Central Pollution Control Board data is very inconsistent and to conclude that water is unsafe to bathe in would be to say things in haste.
He added, “There is not enough data to conclude that the waters in Prayagraj are not safe to bathe in. Similar data can be seen from Garhmukteshwar, Gazipur, Buxar and Patna. There could be many reasons for this to happen. Among others one reason behind this is when a large number of people bathe in the same waters. It also matters from where and when the sample of water is taken.”
“Coliform bacteria is nothing new”
Dr. Amit Kumar Mishra, another environmental scientist from JNU, also holds the same opinion. Mishra says the presence of coliform bacteria is nothing new and called for new data set.
I would say we need more data sets, we need more measurements. There is a huge number of population which is taking bath at Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj. If you talk about the coliform bacteria, it is nothing new. If you see the data of the Shashi Snan peaks, you will see that the E.Coli bacteria peaks at that time. So, I would say that we need more data sets, we need more parameters, we need more monitoring stations, especially down the stream,” Amit Kumar Mishra said.
Prof. Chander Kumar Singh of TERI School of Advanced Studies also said that many parameters are not present in the CPBC report.
“In the CPCB report available, many parameters are not present. I believe better information can be given if more data and facts come out,” Prof. Chander argued.
https://x.com/ANI/status/1892903056926486548
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The University Grants Commission (UGC), in an unprecedented move, on Tuesday granted autonomy to 60 higher education institutions, giving them different degrees of freedom in academic and administrative decision-making.
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Hyderabad Central University, Jadavpur University, Panjab University, Homi Bhabha National Institute and Narsee Monjee Institute of Studies in Mumbai, Symbiosis International in Pune and Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) are among the 60 autonomous institutions.
The above approvals were given under UGC's new regulation on "Categorization of Universities for Grant of Graded Autonomy", which aims to provide greater autonomy to institutions under three categories, based on their NAAC accreditation score.
The graded autonomy gives institutions the freedom to start new courses, new departments, off-campus centres, research parks, appoint foreign faculty, admit foreign students, pay variable incentive packages to their teachers and enter into academic collaboration with top 500 universities of the world without seeking UGC's permission, HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar told reporters on Tuesday.
Universities and institutions accredited by NAAC with a score of at least 3.5 or ranked in the top 50 institutions of National Institutions Ranking Framework (NIRF) for two consecutive years were given autonomy under "Category".
Institutions like JNU, HCU, NALSAR, Osmania University, Jadavpur University, Jammu University, TISS and National Law University, Delhi, among others, were parked in this category and they now are free to start a new course, department and school without UGC approval. They will also be exempt from UGC's regular inspections and can collaborate with foreign educational institutions without the regulator's permission. Their performance will be reviewed based on self-reporting.
BHU, AMU, English and Foreign Languages University, Madras University, Mysore University, TERI School of Advanced Studies in Delhi, Manipal Academy of Higher Education and O P Jindal Global University, among others, were given autonomy under ˜Category" for either getting NAAC score between 3.01 and 3.49 or finding a place between 51 and 100 in the NIRF ranking.
Although Category institutions will also be exempt from UGC's regular inspections, they will be subject to stricter control in comparison to "Category" institutions. So, Category universities will need UGC permission to sign MoUs with foreign universities. Their performance will be reviewed by a peer group.
While the government has taken steps to liberalise higher education, the UGC today also decided to issue showcause notices to three deemed universities for not meeting academic standards. The message is loud and clear that only quality will be rewarded, Javadekar said.
Showcause notices for withdrawal of deemed university status will be issued to Institute of Advance Studies in Education in Rajasthan, Vinayaka Missions Research Foundation in Tamil Nadu and Meenakshi Academy of Higher Education and Research, Chennai. These deemed universities were also blacklisted by Tandon Committee in 2009 for quality deficiencies.
The regulator also decided to withhold extension of deemed university status for Periyar Maniammai Institute of Science and Technology in Thanjavur and Nava Nalanda Mahavihara in Bihar for poor performance
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