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Tag: Central University of Kerala

  • Central University of Kerala researchers develop self-testing equipment to detect sodium in blood, urine

    Express News Service

    KASARAGOD: A staff of PhD researchers on the Central University of Kerala (CUK) has developed a self-testing equipment to detect sodium focus in urine and blood serum, which may revolutionise scientific analysis.

    The nanotechnology-based sodium sensor is part of the PhD work of Dr Neeli Chandran (30) and was revealed in Nature’s ‘Scientific Reports’. 

    “Today, we have to go to a (clinical) lab and do an electrolyte test to find if there is any sodium imbalance in our body. The test will cost us at least Rs 150. But our paper-based dipstick cost just Rs 20. If produced on a commercial scale, it would be much cheaper,” mentioned Dr Chandran, who was guided by Prof Swapna Nair of the Department of Physics.

    The sodium sensors are a collaborative work of the Department of Physics and the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the college. Diabetes and kidney sufferers are vulnerable to sodium imbalance, which might set off a sequence of great issues reminiscent of nausea, complications, fatigue, reminiscence loss, muscle weak spot, cramps, seizures, and cardiac points, mentioned Prof Rajendra Pilankatta, head of the Department of Biochemistry. “Patients can also show behavioural abnormality, faint or even slip into a coma,” he mentioned.

    So early and straightforward detection of sodium imbalance generally is a life-saver, mentioned Prof Pilankatta, who co-guided Dr Chandran.

    Four years of rigorous work

    Dr Chandran, and PhD students Prajith J and Manikanta B spent 4 years creating the sodium testing equipment in Prof Swapna Nair’s lab, which specialises in biosensors, web of issues sensors, magnetic area sensors, optical, UV and infrared sensors.

    The sodium sensor was made by inserting curcumin, a chemical derived from turmeric, on prime of three to 9 nanometres-thick copper particles, mentioned Prof Nair. The curcumin coating protects the nano-copper from getting oxidised. “The end synthesized product is an ink-like solution called quantum dots which we use to print the paper strips,” she mentioned.

    The Quantum dots value Rs 10,000 may be printed on 500 strips, that’s Rs 20 for a strip. The strip reacts with the sodium in urine or blood serum and produces a novel color relying on the sodium focus. “We have developed a chart with nine colours for users to compare their strips. Each colour gives a range of sodium concentration in their urine or blood serum,” Prof Nair mentioned.

    For urine, the studying must be above 20 mili-equvalence per litre (mEq/ l) and for blood serum, it must be between 135 and 145 mEq/ l, mentioned Prof Pilankkata. “A reading below 125 is problematic,” he mentioned.

    AZoNano, a web based platform for the nanotechnology group, reviewed the paper revealed in ‘Scientific Reports’ and mentioned: “The development of sodium sensors is of high clinical relevance.”

    Although sodium focus detection strategies reminiscent of ion-selective electrodes and ion chromatography give correct outcomes, their excessive price, advanced technicality and excessive pattern requirement restrict their common utilization, it mentioned. “To this end, paper-based dipsticks are cost-effective, user-friendly alternatives that can give rapid results,” it mentioned.

  • Central University of Kerala to implement NEP from subsequent educational 12 months

    Express News Service

    Kasaragod: The Central University of Kerala (CUK) will implement the National Education Policy 2020 from subsequent educational 12 months, mentioned Prof Amruth G Kumar, dean of teachers. Students can have the choice of a number of entry and a number of exits throughout their course and must do a obligatory internship, he mentioned.

    The college has additionally utilized to register with the Academic Bank of Credits in order that college students can deposit the credit they earned within the digital locker. “We are expecting the registration to come through in a week,” he mentioned. CUK would be the first college in Kerala to implement the NEP 2020.

    Multiple entry, a number of exit

    Students can exit a course after each two semesters. That is, a PG scholar can exit solely as soon as in the course of the course and an undergraduate scholar can exit twice in the course of the three-year programme. If the PG scholar intends to finish the course, they must rejoin the programme inside 4 years of leaving the college, and the undergraduate scholar must rejoin the course inside six years.

    The UGC calculated the break interval by multiplying the tenure of the course by two. “That is done to ensure the student returns before the syllabus gets outdated,” mentioned Prof Amruth Kumar.
    If the scholars fail to return to finish the course inside the stipulated time, they must apply as a more energizing. All the 27 departments of the college can be implementing the a number of entries, a number of exit choices, he mentioned.

    Except for the Department of International Relations and Politics, which is providing an built-in undergraduate course, all different departments are providing solely PG programs. The board of research of each division is now tweaking their syllabus to make exits significant for college kids.

    If a PG scholar leaves after one 12 months, they’d get a PG diploma certificates. For undergraduate programs, college students would get a certificates after the primary 12 months, a diploma certificates after the second 12 months and a full diploma certificates after three years.

    The college continues to be engaged on the rules for the re-entry of scholars. But if the variety of college students searching for to re-enter a course are greater than the variety of seats accessible, there can be a screening, mentioned Prof Amruth Kumar. “We will also have to decide on the mode of screening. We will also have to implement reservations for students seeking re-entry. But we have another two years to decide on that,” he mentioned.

    Internship for PG and UG programs

    As of now, an internship is obligatory just for skilled programs. With NEP 2020, internships shall be a part of each undergraduate and postgraduate course, mentioned the dean of Academics. “The internship should be for a minimum of two weeks and done outside the university,” he mentioned.

    A language scholar might do their internship with poets, writers, and newspapers. A science scholar might do their internship with industries and likewise labs in premier institutes, he mentioned. The internship is completely different from the dissertation which is now a part of the course.

    Credit financial institution

    Students want a minimal of 80 credit to finish their PG course in CUK.
    Of the 80 credit, 40 must be earned from core topics, 20 credit must be earned from ‘programme electives’ supplied by their respective departments or related departments in different universities by way of on-line.
    Another 20 credit might be earned from ‘open electives’. These might be unrelated to the core topics. A physics scholar can take up a music or language course from any college supplied on-line, mentioned Prof Amruth Kumar.

    Most of the schools have posted their on-line programs on the SWAYAM portal. “The credits of the courses done online will be automatically reflected in the Academic Credit Bank. Students can redeem the credits to get their course certificates,” he mentioned.

    Theoretically, college students can be part of one college and full their course from one other college by redeeming their credit earned from the primary college. “But we are yet to form guidelines on admitting students from other universities,” Prof Amruth Kumar mentioned.

  • Kerala VCs name for resolving equivalency problems with programs, tips forward of NEP implementation

    By Express News Service

    KASARGOD: Vice-chancellors of two Kerala state universities known as on the federal government to deal with the problem of equivalency of programs in the case of making use of for jobs, and regulatory checks to make sure programs are usually not diluted for flexibility earlier than implementing the National Education Policy (NEP 2020).

    They have been talking on the two-day roundtable convention of vice-chancellors on how you can implement NEP within the Central University of Kerala at Periya on Friday.

    Speaking at a session on ‘a number of entry, a number of exit’, Kerala University vice-chancellor Prof Mahadevan Pillai mentioned there ought to be tips on which institute will award the diploma if a scholar selected to finish a six-semester undergraduate course from three totally different universities.

    NEP 2020 provides a scholar the choice to exit from a course after the primary 12 months, be part of one other college for the second 12 months after which full the third 12 months in one more college.  Here, credit score switch would require higher laws as a result of there is no such thing as a uniformity in syllabus or course period in any two universities.

    “The flexibility offered to the student in acquiring an academic degree should not dilute the course,” Prof Pillai mentioned.

    If programs are usually not standardised, college students will search for the shortest and best means to amass credit by choosing programs with minimal content material and simple to finish, he mentioned.

    Vice-chancellor of the University of Calicut Prof Jayaraj M Ok mentioned his college was providing UGC-approved BVoc (Bachelor of Vocational Studies) programs with the choice for a number of entry and exit however no scholar was choosing it.

    “The students, if they choose to leave after the first year, will get a certificate; after the second year, they will get a diploma and after the third year, they will get a bachelor’s degree. They are not exiting the courses because they are not finding jobs. Instead, they are demanding equivalency to pursue a master’s course and then PhD,” he mentioned.

    “Students of multidisciplinary courses such as microbiology, food science, biotechnology find it difficult to get equivalency while applying for jobs. Similarly, a student with M.Sc. nanoscience is asked if she has a basic degree in physics for jobs,” mentioned Prof Jayaraj.

    The governments should repair these points in fact equivalency and eligibility earlier than stepping on multidisciplinary programs and a number of exit and entry, he mentioned. “Rules and regulations will have to be rewritten,” he mentioned.

    Several science lecturers mentioned re-entering a course is just not as straightforward as exiting as a result of the seats are restricted and can’t be elevated to take again college students.

    Karnataka units the ball rolling

    Officials of the Karnataka authorities, which goes forward with the implementation of NEP 2020, mentioned a number of entry and exit could be labored out if the lecturers are educated to design syllabi.

    The syllabus committee ought to determine job roles for each exit after which design syllabus in accordance with that want, mentioned Gopalakrishna Joshi, government director, Karnataka State Higher Education Council.

    Traditionally, the course will begin with a basis after which transfer to problem-solving within the final 12 months. With the brand new NEP, the problem-solving facets should be introduced in at an earlier stage and repeated with deepening layers of complexities. “It is called spiral curriculum, which is not popular in the world. But some are trying,” Joshi mentioned.

    Prof Thimme Gowda, the vice-chairman of Karnataka State Council of Higher Education, mentioned NEP 2020 proposed a brand new idea of program-wise accreditation in order that the course doesn’t get masked by the college’s accreditation.

    The assembly was attended by vice-chancellors of central universities from throughout the nation, they usually have been upbeat concerning the National Education Policy, and known as for a change of mindset to make the brand new coverage profitable.

  • Central University of Kerala VC was beneath ‘strain’ to droop trainer who criticised BJP-RSS

    Express News Service
    KASARGOD: Central University of Kerala vice-chancellor prof H Venkateshwarlu was beneath “tremendous pressure” to behave towards Dr Gilbert Sebastian, who referred to the RSS-BJP as a proto-fascist organisation and questioned the Centre’s vaccine coverage in his class, mentioned a senior dean of the college.

    “The VC was inclined to let off the faculty member with a warning. But he was under tremendous pressure,” he mentioned. The telephone name to the VC was not answered.

    Prof Ventakeshwarlu had arrange a three-member fact-finding committee to look into the complaints filed by the college’s ABVP unit and A Vinod Karuvarakundu, a member of the National Monitoring Committee on Education (SCs, STs, Persons with Special Needs and Minority Education) beneath the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

    The committee members of the fact-finding committee have been Prof Ok P Suresh, Dean (Academics), Prof M S John of the Department of International Relations and Politics, and controller of examination Dr Muraleedharan Nambiar.

    According to the sources within the college, Dr Sebastian didn’t deny the observations he made within the class to the committee however mentioned the complaints towards him have been filed by distorting and cherry-picking his sentences.

    Dr Sebastian refused to touch upon this report.

    During his on-line class on ‘Fascism and Nazism’ on April 19, Dr Sebastian of the Department of International Relations and Politics, mentioned: “The RSS and its affiliate organisations, together called as the Sangh Parivar meaning the Sangh family (including the BJP) in India can also be considered proto-fascist”. Proto-fascist actions are these influenced by classical fascist organisations.

    In the identical class, the assistant professor additionally criticised the federal government for exporting vaccines at a time when the nation’s vaccine wants weren’t met. “That shows their patriotism,” he mentioned.

    The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) — the scholars’ wing of the RSS — threatened mass protest if the VC didn’t take motion towards the school member.

    Vinod Karuvarakundu — who can also be a former president of ABVP’s Kerala unit — wrote to the vice-chancellor demanding disciplinary motion towards Dr Sebastain on April 19, the identical day the net lecture was given.

    He alleged the trainer tried to poison the minds of younger college students and unfold hate towards the democratically elected authorities beneath Narendra Modi.

    In its report, the committee arrange by the vice-chancellor, listed out solely the info and didn’t advocate any actions towards Dr Sebastian as a result of that was not the mandate of the panel, mentioned the sources.

    However, when the administration pressed the fact-finding committee to quote a rule which the school member might have allegedly violated, the committee members “orally” mentioned he might have violated Rule 9 of the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964 which offers with ‘criticism of presidency’.

    The rule bars authorities staff from making antagonistic feedback on the federal government or authorities insurance policies or making feedback that might embarrass the relations between the central authorities and any state governments or any overseas governments.

    The rule won’t apply to Dr Sebastian as a result of it has an essential caveat, mentioned an skilled in college guidelines. Rule 9 says it shall not apply to any statements made or views expressed by a authorities servant of their official capability or the due efficiency of the duties assigned to him.

    The identical skilled additionally mentioned the Central University of Kerala had “illegally” adopted the CCS Conduct Rules to muzzle its academics.​He mentioned on March 19, 2015, the Allahabad High Court dominated that professors of universities “are neither members of a service nor do they maintain a civil submit beneath the Union nor are they within the service of native or different authority. CCS (CCA) Rules, would, due to this fact, haven’t any utility to a Central University”, he learn out the order.

    The Central University of Kerala has a precedent of utilizing suspension as a punishment, mentioned a number of college members on situation of anonymity.

    In February 2020, the college then vice-chancellor Prof G Gopakumar suspended Dr Prasad Pannian, an affiliate professor within the Department of English and Comparative Literature, over allegations of educational harassment by a Dalit analysis scholar.

    After one yr and three months, he continues to be in suspension.