DTPS School celebrated its Golden Jubilee Year.

Celebration of   Golden Jubilee year   by DTPS Higher Secondary School.

The Rally 

The Rally

Though the initial focus of Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC), the first multipurpose river valley project of Independence India are flood control, irrigation, generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, eco-conservation and afforestation as well as a job creator for the socio economic well being of the people, its role to spread education and knowledge is also no less important. In this noble mission DVC is trying hard to establish educational institutions with good faculty members and modern infrastructure in its entire projects.

CE, DCE & other Dignitaries.

In Durgapur also DVC had established the large Thermal Power Station (DTPS) in the sixties of last century. In January 1963 to spread education, as a part of its primary responsibility, among all the wards of DVC employees and also for the offspring of the surrounding village areas, DVC had established the large Higher Secondary School, co-educational and bi-lingual with good faculty members to impart education in Bengali and Hindi mediums. Though now Durgapur City has become an educational hub, but in the sixties particularly in the southern part of this city it was the only school for the huge number of people of this remote area. By the passage of time the renowned School has reached the threshold of Golden Jubilee year and to make this occasion memorable theSchool Authority inaugurated its 50^th year in a gala way. The splendid inaugural ceremony was started on 28^th August with the procession of all the Teachers, Students, the non-teaching staff and a good number of ex-teachers and students and the rally covered the entire DTPS colony.

Cultural Function.

            As a tribute to the glorious past of this renowned institution the school authority also arranged a cultural programme on 29^th August and the students in all felicitated the Chief Engineer and the Chief Guest with Guard of Honour. In the short and valuable speech the Chief Engineer of DTPS Mr. P. Sen Roy said, “Education acts as integrative force in society by communicating value that unite different sections of society. The family may fail to provide the child the essential knowledge of the social skills and values of the wider society but the school or the educational institutions can only help the child to learn new skills and learn to interact with people of different social backgrounds.” The Chief Guest Dr. Debnath Palit, the Principal of Durgapur Government College highlighted the contribution of School education and said, “It is only the education that transforms a person to live a better life and more importantly in a socially well being.  Education is the one which provides us the thrust in getting ahead and doing something constructive in our near future.”

            To commemorate this very special occasion the school students hosted a series of cultural events like Nrittya Nattya ‘Chandalika,  a short Drama ‘Ukiler Buddhi’ and many such attractive programme. Shri Rup Narayan Saha, the Principal of this School expressed his respect and gratitude to all his predecessors and the DTPS Authority for extending all co-operations to develop the school since its inception. In his inaugural speech he highlighted the activities of DVC in its entire project towards the spread of education among the children. He mentioned further that during this year they will arrange several other remarkable programmes including a grand Alumni Reunion to make this Golden Jubilee year remarkable. The auditorium enthralled with the depth of his emotional speech on the passage of their glorious fifty years of journey towards this noble mission.  

Felicitation to Somenath Adhikary.

Felicitation Programme of the Raniganj Police Station to some distinguished personalities for their outstanding and creative contribution for the development of the society.

Somenath Adhikary is being
felicited by Mr. A K  Nand.
The Commissioner of Police.

Raniganj Police Station arranged a felicitation programme on 15^th December in a gala way to honour some distinguished personalities for their outstanding and creative contribution for the development of the society in the field of Art and Craft, Sculpture, Sports and Games, Medicine and Education throughout this entire region. It is a matter of great pleasure that Somenath Adhikary the one and only distinguished person was selected from Durgapur to get such rare award and appreciation in this grand programme.

            Mr. Ajoy Kuman Nand,  the Commissioner of Police was the chief Guest in this great programme.  It was started in the afternoon at the Sporty Assembly, Raniganj where crowds of people gathered and enjoyed the programme and witnessed such a remarkable programme. Swami Sukhananda Maharaj, Asst. Secretary of Ram Krishna Mission, Asansol was the Guest of Honour and the Special Guests were Janab Sohrab Ali, MLA, Raniganj and Shi Suresh Kumar Chadive, IPS, Addl.  DCP (Central) Asansol-Durgapur.

            Somenath Adhikary became overwhelmed with joy for his selection and for the impassioned praise of the Administrative Authority and said brimming with emotion, “ I am extremely happy for such honour and will remain indebted to the society for such honour”

            The 1^st Class First Masters in Painting and Visual Art from the Rabindra Bhartati University with Gold Medal bagged several awards from our country and even from abroad for his rare artistic excellence. He has also got the National Scholarship from the Ministry of Human Resource, Govt. of India and also got the JRF from the Ministry of Culture. His first solo exhibition was held in West Germany and has already arranged                                                                                         number of solo exhibitions so far in our Country.

            Mr. Uday Sankar Ghosh, Officer In charge, Raniganj Police Station says, “We had selected some eminent personalities like former Footballer-Bimal Mahato, Athletic  - Dibakar Ghosh, Women Sportsmen Kalpana Mondal,  Former State Level Player – Hiralal Mondal, District Level  former Sportsman – Biman Chakraborty, Wax Sculpture – Sushanta Roy and some other personalities in the field of Medicine and Education to encourage and recognize their devotion and service and  immense  contribution in their respective fields from our Department.  It was really a grand programme.”

Yoga camp organized in Durgapur Thermal Power Station,

YOGA Camp organized in Durgapur Thermal Power Station.

DCE(E&I) & other Dignitaries.

Yoga Training is going on.

          A Yoga camp was organized by DTPS (Durgapur Thermal Power Station), DVC (Damodar Valley Corporation) Hospital Authority, Durgapur on 16^th December in the evening at DTPS Welfare Center. Mr. Goutam Chanda, Deputy Chief Engineer (E&I) was the Chief Guest in the programme. Dr. M. K. Nandi, Ex-Med. Superintendent and Vice President of West Bengal State Committee was the special guest in the programme. Dr. Chinmoy De, Medical Superintendent of DTPS Hospital explained the utility of Yoga to combat the stress and strain faced now by the people particularly in this industrial area as a whole. 

 Mrs. Manju Jana, the renowned yoga trainer who got special training from the Patanjali Yoga Kendra of Hardwar conducted the whole programme. More than sixty employees including their spouses took active part in this training programme. “For the outstanding response of the employees and the residents of this area, we will try to conduct such programmes regularly.” – said Dr. S. R. Bhowmick of DTPS Hospital.

Celebration of Golden Jubilee of St, Xavier School, Durgapur.

Golden Jubilee Cultural Celebration of St. Xavier’s School, Durgapur.

St. Xavier’s School, Durgapur celebrated its Golden Jubilee in a gala way for two days on 1^st And 2^nd December, 2012. In the closing day crowds of people assembled to witness the cultural programme arranged by the Students, Teachers and the Parents.  From the evening till 11 at night all the audiences were enthralled by the excel performance of the participants.  Everybody enjoyed the conglomeration of programmes in unwinking eyes which was started at 6 Pm and continued up to 11 PM and all were remained bemused ignoring the chilled weather outside.

            It was the third lap of celebration prior to the inaugural programme, Earth Summit and this time it was a cultural bonanza keeping the epitome high.  The function on 1^stDecember 2012 evening was graced by Rev. Fr. (Dr.) Felix Raj S. J. (Principal, St. Xavier’s College Kolkata) and Fr. K. K. Devassy, the former Principal of St. Xavier’s School, Durgapur.

The programme started with Golden Jubilee musical soiree presented by the students, teachers and the staff members. It was sung in English and Bengali written by the most senior-most teacher, Mr. U.B. Ray and the music was composed by Mr. Ronald D’Costa. ‘Dream run, carries on’ followed by the Bengali version of the song ’Moder St.Xaviers Mora Tomar Koley Thaki.’ It was presented by the primary section of the school showing the grace in their song, dance and drama enlightening their culture which included Boatmen’s dance-on ‘Nao Charaya Dao.’Action song by K.G. boys, theme was ‘Harmony with Nature’. English Drama-‘Hansel& Gretel’ enthralled the audience and Bengali Dance and Drama-Balmiki Protibha. Boys were equally good in dancing.

The most amazing part of the programme was presentation of the group song and dance by the parents and which throws the harmonious relationship of the school, 1^st day programme ending with formation drill and vote of thanks by Thamacin Arullapan S.J.

The dream run of the school carried on the second day of the cultural fiesta. The programme was graced by Rev. Fr. Borris D’ Santos S.J. Vice  Principal, St. Xavier’s Collegiate School, Kolkata. The programme was presented by the secondary section of the school. The welcome was delivered by the Headmaster, Fr. M.S. Arockiasamy S.J. Floral felicitation was given to Fr. Thamacin, Fr. Arul, Fr. K.K. Devasy and  to the chief guest.

On 2^nd December 2012 , boys with full enthusiasm presented the Shakespearean play and the best part was their appropriate Gabardine and make-up. Followed by the ‘Colours of India’ and ‘Ganer Dhara’ highlighting the richness of cultural which our legacy carries on with the upcoming of Western effect dedication the maestro of English ‘Pop’- Michael Jackson. “Alumni and the Parents of the school cannot be restricted from expressing their emotions and so with their song and dance highlighted their feeling towards the school.” – said Sumita Dutta Mazumdar, Teacher and Co-ordinator of this School.  Boys are good in all sphere can be grudged by their ‘Yoga performance’ at the end by showing various formation including the motto, ’Like Gold in a Furnace’

            The Chief Guest Rev Fr Boris D’Santos, SJ, Vice-Principal of St. Xavier’s Collegiate School, Kolkata was honoured with Uttariya and Memento for his gracious presence in this Golden Jubilee Celebration which speaks volume for the aura of glory in which the school lies submerged through decades. In his short and valuable speech he recollected his earlier days back in 1969 when he paid a short visit to this School. He became astonished to see the sea change of the School, it’s infrastructure and the entire development of this City in particular. “I am pleased to see the development in all the field here and wherever I am looking I see the touch of development of this School but one thing is still remain constant rather unchanged that is – “it’s Spirit.” He expressed his best wishes to the Teachers, Students and all those associated with this great and historic institution. “I am honoured to be in these august environs that have produced many great sons of our country.”

            Teachers recollected the earlier days when in 1960 Mr. Bell, the then General Manager of Durgapur Steel Plant requested the Jesuit Provincial Fr. R. Antoine SJ to establish a school in Durgapur. Her offered a small plot of land also for this purpose. But  due to inadequacy of land, St. Xavier’s School was established in Durgapur  in 1963 in MAMC Township and in January 1967  the school was transferred to the new and permanent building at ABL Township. It has classes up to st. X with an upcoming std. XI and XII to begin from the next year. The school of ICSE Syllabus covers over 16000 square meters of land with more than one third of it occupied by e se greenery, consisting of deciduous and evergreen tropical trees. It has a large football ground, an auditorium, a badminton, volley ball and basket ball court, a multigym, a meditation room as well as a table tennis court and ample inbuilt space.

The school was draped with golden lamps and everywhere it seemed that it was a festive time for the School.

Kanchan Kumar Chatterjee. 

Published in TOI's School Edition.

Govt official pens Book of Poems.

Swapner Haatpakha – the book of Poem by Sujit Das, a joint Commissioner of Excise Dept.

When the people as a whole are still suffering from the loss and  grief for the sudden demise of Sunil Gangopadhyay the tallest contemporary writer in the Bengali language , city people are happy to some extent for the revelation of a  new poet of their own - Sujit Das and who become famous and cemented a place in the heart of several poets and poem lovers on the publication of his recent book of poems ‘Swapner Haatpakha’ published by Deep Prakashan, Kolkata.  It is the debut collection of poems by 43 year old Bengali Poet and it is certain that he may easily be designated as a next generation breed of poet.  The author is a Joint Commissioner of Excise Department and presently posted at Asansol. Now his name has become the talk of the town in the poetic world  and it is a matter of great astonishment to his fans to think over the matter that how a busy Executive in such a respective position manages time to wander in the mainstream of artistic and intellectual life.

            All his poems touched the heart of legendary poet Sunil Gangopadhyay and he has written in his own hand a foreword for Sujit’s maiden book, “The poems are written very much in a contemporary language.... the poet’s vision for the present happens to be his own achievement’. Sunil has also been categorical in saying, ‘love women and sex, everything has been portrayed with satire and serenity, but without any complexity whatsoever. The first thing that strikes me about ‘Swapner Haatpakha’is the presentation of the book, its cover page and illustrations. What is also worth mentioning about this collection is that almost all the poems may be termed as love poems and has got a varied range from psychedelic ambience, the poet’s childhood, the lush green serene North Bengal to the rigour of urban daily life. Amidst the frequently ironic arena of modern poetry this kind of candidness with a subtle rhythm between the lines will definitely make this book unputdownable.“

            On his choice of words, the poet has set a new trend by frequent use of colloquial English and Hindi words. Such jugglery with words has added a new dimension to this book. like ‘ichchha mrityu athoba satyabati / eta kono choice? / sei arthe lalosa thekei /Mahakabyer Janmo/  tai  aaj theke anarjya bhashyai katha bolbo’, or for that matter, ‘tomake nabojanmo dilo purusher tritiyo nayon / dushcharitror pyancha o taar ashleel shabdo chayon / Riye diona jaanu, dio na jaane jigor / aak khoka ransom, baki ta taar por’.

            What makes the situation of contemporary poets particularly surprising is that it comes at a moment of unprecedented expansion for the art. There have never before been so many new books of poetry published, so many anthologies or literary magazines. Never has it been so easy to earn a living as a poet. The proliferation of new poetry and poetry programs is astounding by any historical measure. Just under a thousand new collections of verse are published each year, in addition to a myriad of new poems printed in magazines both small and large. No one knows how many poetry readings take place each year but certainly it can be said that Sujit Das’s  ‘Swapner Haatpakha’ will  take a great  position in the heart of the readers.

            This book has also been highly appreciated by the renowned Bengali Poet Subodh Sarkar. “Sujit’s debut poetry book in unprecedented words. With such good words and evaluation under his belt, the debutant author seems to be very confident, ‘tomake khoon kore aaglai, notun Jakkho/ tomake goon kore samlai, purono akkhar/ naviti gobheer chhilo, chhiloi tow, bakalome sindhu/ tomake aabir dyay ni je, se bishwoninduk’. “

The book was published in Kolkata by Late Sunil Gangopadhyay along with the august presence of poet Arun Chakraborty (Writer of ‘Lalpaharir Deshe jaa’), Sri Subodh Sarkar and Smt  Bratati  Bandhopadhyay.

The renowned  Poet and Eelocutionist Goutam Chakaraborty of Durgapur is very happy for  his maiden book of poem and says,  “Nothing will ever change the joy and happiness, amongst other things, that poetry has brought to his world. It is a gift and it should always be appreciated. It is a life changer, and a tool for success. No matter how much the world changes, it will never change the power of poetry. Poetry is important because it takes ideas and emotions and feelings that cannot be expressed in  other way and expresses them with imagery and that is why poets are so powerful.”

Fur such grand success the poet told to TOI, “Poetry has the power to make us all better people, either if we chose to write it or spend time reading/listening to it. If I didn’t have my love of poetry, I would not be able to express my feelings on anything, including myself. I realize it is the talent that is the key to my success and for that I will remain grateful.”

Diptangshu Mondal of  Deep Prakashan proudly mentioned that “This book has already achieved the best seller credential and its second edition is on the anvil.”

Kanchan Kumar Chatterjee .

Published in TOI's School Edition.

 ’

Career options programme organized by the Rotary Club of Durgapur, Central in Association with NIIT Durgapur.

“If you are unable to crack JEE or IIT, you need not to think that your life has been spoilt utterly and not to be worried since now there are ample scope for the students pursuing their graduation level degrees in general line” – says Mr. Prosant Kumar, Director of NIIT, Durgapur in the seminar organized by NIIT in association with the Rotary Club of Durgapur Central on 25th March at Peerless Inn, Durgapur.

In the seminar nearly 200 students from Durgapur, Asansol, Andal, Kajora, Panagarh and other coalfield areas of different branches like  Science, Humanities and Commerce attended the programme  and everybody got a new meaning in respect  of the options for choosing their careers. 

Mrs. Madhuchhanda Sengupta, President of the Rotary Club of Durgapur Central says, “Actually stiff competitions and plenty of option now make the student confused. Before opening for a career firstly every student should analyze their interest, inclination, hobby, potentiality and opportunities as one can excel more excel more in the field of their own interest. In fine she even quoted the Darwin’s famous pr8inciple ‘survival of the fittest’ in this crucial matter.”

In fact now almost all the parents think that there are no career options other than Engineering and Medical line and if the mediocre students are failing to crack the entrance examinations, parents are starting to abuse their wards and they are getting frustrated and demoralized. Few guardians are considering the passions of their children while opting for their streams, courses and to give weightage for their options in other courses according to their interest for building their career. Parents never give any priority to the self-potentiality and interest of the candidates.

To weed out the thorn of confuse Rotary Club of Durgapur, Central and NIIT Durgapur had jointly endeavored to contour line of careers of today’s youth Gen-Y.

Tarak Nath Roy, Head (Sales & Marketing) of NIIT Durgapur said, “We take this privilege to introduce ourselves as World’s largest IT Training and Placement organization having shaped the futures of millions of students during our last thirty years of operations. It has been our constant endeavour to add value and provide the much required guidance to students who are at the threshold of taking the most important decision in their lives, the decision pertaining to the choice of career. NIIT, Asia’s No. 1 Talent Development Organization is proud to be associated with Rotary Club of Durgapur, Central and in collective effort of ours we arrange event called Gen-Y  - Ask your Pioneer which is an exposition of the various career paths available for a student.”

Rtn. Dr. Sabuj Sengupta said, “Now there are various institutions rich in academic offers diverse courses in the undergraduate level under the best universities which offer a broad spectrum of curricula and courses to suit the students’ interest and strength. Reputed universities offer courses such as Accountancy, Architecture, Arts, Social Science, Business Administration, Computing, Environmental Studies, Law, Nursing and etc. Now there is abundance of opportunities to broaden their horizon and develop cross cultural perspectives.”

“Now many students are even opting their career for Sports, Dance, Acting, Music, Hotel Management which were really rare a few decades ago. Today there are remunerative career in theatre and cinema and many students are opting their career in music even. These careers are catching up a trend now among many bright students” – avers the experts there. . 

Among the multifarious benevolent activities of the Rotary Club they are now showing the right path to the young generation who are the real asset of our society. They think that if young generation runs out of track then the society as a whole will never be able to lead in the path.  Since many students are now busy with their plus two examinations and could not attend the seminar, Rotary Club of Durgapur Central will arrange similar event for them in April this year. 

Kanchan Kumar Chatterjee. (with Pic). 

The frolic sea beaches - Digha & Mondermoni.

The most enjoyable and frolic sea beach in Digha and Mandarmani Amidst lush green surroundings.

Casuarinas plantation all along the coast is very enchanting.

Soak the weakend in the sun, embrace the sea-breeze and unwind on the sun-kissed beaches of Digha and Mandarmani.

Life remains incomplete if anyone fails the chance to pay a visit in the Beach of Mandarmani near Digha. Amidst the lush green surroundings this   Beach has now become the most attractive tourist spot nearest to Kolkata and also from Durgapur and Asansol City. During the winter a number of people plan for the short Mandarmani and Digha Tour . In township areas and in the outskirt village a number people visit these places  by their swanky cars or by reserved Bus in groups. Tourists from Kolkata and suburbs come to this spot by reserved bus, car or by any super deluxe SBSTC or private buses. In fact Mandarmani Beach of West Bengal is the breathtakingly gorgeous beach in a true ecstasy for the lovers of nature.

ADDA has at last agreed to grant the lease agreement of the MAMC quarters to the occupants.

Amidst the endless sorrow and anguish of the residents MAMC Township the only pleasurable news is that, they will not be evicted from their residential quarters   where they are passed the golden parts of their life since decades. They are relieving their sigh of relief after a long and relentless struggle as Asansol Durgapur Development Authority (ADDA) has decided to grant the ownership of the quarters to the employees on 999 years of lease agreement. The people in all are happy to the extent for such a permanent solution of their abode.  

Beautification of City Center Area on the advice of the Chief Minister of this State. .

City center Durgapur is going to be decorated immensely with flood of modern lights and others purely on the advice of the Chief Minister Mamata Bandopadhyay. Last year when she paid a short visit to this city during her official tour to many districts she stayed in this area and visited the City Center surroundings and felt that the area in particular is rather gloomy and advised the ADDA (Asansol Durgapur Development Authority) and other Administrative authorities for beautification of this area thoroughly to give a monumental grandeur in this area being the heart of this prominent city. ADDA Chairman, Tapas Bandopadhyay says, “This beautification and illumination work is being carried out on the instruction of the Chief Minister. We have already started to set up new lamp post with the modern CFL street lamp similar to the thoroughfares of Kolkata. Initially it is being done from the Kazi Najrul Islam statute near the Troika Park to the statute of Sahid Kshudiram near the Court. Besides the DMC office area as a whole will be illuminated by these special quality new generation road lighting luminaries and would be decorated adequately. This new range of lighting system makes significant contribution to energy saving and provide a safer and more comfortable environment. Moreover this luminary system is economical, highly advanced and consumes less energy and low maintenance expenses. ”

Renowned Dietician of Durgapur says to take Green Tea to become slim & fit.

So much so people are becoming addicted with junk food and getting reluctant to physical labour, they are gaining unnecessary fats and weight. Overweight has become an invariable problem people are facing now and they are willing to go any length in quest of a lasting solution. Everybody wants to possess a skinny and healthy figure. From dawn to late night people are doing lots to loose their weight and to remain healthy and cheerful. Many a people are getting the fruits of their hard labour and remaining young and fit. But in the hectic schedule of the industrial life many a people are unable to cope up with such a disciplined and hard schedule and for them at least in the opinion of Mrs. Rita Koirala, the dietician of this city the easy method to lose weight is to take green tea in sufficient quality. “Green Tea contains high concentrations of catechins polyphenols which working with other chemicals intensify levels of fat oxidation and thermogenesis where heat is created in the body by burning fuels such as fats. Drinking Green Tea regularly can increase metabolism and helps burn fat safely and naturally. It also causes carbohydrate to be released slowly, preventing sharp increase in blood insulin levels. This promotes the burning of fat. ”

In-house Training Programme in DTPS by the Quality Circle Forum of India, Kolkata Chapter.


Durgapur Thermal Power Station’s (DTPS) HRD Department had organized two days’ In-house Training Programme from 16th to 17th March in DTPS Station Club with  the  assistance of Quality Circle Forum India, Kolkata Chapter. Nearly a hundred officers and staff attended the Training programme for awareness and introduction, implementation and its benefits and operational sequence, identification of problems and its counter measure and syndicate exercise with application of problem solving tools and techniques.
Mr. P. Sen Roy, Chief Engineer, DTPS says, “To improve the overall performance of the employees and to enrich their work life, we have conducted such type of In-house Training Programme. This type of programme reduces errors and enhances quality and productivity, inspire more effective teamwork, increase motivation and promote job involvement and participation.”

NATIONAL SAFETY WEEK IN DTPS AND DSP.

                The National Safety Week is observed in this industrial city in almost all the industries like DSP, ASP, DTPS, DPL and even in the small scale industries in befitting manner to promote awareness and initiative among the employees as well as the people as a whole. Durgapur Thermal Power Station (DTPS) celebrated this National Safety Day and the Week from 4th March to 10th March with various programme to highlight the importance of Safety in all spheres of life so as to prevent mishaps and accidents resulting out of neglect or lack of awareness. On 4th March they displayed banner in almost all the prominent places in the Factory premises and in the Colony. On 5th at 11 AM the Chief Engineer Mr. P. Sen Roy administered the Safety Pledge to the employees inside the Plant premises. “Beside we had arranged a Safety Quiz Competition on 6th of March and a good number of employees took part most enthusiastically. We had also arranged a live programme where the CISF Fire Wing DTPS Unit demonstrated the employees the technique of using the fire extinguishers and the breathing apparatus in case of extreme emergency. Besides the safety week in March every year we organize various programmes throughout the year to promote awareness and initiative on safety issues among the people.  Industrial activities have increased enormously during the last five decades and industrial safety is a matter of serious concern. Even a small slip-up can cause a major accident. Proper precautions and periodic training can avoid these accidents to a great extent.”- says Amal Kumar  Mukhopadhyay,  Chief Safety Officer of DTPS.

Retirement is not the end of life.....

Retirement is not the end of life but the beginning of a new chapter - formation of ABOSAR IN Durgapur
Retirement heralds the beginning of a whole new chapter in the life. Times have changed and people now look forward to make their retirement years fun living and the best years of their life. Retirement is now considered to be an opportunity - to do something you always wanted to do in life but never had time to do. In this noble mission  ‘Abosar’ was formed in the year 2007 with twenty retired Executives, Professors, Doctors, Lawyers, Engineers and other officials who once hold responsible positions in their service life. ‘Abosar’ – an NGO in this city have dedicated themselves for the cause of humanity in general and for the distress people and pupil in particular to aware every section of the society even to their members about their obligations for the welfare cause or society and humanity to enjoy the life with proper spirit and zeal. Formerly words like boredom, depression and loneliness were affiliated to retirement. The very thought of retirement evoked anxiety in people as the new phase of life was full of uncertainty. The transition from a lot of work to no work and the feeling of being useless damped their spirits earlier.
Dr. S. R. Bhowmick, President of Abosar says, “Since the inception of this society, we are trying to render our assistance on education for the poor and meritorious students and different sections as well as to render help to the aged people. We organize various seminars and programme to make the people in general aware and conscious the necessity of donating Blood, Eye and Body. At the same time we try to highlight the rights and obligations of the patients, medical ethics and many such things so that they never be deceived by other service providers.  ”
“One of the major changes that happen as we reach retirement age is that the structure of our social life is likely to change. The work environment, where we would met with people every day is now gone. To many it seems that it is replaced by what can seem like long days where we will meet hardly a soul, except perhaps for the next door neighbour or the local shopkeeper, who are often too busy to spend the time interacting with us in the way that our former work colleagues would. Often those former work colleagues will have moved on. We are no longer party to the work gossip or the changes being made in the workplace and therefore the friendship we once had with them tends to drift” says Ashok Chakraborty, the Chief Adviser of this Society.

The Young working couples with their kids in Durgapur are facing great difficulties to continue their jobs for want of a Crèche.

The Young working couples with their kids in Durgapur are facing great difficulties to continue their jobs for want of a Crèche.

With increased opportunities for employment for women and the need to supplement household income more and more women are entering the job market. With the breaking  of joint family system and the increased phenomenon of nuclear families, working women need support in terms of quality, substitute, care for the young children while they are at work. There has, however been no such crèche/day care facilities resulting in failure to meet the needs of working mothers in terms of extend, content and quality of services in this industrial sector till now, though the avenue of working facilities are growing day by day in many malls, hotels and many such places. Presently Crèche or Day Care services are not only required by working mothers but also women belonging to poor families who require support and relief from childcare as they struggle to cope with burden of activities, within and outside the home for various purposes.
“Durgapur-Asansol industrial area is fast emerging as the most favoured destination for the industrialists. Almost daily people are seeing various ‘foundation stone laying’ ceremony of some small or large industries or the inauguration of some multifarious organizations, institutions, mall or hotels and the like. As a result job opportunities in this area is also increasing day by day and men and women from far away places are coming here with their jobs on transfer or afresh and setting in this city. Gone are those days when women employees were rare in this area. The few employed either in DSP or in some Schools got more time to look after their children and the other members of their family in those days. But the present scenario is completely different. Now it is seen in Durgapur that a number of newly married couples are working either in Private Banks, Super Malls and Hotels or in other industries and even performing late night jobs in BPO Centers. Since the practice of living in joint families in this city has become a thing of past,  all the working couples are facing a great problem to look after their children and their life is becoming unbearable  for want of a good crèche here in Durgapur” – says the officials of NGOs.
On the other hand due to various menial job opportunities in this industrial sector, availability of fulltime maids and ayahs has become scarce and for want of a whole timer their  life is becoming more  problematic to keep their siblings in home under the motherly care of some responsible persons. Sangita Haldar, with her two years daughter, working in a Retail Shop says, “I am feeling much difficulty to continue my job. Since the nature of our jobs is very hectic, I feel it absolutely difficult to continue my service. My daughter is getting elder and becoming restless. Now she wants the care of some responsible person. My husband remains engaged in his business in this city and get no time to spare for his family. After the day longs hectic jobs we become exhausted and domestic problems in home irritate us. ”
B. K. Singh, a retired NGO Officer says, “A Crèche centre must have a minimum space of 6-8 sq. ft. per child to ensure that they can play, rest and learn without any hindrance. The Centre should be clean, well lighted with adequate ventilation. A fan should also be installed in the centre. The centre must have clean toilet and sanitation facility that caters to the needs of small children. There should be adequate safe play area outside the centre also. Within the centre, there should be sleeping facilities for children i.e, mattresses, cradles, cots, pillows and basic infrastructure to meet the requirement of the children. Essential play material and teaching and learning material must be available to meet the needs of pre-school children. The cooking area must be located at the place which is away from the activity area of the children to avoid accidents. ”
Dr. S. R. Bhowmik says, “The centre must at all times be equipped with a basic First Aid Kit containing pediatric medicines for common ailments like fever, vomiting, cough and cold, dehydration, common stomach ailments, minor injuries, ointments, band-aids, cotton wool, disinfectants. The centre must have adequate safe and regular drinking water source. If necessary chlorination or boiling of drinking water must be supplied. Food provided to the children must have adequate nutritional value and there should be variety in the food that is given to the children every day. The food should be acceptable to the babies and children. For this the trained workers should know what the nutritious preparations suitable for babies are and children and they must cook food with due care and cleanliness. Weekly visits by Doctors should be carried out for treatment and check-ups.”
Though Durgapur Steel City is developing in all the fields, but crèche facility is still unavailable here. Various organizations are placing their demands to the Municipal Corporation and to many other benevolent organizations but yet nothing has come out. Same is the view of a good number of working couples in this city having small children and they all think that only a good Crèche can solve such problem.
Mandira Sen, 28, says, “ Things become worst when my husband an employee of ICICI, remains out on official tour or at any Party and I remain engaged at least up to 10 PM in my job at Suhatta Mall in a retail shop.”
“Durgapur is a developed city but I can’t imagine why in this fast age no crèche facility is available. Not only in Kolkata but in many small towns now such facilities are available. Both of us are working and after the day’s hectic jobs definitely we need to get a life instead of remaining home idle to change the nappies of our kids.” – she said further.
‘We need a comprehensive crèche with all the facility and a safe and secure environment where away from home the children would be catered and encouraged to develop their social, physical and cognitive skills. There must be an enclosed outdoor play area and professionally trained staff where the parents like us should feel confident about our children’s’ well care. Money would not be constraint for us is such a situation. All the young couples with their babies like us would surely heave a sigh of relief if in a crèche with all the modern facility is established in this city’ – says Anamika Sen, an employee of HDFC Bank in Durgapur.’
‘In our small quarters or living room children’s are remaining alone under the care of maids and ultimately becoming dull. They do not get any time and even a suitable place to play. In the modern crèche under the care of professional persons our kids would be able to live with many other children of their age and would be encouraged to express themselves freely through playing and other various training. Ultimately they would be able to adopt and learn more new skills and thereby can perform better in schools instead of their confinement in home under the care of some untrained and unlettered maids’ – says Ruma Haldar of B-Zone, Durgapur Steel Township.




Kanchan Kumar Chatterjee.

Battered road is shattering the peace of thousands of people of Mayabazar and surrounding areas.

Battered road is shattering the peace of thousands of people of Mayabazar and surrounding areas.

Doctors fear to pass the critical patients through this particular road in the Ambulance with running saline or blood.

The condition of the Road.

Now in the southern part of Durgapur there are a number of large and small scale industries and the prime industry is Durgapur Thermal Power Station which is producing and transmitting power to many core industries in this complex. Moreover now there are a good number of other small scale industries, Bank, Hospital, Post Office in this region.  Centered these industries a number of other miniature projects are doing their business well since years. But the most unfortunate thing is that since decades this area as a whole is getting the step mother like treatment of the administrative authorities. “There is not a stint of development in the field and road and communication particularly in this region and we see that all the development is centered round the City Center area only for the elite class of people live in the post areas” – says the locals unanimously.
 From NH2 Gandhi More Surya Sen  Sarani is the only road to come to this vast industrial area and the road in particular is stretched up to Mayabazar and from there it is getting bifurcated to Gammon Bridge near Durgapur Railway Station in the left and to Durgapur Thermal Power Station in the right. DMC takes the responsibility of a regular maintenance of the road just from Gandhi More to the point of Alloy Steels Plant and the rest portion nearly one and a half kilometer up to Mayabazar Level Crossing seems to be parentless. Nobody cares about its maintenance and supervision. Whenever the question of maintenance arises there arises a passover tendency between the industrial authorities doing their business here and Durgapur Municipal Corporation (DMC) and the condition becomes like ‘bhager maa ganga pai naa’.
Since it is only approach road to touch the NH2, Durgapur Steel City and City Center from dawn to midnight the road remains always busy with traffic snarls. The heavy loaded trucks carrying fly ash from the power station to the coalfield areas, the loaded trucks and trailers carrying heavy materials and plant and equipment for the multifarious industries in this region the School and Staff Buses, Ambulances, Minis Buses, other innumerable private vehicles, Auto Rickshaws in addition to  the countless  number of two wheelers make all the time crammed full  this particular road.
The condition has become so worst that people fear to use the road for their frequent essentialities. School kids and the critical patients are the worst victims. It is seen that almost all the time ambulances carrying critical patients from this vast area to DSP Hospital, Mission Hospital, other Nursing Homes and even to Kolkata and the condition becomes so shocking that  Doctors fear to pass the  critical patients  through this particular road  in the Ambulance with running saline or blood. Sometimes the fluids bulge out of the bottles in the heavy jerking of the pot holes of the battered road. The bone-rattling jerks on this one and a half kilometer of journey between ASP Gate and Mayabazar Level Crossing Gate has become a panic  to the people and triggering frequent accidents and breakdowns of the vehicles.   For passing so many vehicles all the time the whole area remains engulfed with dust with the pollutants and flying particles  of the industries located nearby. Without covering the nostrils with handkerchief or any other piece of cloth  and using specs none can pass through this area.
The stretch is dangerous for the two wheelers which skid regularly in the wedged between the loco tracks and suffer from frequent tube leakages for their regular journey in such a rugged road and they starts to invoke God to make them escape from mechanical damage of the vehicles and breaking their back bones. Some have become a chronic patient of various aches. It gets more deadly during rains when the large potholes remain filled up with muddy water.
Before a few years DMC and DVC jointly repaired the road. But now all are trying to shrugging off their responsibility for the maintenance of this little portion of indispensable road for thousands of people and commuters and school goers. During this political turmoil situation the leaders have also suspended their agitation and keeping mum in this endangered situation and extending their limit of forbearance and the people as a whole have become the only victims.
“Road congestion is another nagging problem for the residents. Unauthorized vendors and hawkers have encroached upon the road side area and thus making the narrow road more congested and accident prone. Taking granted that Railway land is their own land they are using this area as per their own choice. Brick-built buildings are also flourishing in the railway land” - says N. K. Roy, a retired surveyor of a Government concern.
But among all these miseries the most fortunate are the tyre repairing shops along this stretch of dangerous roads that are doing their business well and earning a lot repairing punctures in this precarious situation of this road.


Kanchan Kumar Chatterjee.

Introduction of Digital Teaching System in the renowned Hem Sheela Model School, Durgapur.

The conventional scene that the teachers are entering the classrooms with a piece of chalk and a duster has become a thing of past atleast in the renowned Hem Sheela Model School, Durgapur. This improvement is not only limited in a particular section of a higher class, it is for one to all from Nursery to Class-XII and all are happy. Henceforth even Nursery kids also will learn to  access computers on their own. This miracle has been done by the Hem Sheela Model School with the immense help from the Board of Trustees of Drury University. “2nd March this year will definitely be treated as  a red letter day as the School has attained another milestone. Chairman of the Board of Trustee Mr. Lynn Chipperfield and Former Chairman Mr. John Beuerlein both from Drury University graced the occasion and inaugurated the Smart Board facility in all the classes to their sister school – Hem Sheela Model School. ” – says Soumen Chakraborty, the Principal of this School.
SMART Board interactive white board helps to improve learning outcomes immensely. Combining the simplicity of a white board with the power of a computer the Smart Board interactive white board helps to deliver dynamic lessons, write notes in digital ink and at the same time save time and work and all happens with the simple touch of a finger.