No internet to avoid paper leak
To prevent question paper leak, Internet services are being suspended in some blocks of seven districts in West Bengal for a few hours on the days of Class X exams, conducted by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education. As many as 10,15,588 candidates are writing the exams. Internet is suspended from 11.45 am in the selected blocks, said a board official. The districts affected are Murshidabad, Malda, South Dinajpur , North Dinajpur, Birbhum, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar. The Kolkata Police has also opened four helpline numbers for the convenience of the board examinees.
Aldeen House’s tale of neglect
The state government will do “all it takes” to renovate Aldeen House, a building along the Hooghly where the seeds of modern education in Bengal were sown under the tutelage of William Carey, said state education minister Partha Chatterjee. From July 15, 1818, Aldeen House had been a centre of learning with a 37-strong batch of mostly European students learning Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, astronomy, geology and botany. They were the first students of Serampore College, which shifted to its current address in 1821. While unveiling the bust of Carey, Chatterjee said, “The state government will do all it takes to renovate Aldeen House from where Serampore College had started. The seeds if modern education had been sown in this house that is, unfortunately, lying in ruins.”
Kiosk equipped to fight fires
Residential buildings more than 45 metres high or complexes with a floor area of over two lakh square feet must have a kiosk equipped to fight fires or other disasters, the fire services department said. The department has started sending letters to owners or associations of such buildings and laying out the guidelines. Each kiosk should measure between 100 and 125 square feet and should have fire fighting equipment, including four fire extinguishers, a lock cutter, a crowbar, a 14-pound hammer, a smoke hood and fire buckets.
ICSE council to meet next week
ICSE council secretary and chief executive Gerry Arathoon will meet principals of all Anglo-Indian schools in West Bengal next week. The decision to hold the annual examinations for classes IX and XI using question papers set by the Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations, implementation of enhanced pay scales to teachers as per the sixth pay commission recommendations and provisions in the Centre’s new education policy are some of the issues likely to be discussed. CISCE chairman G Immanuel and four senior officials of the council will be present at the meeting.
pranab mondal
Our correspondent in West Bengalpranabm@newindianexpress.com