Sushma Verma, 13, in the Lucknow University - India

02  sept  2013

Blog: 'I don't study all the time'

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Sushma Verma, 13, at a lab in the Lucknow University

(At 13, Sushma Verma is considerably ahead of the curve.  She has begun a post-graduate course in microbiology at the Lucknow University. She was done with school at the age of 9.  Here, she explains her drive and passion.)

People often ask me - "how did you do it, how many hours do you study?" The truth is I study only when I feel like it. I have always kept a timetable and have stuck to it. I do everything what girls my age do. I go out with friends, I play, I have my fun. I do not study all the time, like people think.

But I believe that even when you study for five minutes, do it with full concentration.

I was five years old when I took admission in class IX. Till then, I was tutored at home. I used to read my brother's books. He used to teach me Math and English. My father used to teach me Hindi. He is a daily wage earner and has studied till class VIII.

Though I have studied with peers who are much older to me all my life, I was a bit nervous going to college. When I went to the Lucknow University, people were very curious. Students, a lot older to me, would come up to me and ask how did I make it here so young?

But now, I have made lots of friends and am having a great time.

My next goal is to become a doctor; though I am still to decide the field. But I am not thinking too much about it. I will decide when the time comes.

At 13, she's a senior student at Lucknow University - India

31  aug  2013

At 13, she's a senior student at Lucknow University

Sushma Verma, 13, is the youngest student ever to pass the Class XII Board exam.

Lucknow: At an age when she should be in school, the 13-year-old daughter of a poor labourer in Uttar Pradesh has baffled everybody by galloping to a master's programme in microbiology.

Sushma Verma was the youngest ever to pass class 12 exams, at just over 9 years. Now the teen prodigy has finished her graduation and has been named in the merit list for microbiology at the Lucknow University. She begins her master's classes next week.

Behind her remarkable success lies the story of a family determined to educate their children, no matter what it takes.

Sushma's father Tej Bahadur Verma, a daily wage labourer, earns barely two hundred rupees a day to feed a family of five. But when he saw his daughter's name on the merit list, he paid the initial fee of Rs. 25,000 instantly, not thinking about the rest - at least 75,000 rupees - to be paid later.

The family had to sell their land to pay for Sushma's education.

At their one-room home in Lucknow, their most precious possessions are a study table and a second-hand computer.

"I think education is important for my children, so I didn't hesitate in selling the land. We never got the chance to study - I don't want my children to work as labourers, I will do whatever I can to educate them," says Verma.

It took three years of college for Sushma to get used to studying with "big boys and girls". "At first, it was intimidating but everyone was really nice to me, so I was okay," she smiles.

Many at her college are shocked to see a senior who looks little more than a schoolgirl.

"She is much younger, but I will give her the respect any senior deserves," said Renu Rathore, a third year science student and a year 'junior' to Sushma.

Sushma wants to be a doctor and tried for medical college after school but was just too young. Now she plans to give her dream another shot when she turns 18. Age, she says, is just a number.

Katrina Kaif's sister Christine ties the knot in London - India

27 aug 2013

Katrina Kaif's sister Christine ties the knot in London

 

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Katrina Kaif's sister Natacha (extreme right) tied the knot in London.

 

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif attended her sister Natacha's wedding in London on August 25. Katrina Kaif looked pretty in a peach gown as she turned the bridesmaid for her sister Natacha. 

Katrina Kaif's sister Christine tied the knot on Sunday and thanks to the Bollywood actress' busy schedule, she could only leave Mumbai for London just hours before the ceremony.

Katrina left Mumbai for London midnight on Saturday to join her family for the wedding,
Among Katrina's forthcoming films are "Dhoom 3" and "Bang Bang".

Ratan Tata comes to Supreme Court to watch a hearing on his Right to Privacy plea - India

21  aug  2013

Ratan Tata comes to Supreme Court to watch a hearing on his Right to Privacy plea

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

File photo of Ratan Tata

New Delhi: One of India's best-known entrepreneurs, Ratan Tata, was in the Supreme Court today to watch a hearing in his case that his constitutional right to privacy was violated in the leak of his conversations with corporate lobbyist Niira Radia.

"Mr Tata filed this writ petition on a matter of principle. He believes privacy is an important right for every individual and is keenly following the progress of this case," said a Tata Sons spokesperson.

The Tata group was a client of Ms Radia's public relations firm Vaishnavi Communications.

In April 2011, he took the government to court after websites and magazines ran transcripts of his phone calls with Ms Radia, whose phone was tapped at various points between 2008 and 2009 as part of a tax investigation.

Mr Tata wants the court to frame guidelines on conversations tapped by government agencies, to prevent such leaks and protect the privacy of individuals.

Indian-American named for top US environmental award - India

17  aug  2013

Indian-American named for top US environmental award

Washington: An Indian-American professor of biological and agricultural engineering has been recognised for lifetime achievement by a top US environmental and water resources institute.

Vijay Singh, professor and Caroline & William N. Lehrer Distinguished Chair in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at Texas A&M University, has been named as a recipient of the 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Society of Civil Engineers Environmental and Water Resources Institute (ASCE-EWRI).

Set up in 1999, the Environmental and Water Resources Institute is a civil engineering specialty institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the country's oldest national engineering society.

He was born in Agra, India, July 15, 1946.

He acquired his Master of Science degree from the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, and then did his Ph.D. from the Colorado State University.

He also received a D.Sc. from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa.

A recipient of various distinguished awards and author of a voluminous number of publications, Mr Singh served in the faculty of various universities in the US before joining Texas A&M University July 1, 2006.

According to the Texas A&M University website, Mr Singh has been appointed a university distinguished professor effective September1 this year.

According to the website posting, Mr Singh is an internationally recognised and pre-eminent engineer specialising in water resources engineering and hydrology.

"He has made numerous advances in hydrologic and environmental modeling and has received the most prestigious awards for hydrology from multiple professional societies," the website stated.

"He is a prolific author of journal articles and books, by some measures the most prolific author working in hydrology today..."

He also serves on the editorial boards of 27 different journals.

With over 50,000 students on its rolls, Texas A&M University at College Station, Texas, is ranked as the sixth largest university in the US.

After killing five Indian jawans, Pakistan violates ceasefire for the third time in 48 hours - India

11  Aug  2013

After killing five Indian jawans, Pakistan violates ceasefire for the third time in 48 hours

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

The bodies of the five Indian soldiers, who were killed earlier this week

Srinagar: Less than a week after killing five soldiers from the Indian Army in an ambush at the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan has reportedly violated the ceasefire agreement thrice in the last 48 hours. The latest firing incident took place today in the Mendhar district of Jammu and Kashmir where five Indian Army posts were attacked. According to reports, firing from small arms and automatic weapons is still on.

Earlier today, a jawan from the Border Security Force (BSF) was injured in the firing by Pakistani troops in the Kanachak sector of the Kashmir Valley.

"There was sniper firing from Pakistani side this morning along the international border (IB) at Alfa Machial Border Out Post (BOP) area in Jammu frontier ," a senior BSF officer said.

Yesterday, both sides exchanged fire for around seven hours.

"Pakistan fired over 7000 rounds of heavy ammunition besides mortar shells on Indian posts during the seven-and-a-half-hour firing in Poonch," a Defence spokesperson said yesterday, adding that it was "biggest ceasefire violation" in recent times. No causalities were however reported.

On the intervening night between Monday and Tuesday, Pakistani troops ambushed a patrol party of the Indian Army, killing five soldiers, and injuring a sixth one in the Poonch sector, 200 km south of Srinagar.

At a rally in Delhi's Ramlila grounds today, BJP president Rajnath Singh urged the government to take appropriate steps and suspend all talks with Pakistan.

"Pakistan has crossed all limits. The attacks at the Line of Control can be prevented if the government takes the right steps. The Prime Minister should announce no talks will take place with Pakistan," Mr Singh said today.

The killing of the soldiers created a huge uproar in Parliament with Defence Minister AK Antony, in a second statement, stating the attacks were carried out by specialised troops from Pakistan. His first statement absolved the Pakistani army, saying the attack was carried out by militants. His statement was in contradiction with the one issued by the Defence Ministry, lea

Sonia Gandhi's son-inlaw Robert Vadra used fake documents to acquire land - India

Robert Vadra used fake documents to acquire land, claims IAS officer Ashok Khemka

Dr Sanjay Kumar Cardiac Cardiothoracic Heart Surgeon India

Senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka (File pic)

Gurgaon: Senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka has reportedly alleged that Robert Vadra, businessman and Congress president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law, used false registration documents to execute a series of sham transactions for the sale of 3.5 acres of land in Gurgaon to real estate giant DLF for Rs. 58 crore.

Mr Khemka, who was controversially transferred by the Haryana government in October last year, three days after he cancelled the mutation of Mr Vadra's deal with DLF handed a 100-page report to the state government in May this year and the details have become public now.

The timing is embarrassing for the Congress, which has been battling various scandals just months before it makes an attempt to win a third straight term at the centre in general elections now months away.

The IAS officer has alleged Mr Vadra received sweetheart deals from the Congress government, which has been in power in Haryana since 2004. A government committee in March this year, however, concluded Mr Vadra's deal with DLF in 2008 was fair and legal. In reply to the conclusions drawn by the committee, Mr Khemka's report allegedly says that the Haryana government had shown "undue haste" in issuing a commercial colony licence to Mr Vadra.

The senior bureaucrat reportedly alleges in his report that Mr Vadra's company, Sky Light Hospitality Private Limited, did not make any payment through a Corporation Bank cheque of Rs. 7.5 crore as mentioned in the registration certificate for the land in Shikohpur village of Gurgaon, adjacent to Delhi.

Mr Khemka, who was Inspector General, Registrations in Haryana when he was transferred, had ordered an inquiry to determine if Mr Vadra, who owned property in different parts of the state, had been sold land at discounted prices.

"The Congress will soon have to open a factory of clean chits the way it's going," BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi told NDTV today.

Mr Khemka has alleged that unauthorised officials had signed off on the mutation of the land from Mr Vadra to DLF; he also raised questions about why the government appeared to have bent the rules for Mr Vadra, processing his Change of Land Use (CLU) application at lightning speed and licensing him to build a commercial housing project on his plot of 3.5 acres. That license, granted to Mr Vadra added such dramatic value that four years later, DLF paid Rs. 58 crore for the land.