The highest court in the Indian judiciary today upheld a PIL against both sides of the ongoing reservation debate - the PIL alleged that the arguements for and against reservation were getting increasingly repetitive and accuses both parties of being mind-numbingly boring as a ploy to get a quick judgement.
'Exclude creamy layer. Use economic and not caste criteria. Yawn', the two-page judgement reads. The judgement also slams the pro-reservation wing for excessive usage of the phrase 'years of oppression'. 'What years of oppression, useless fellow!' thundered justice KGB in the court when the lawyer used the phrase,'Wish I could subject you to some years of oppression'
The outcome of this long-drawn battle was a hike in the quota for backward classes to 40%. 'I'm retiring in six months, so I took an arbitrary decision and adjourned till November because people need time to figure out how I arrived at the number 40' said KGB with an enigmatic smile.
Forward classes meanwhile have taken this news badly and a radical group is now rumoured to have started a home-schooling movement. The rationale is that there are no seats in schools and colleges for kids from forward classes and hence they would have to be tutored at home till graduation/post graduation. Not to be left behind, the backward caste parties have reacted to this rumour by applying to the SC for a quota in home-tutoring as well. Parents can no longer help just their kids with homework and get away with it, it seems.
'Prima facie, I think the 40% would apply at homes as well because the judgement does not specify the instrument used to impart education. But I'm sure these lawyers will use their creativity and dig up some loopholes and talk about meritocracy beginning from the household etc' was KGB's unofficial view.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Happiness can't buy money : Warton Study
A study conducted by the economics department of Warton University has come up with some startling conclusions. The old adage 'happiness is money' has been disproved and how!
Researchers at the University, who carried out the study, found that inhabitants of happier countries are far poorer (economically) than grumpier, 'the-serious-types' nations.
In other words, the wider you smile, the poorer you are.
This finding contradicts years of wisdom that a higher sense of well-being translates into a higher GDP. This also explains how anomalies like Indya, Nepaul and Butan have always been off the charts on happiness but their cumulative per capita income never really added to much.
'The paradox arises from the fact that poorer people tend to feel happy in a simplistic way once their basic needs are met. And what's more, some of these lucky idiots take to drugs and alcohol which either make them happier immediately, or makes them give irrelevant responses to our questionnaire and screw up our results', a fuming Dr. Bernstein - one of the researchers who led the study, was quoted as saying.
Researchers at the University, who carried out the study, found that inhabitants of happier countries are far poorer (economically) than grumpier, 'the-serious-types' nations.
In other words, the wider you smile, the poorer you are.
This finding contradicts years of wisdom that a higher sense of well-being translates into a higher GDP. This also explains how anomalies like Indya, Nepaul and Butan have always been off the charts on happiness but their cumulative per capita income never really added to much.
'The paradox arises from the fact that poorer people tend to feel happy in a simplistic way once their basic needs are met. And what's more, some of these lucky idiots take to drugs and alcohol which either make them happier immediately, or makes them give irrelevant responses to our questionnaire and screw up our results', a fuming Dr. Bernstein - one of the researchers who led the study, was quoted as saying.
Friday, April 4, 2008
IIM-Q hikes fee to 3 cr : early birds to get 20% discount
IIM Qaziabad hiked its fee to 3 cr from 3 lakh last year, an undisclosed percentage increase. 'We are charging six times as much as Harvard, but you have to note that our faculty's far inferior', said Vijay Singh, the Chairman of the Governing Board.
'We will ensure that every minute a student spends on campus counts and the course is worth every penny the student shells out. A study amongst Q alumni revealed that their chief regret on campus was attending classes. So in the new paradigm, there will be fewer profs, fewer assignments, fewer textbooks and so on. We are also launching new specialisation streams - An MBA in deep-sea snorkeling, MBA in blog-surfing and an executive development program in solitaire are on the anvil right now', he revealed.
'The proceeds from student fees will be used to re-paint the entire campus. We might also get real professors this year and they won't come cheap. We did a study last year where we tried to gauge the students' expectation of faculty IQ-Scores and they unanimously voted in the above 100 category, which has put us in a quandary. I think the days of getting primary school dropouts to teach MBA courses are long gone' he said ruefully.
Undergrad students all over the country are still reeling at the shock that their last chance at 'two more years of doing nothing' is suddenly unaffordable. It appears that the 20% discount for the first 100 applicants will also do little to alleviate the situation.
'If we are spending that much, we might as well get a real degree na?' says Shaurabh, an MBA aspirant who has settled for copies of 'The 10-day MBA' and 'The one minute manager' as a cheaper substitute for the course.
'We will ensure that every minute a student spends on campus counts and the course is worth every penny the student shells out. A study amongst Q alumni revealed that their chief regret on campus was attending classes. So in the new paradigm, there will be fewer profs, fewer assignments, fewer textbooks and so on. We are also launching new specialisation streams - An MBA in deep-sea snorkeling, MBA in blog-surfing and an executive development program in solitaire are on the anvil right now', he revealed.
'The proceeds from student fees will be used to re-paint the entire campus. We might also get real professors this year and they won't come cheap. We did a study last year where we tried to gauge the students' expectation of faculty IQ-Scores and they unanimously voted in the above 100 category, which has put us in a quandary. I think the days of getting primary school dropouts to teach MBA courses are long gone' he said ruefully.
Undergrad students all over the country are still reeling at the shock that their last chance at 'two more years of doing nothing' is suddenly unaffordable. It appears that the 20% discount for the first 100 applicants will also do little to alleviate the situation.
'If we are spending that much, we might as well get a real degree na?' says Shaurabh, an MBA aspirant who has settled for copies of 'The 10-day MBA' and 'The one minute manager' as a cheaper substitute for the course.
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