Pre-University students had a field day in Bidar on Friday morning. They had an opportunity to learn from the horse’s mouth when they got tips on the Common Entrance Test from resource persons belonging to the Karnataka Examinations Authority. They also clarified their doubts from experienced counsellors and teachers, and were introduced to various professional courses by experts from several fields. They also met young officers whose lives were changed by education.
This happened at the Career Utsav, part of Bidar Utsav, organised by the district administration at the Zilla Rang Mandir for a week starting Friday.
The Hindu was the media partner of the event.
The over 1,000 students who attended the event were introduced to Ujjwal Kumar Ghosh, zilla panchayat chief executive officer, an IIT alumnus. The young engineer who hails from Jharkhand was selected for the IAS after he resigned his job as a researcher in Google Inc, the internet search company. He had worked on emerging technologies like Google Chrome.
He asked young people to focus on learning their subjects well and not just preparing for examinations.
He pointed out that after nearly seven decades of independence, the importance of educational institutions in the public sector like IITs and IIMs had not diminished. They still attract the best brains in the country. “You should aspire to enter them too,” he said.
“The Common Entrance Test is not the end of the world. There is a whole world full of wonderful careers waiting for young people,’’ said P.C. Jaffer, Deputy Commissioner, who has a doctorate in education from the Jamila Milia Islamia University.
He said it was unfortunate that most people thought only the less intelligent students chose humanities subjects.
Research optionHe advised youth to seriously consider research as a career option and take up the challenge of setting up a hi-tech laboratory after completing their higher studies in a subject of their choice. “It will be better if you set up such a facility in your home town,” he said. He said there was immense scope for processing of farm and animal produce.
The loudest applause was reserved for Pawan Kumar Malapati, probationary IAS officer who passed the UPSC examination at a very young age.
The mechanical engineer from BITS-Pilani grew up in a farmers’ family in a small village in Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh. He asked students to follow their dreams and remain focused.
Unique programmeSri Basavalinga Pattaddevaru, Seer of Bhalki Hiremath, said such programmes added meaning to Bidar Utsav celebrations. Zilla Utsavs have songs and dances by film artistes or pop stars. But this is a unique programme that adds value to the Bidar Utsav, he said.
Sri Sidram Sharana Beldal said that any programme that aims to improve the quality of education and to provide jobs to youth deserved the support of civil society organisations.
Z.N. Jahagirdar gave a captivating lecture. He told the story of Abdul Pashtuni, a boy whose father worked in a bakery. The boy studied hard and entered an engineering college. He joined an MNC, only to quit a few years later. He and his friends have now started creating mobile apps. Such transformation is possible only through education, he said.
Common mistakesU.S. Badiger of the Karnataka Examination Authority spoke about the common mistakes made by applicants.
He asked students to read the manual carefully and practice filling the forms several times.
There are around 55,000 engineering seats in around 200 colleges in Karnataka. Students compete for around 2,000 medical and 2,000 farm science seats in the State.
The KEA also helps students select seats in Ayurveda and other Indian medical systems and dental science, he added.
Abdul Quadeer, secretary of the Shaheen Education Society that sponsored the event, was present.
