The concept of Group Discussion has not
been a part of the regular academic curriculum in Colleges and Universities.
So, students usually face a lot of problem in this area of the
Selection Process. Let us first understand why Group Discussion is
conducted.
Most institutes today are very clear about the skills and knowledge that they look for in a student while screening. This was not the case a couple of years ago. Group Discussion has been a part of the Selection process for admission into most of the top Business Schools.
The skills that are usually assessed in a Group Discussion are:
Most institutes today are very clear about the skills and knowledge that they look for in a student while screening. This was not the case a couple of years ago. Group Discussion has been a part of the Selection process for admission into most of the top Business Schools.
The skills that are usually assessed in a Group Discussion are:
- Communication Skills
- Interpersonal Skills
- Leadership Skills
- Motivational Skills
- Team Building Skills
- Tolerance
- Clarity over Ambiguity
- Divergent Thinking
- Listening skills
- Presentation Skills
- Analytical / Logical skills
So, it's important to assess your current strengths in all these areas
and accordingly put efforts to strengthen your weaknesses.
GDs are used to assess certain group skills that cannot be evaluated in an interview. These include reasoning ability, leadership ability, Inspiring ability, flexibility, creativity/out-of-the-box thinking, social skills, listening and articulation skills, situational handling ability, interpersonal ability to function as a team player, body language and attitude. These are the skills which are very much required to become a successful professional which in turn works as an asset for the institutes at time of campus placements.
Another important reason for institutes to keep GD as an elimination round is because of the crowd factor. At the peak time of admissions, an institute has to deal with 1000s of aspiring students. In a GD, they can analyze upto 15 aspirants in 10 minutes.
Most of the institutes use Group Discussions as the next step in the selection process after written examination. That is the reason why Group Discussion has become so very important criteria for selection and rejection of candidates in institutes as well as during campus placements. GD is basically a methodology used by an institution to gauge whether a candidate has certain personality traits and/or skills that it desires in its students. Normally, the group of candidates is given a topic or a situation, given a few minutes to think about the same, and then asked to discuss it among themselves for some time. Topics can be from a wide range of issues. It could be a topic on current events, business news, sports or anything very general. The wider your reading interests, the better prepared you will be to face the group discussion. A Group discussion tests how you function as a part of a team.
Here are some tips for effective participation in a GD:
GDs are used to assess certain group skills that cannot be evaluated in an interview. These include reasoning ability, leadership ability, Inspiring ability, flexibility, creativity/out-of-the-box thinking, social skills, listening and articulation skills, situational handling ability, interpersonal ability to function as a team player, body language and attitude. These are the skills which are very much required to become a successful professional which in turn works as an asset for the institutes at time of campus placements.
Another important reason for institutes to keep GD as an elimination round is because of the crowd factor. At the peak time of admissions, an institute has to deal with 1000s of aspiring students. In a GD, they can analyze upto 15 aspirants in 10 minutes.
Most of the institutes use Group Discussions as the next step in the selection process after written examination. That is the reason why Group Discussion has become so very important criteria for selection and rejection of candidates in institutes as well as during campus placements. GD is basically a methodology used by an institution to gauge whether a candidate has certain personality traits and/or skills that it desires in its students. Normally, the group of candidates is given a topic or a situation, given a few minutes to think about the same, and then asked to discuss it among themselves for some time. Topics can be from a wide range of issues. It could be a topic on current events, business news, sports or anything very general. The wider your reading interests, the better prepared you will be to face the group discussion. A Group discussion tests how you function as a part of a team.
Here are some tips for effective participation in a GD:
- Understand - Understand the topic before attempting to contribute.
- Speak - Try and get a chance to speak. If you can't get a chance to speak make your chance.
- Initiate - Take the initiative to begin the discussion, if possible.
- Structure - Structure arguments logically - justify your stand.
- Summaries- Summaries the discussion effectively
- Involve- Take active part throughout the GD.
- Assert- Be assertive.
- Articulate- Work continuously towards articulating your ideas into meaningful sentences to make the best impact. Be clear in your speech.
- Emphasize.-Use non-verbal communication to emphasize points.
- Listen- Be an attentive listener.
- Quality, not quantity matters- it's not ‘how much' you say, but ‘what' you say that's important.
To prepare for a group discussion, keep track of happenings around the
world. Being aware of current affairs and issues and happenings, which
affect our lives, however remotely, shows a well-rounded personality.
Make a habit of reading newspapers and magazines, watch interesting
documentaries and profiles on television to get a wider perspective on
issues. As an individual, your intelligence, general knowledge and core
competencies are measured through the aptitude test. As a team player,
your ability to lead and play in team is measured in the GD.
You will have to pursue the following points if you want to be successful in a group discussion. The points are as follows:
You will have to pursue the following points if you want to be successful in a group discussion. The points are as follows:
- Make sure that you read as much news as possible. Generally the topic is chosen from some of the current happenings. Hence you should make sure that you have a look at all of them.
- Make sure that you speak loudly and clearly. This is one of the most important things and you could find yourself in difficulty if you do not speak loudly and clearly in a GD.
- You should know that you are not really bounded to think in one way. You are free to think on your own and put forward some new ideas. It is good for your chances and also for the GD since new ideas will definitely make it interesting.
- You should know what the topic is really about. If you have some confusion then you should wait for some time and let the other speak at first. When the matter is quiet clear and the GD is in midst then you should start speaking with new ideas in mind.
Traits institutes are looking for in an MBA aspirant:
Knowledge:
Knowledge about the subject can never be replaced in a GD. No matter how good you might be communicating, but if your sentences don’t reflect that you are knowledge bank then it’s probably not going to work out. You are required to talk in a GD but inputs that don't contain any substantial value will not help in any way. One has to keep himself updated by knowing what all is happening around the globe. Alertness and presence of mind:
In a GD you are required to carefully listen to the other person's thoughts and keep an argument, example or a supportive statement, fact, example ready to participate in the discussion. This shows how alert you are, how much importance you give to when someone is putting his or her point forward. This also shows how good listener you are, at time, things turn up to be a mess when you feel that what is being said is not making sense. Don’t get irritated. Remember that you need to be calm and composed. Many times after a mess happening in a GD, candidates who are calm are selected.
Out of the box thinking:
Yes! This the something that can help you get further selected because this reflects that you have a different way of looking at things. You need to be creative and have to put points that might amaze the panel. Remember, while working there are times when we need to find out solutions to the problem in a better way, thinking out of the box helps you finding smart and good solutions at times.
Tips for Group Discussion DO’s and Don’ts
Knowledge:
Knowledge about the subject can never be replaced in a GD. No matter how good you might be communicating, but if your sentences don’t reflect that you are knowledge bank then it’s probably not going to work out. You are required to talk in a GD but inputs that don't contain any substantial value will not help in any way. One has to keep himself updated by knowing what all is happening around the globe. Alertness and presence of mind:
In a GD you are required to carefully listen to the other person's thoughts and keep an argument, example or a supportive statement, fact, example ready to participate in the discussion. This shows how alert you are, how much importance you give to when someone is putting his or her point forward. This also shows how good listener you are, at time, things turn up to be a mess when you feel that what is being said is not making sense. Don’t get irritated. Remember that you need to be calm and composed. Many times after a mess happening in a GD, candidates who are calm are selected.
Out of the box thinking:
Yes! This the something that can help you get further selected because this reflects that you have a different way of looking at things. You need to be creative and have to put points that might amaze the panel. Remember, while working there are times when we need to find out solutions to the problem in a better way, thinking out of the box helps you finding smart and good solutions at times.
Tips for Group Discussion DO’s and Don’ts
- Group strength is usually 8 to 12 members
- When the group discussion topic is announced and if you do not get the topic properly, just request to repeat the topic. Do not show surprises.
- Correctly saying what you want to say- speaking effectively and efficiently is very important.
- General Principles
- Be a good listener
- Do not use high vocabulary
- Never use technical language while speaking
- Not knowing is not a problem , do not try to bluff
- Things to avoid
- Do not criticize on religion
- Do not get personal with anyone
- Do not criticize foreign policy of India
- Never ever try to bluff
Note:
» Argument is - exchange of ignorance
» Discussion is - exchange of knowledge
» Argument is - exchange of ignorance
» Discussion is - exchange of knowledge
Few Group Discussion topics, with remarks, are mentioned below for your
reference.
CRICKET HAS SPOILED OTHER
STREAMS OF INDIAN SPORTS
Number of participants: 5Time: 20 Mins
Rahul Reddy Started:
Good Morning everyone, it is my pleasure to be seated with you all for this exciting discussion. Let’s fully participate in this and try to come up with a concrete end remark.
I think, it is not justified to think cricket as a national obsession. It is the one game through which we Indians are able to hold our heads high. We won two world cups and have been on top in tests for two odd years. Whatever it has brought is quite appreciable. In other sports as well, like Abhinav bindra winning gold medal in Olympics, Indian hockey team winning 8 gold medals in past, etc are also highly appreciated. But it is also a fact that it happened when TV’s and internet are on full bloom. But, in 1983, when India won the world cup, the TV’s were just becoming popular. Still, cricket fever was high on everyone’s head. That made it more popular than any other sport. Every Indian wants to play cricket in streets. It is in Indian blood and no media is required for cricket. Cricket is, and will be the most popular sport in India although I hope other sports also will do well.
Smriti Nigam said:
Hello everyone, I do agree with my friend here.
Even I don't think that cricket have hurt any other sports. If cricket is more interesting, full of excitement, inculcating a nation patriotism feeling, then it is not the "SPORT'S" fault. I think it is just because cricket has a very interesting format and that is why it has become so popular and loved by all. It is followed as a religion and the cricketers are worshiped as God in our country. But also the fame that cricket has given to India, cannot be ignored. As far as other sports are concerned, they have not lost their importance. Whether it is tennis, badminton or hockey they are still very popular. But yes, it is a fact that cricket is more popular and followed by more people.
Himanshu said:
Good Morning friends,
Good Morning friends,
I don't think cricket as a national
obsession is a deterrent to other sports. Cricket has got popularity
because of the legends cricket has given to us like sunil gavaskar,
kapil dev, sachin tendulkar, etc. Just because of the achievement that
these peoples have made in the game of cricket, it is appreciated so
much in India. Recently, if we take an example, when Rajyawardhan Singh
Rathore won silver in Olympics, just after that we won lots of medals in
shooting. So, if we want others game to be equally appreciated, then we
need some great legends in other games too. And I believe that if other
sports will also produce great players then definitely they will get as
much appreciation as cricket in this country.
Mayank Aggarwal said:
Hello Friends,
Hello Friends,
As the topic suggests, that cricket is
detriment to other sports, I quite agree with it. It is because:
1) Cricket game is promoted by the way of advertisement.
2) Cricket sport stars are being seen in most of the advertisements related to cricket or promotion of any other product from honey to alcohol and potato chips to insurance.
3) One of the main reasons for the game of cricket being preferred is when there is a match between India and Pakistan. And the way it is advertised on the news make cricket not only detriment to other sports but to national peace.
4) In newspapers, most of the sports page is filled with cricket news, wherever it is held.
So, along with cricket, the Indian media too, is playing the role of detriment to other sports of India.
Media has the highest power today in our country. If it wishes, it can change the shape of sports too.
Abin Thomas said:
Hello everyone,
I don't, at all, think that cricket is a detriment to other sports. But, it is the Indian people's supportive spirit towards cricket is what is destructing other sports. Most people do not even know that India has teams in Hockey, Rugby, Soccer, Basketball, etc. It feels mortified extremely, to know that a huge nation like India does not support its athletes. I hope that we will recognize our athletes of all games and supports them in their respective sports.
Rahul Reddy said:
As I said earlier, according to me cricket is not at all detrimental to any other sports, it is suppressed by ourselves, we-the people are totally responsible for that. Well, I think that there is no comparison between 2 sports. Each has its own existence, so how can cricket suppress the other sports? It is just the matter of fact that Indian people are crazy about the cricket .So the comparison lies not in sports but in our thinking only. Few days ago, the Economic Times conducted a survey to find out who inspires the people in the field of sports and the results announced that almost -
43% people inspires with S R Tendulkar
35% people inspires with M S Dhoni
11% people inspires with S. Nehwal
04% people inspires with Vijendra Singh
04% people inspires with A. Bindra
This survey observed that a total of 78% people inspired by the cricketers, that shows the craziness of the people towards cricket.
Mayank Aggarwal said:
Well, I personally feel that obsession with cricket is a detriment to other sports. It is all because of the way it is promoted. It is just like in the case of a movie, if a movie is hyped about, all of us go to watch it. But on the same time some epic movie just gets neglected because of poor advertisement. Also, it is not the case that there is less talent in other sports. If other sports are unable to match up to the expectations, it is only because of improper training due to lack of finances.
Smriti Nigam said:
Well friends, although I like and support cricket a lot, I fell that, unintentionally only but cricket has come to a point from where it has become detrimental to other sports. You can see among yourself only, tha how many of us watches other sports played by Indian sportsmen. Of course, a handful! Why is it so? One definite reason could be the hype that cricket gets through the media. People not only watch the match with shear attention but also the pre and post-match shows. Other main reason is the investment of money either by the Government and/or, now as we can see, by the business individuals which lures young minds to have a great profession in cricket. Lastly, I would say that the Government should definitely see to this and take necessary measures to allow other sports perpetuate.
Abin Thomas Concluded:
Now, if we conclude our discussion I would like to highlight the main points that were discussed.
First: Majority of us agreed that the Game of Cricket, in itself, is not spoiling other streams of sports but it’s the audience that goes crazy for its favorite sport.
Second: Media should give as much exposure to other sports as much it does to cricket.
Third: Government and Corporate people need to fund other sports as well so that they could get better training and bring home as much popularity as cricket does.
Remarks:
Team – A good team with members willing to participate as no one asked anyone to speak; rather everyone picked their own chance of entering the discussion.
Rahul:
Confident and aware of his stance
Knows how to take leadership
Started the discussion and paved the way throughout
Aware of current happenings
Believes in producing proper data
Strong chances of getting selected
Smriti:
Confident but loses her stance
Gets drifted by others persuasive arguments
Believes in accepting what comes along
Strong analyzing power
Does stand a chance to get selected
Himanshu:
Not very confident
Spoke only once in 20 mins
Believes in joining the bandwagon
Not in a habit of going through newspapers and thus not updated about sport stars.
Does not stand chance of selection
Mayank:
Extremely confident
Believes in walking down his own path
Very clear on his stance
Knows how to put across his points and views
High chance of selection
Abin:
Confident
Aware of current happenings
Patriotic
Analytical mind
Does stand a chance of selection
Time: 20 Mins
Pooja said:
A very good morning everyone! I feel very proud to be sitting here for this exciting discussion. I hope this will lead to a very productive exercise.
When it comes to predict that whether we will have a corruption free society or not, I would say it is not impossible but also very difficult to achieve as I strongly believe that corruption is the price we pay for democracy. Corruption is the abuse of power and consequently the people. It not only prevents enough money to go in the pockets of the people who need it, but makes it easy for the politicians to grab it all. This problem is not only prevalent in India, but also in developed countries. So, I think corruption is caused by greed, which is inevitable pull of emotion in humans.
Vishal said:
Hello Friends,
Corruption is NOT the price we pay for democracy. Thus, it is possible to have a corruption free society. If you think about it, being a democracy is the only thing that helps us put our views out here. A democratically elected government is answerable to the people, through the opposition party. Yes, there is rampant corruption in the society, not just in the government services, but also in private sector industries, such as Satyam. But think for a moment. A lot of money has been looted with a legal check on power. What if we had no rights to say what we want to? If there was no opposition, who would have pointed out the embarrassing flaws in the ruling party? The corrupt will have a license to do it in the open, and a lot more money would be taken away from each of us. Thus politicians can also help in discarding corruption from our system.
Akshita said:
Good Morning friends,
What I believe is that it is very easy to say, that corruption is unstoppable, and crack jokes about the corruption in India. But if none of us pay a bribe to anyone, try to use monetary power to cut corners, this is possible. Government agencies might refuse to work without your bribe, but if none of us pay a bribe and he still refuses to work, the whole system will collapse. He will not be able to take it after a point. This doesn't happen in a day, of course, but with a clear destination set in our minds, we can get there.
This won’t be the first time when a mass public agitation will rise in the country, where the government seemed to be in power of everything. What it needs is persistence and non-cooperation of the public. Think of our fight for independence. Corruption was much more rampant, and the Englishmen were in control of all our government undertakings. We got them out of the country. It is possible to do that to corruption as well, we just need persistence and faith.
I also would like to mention that if corruption was the price paid for democracy, communist nations such as China wouldn't be corrupt, and they are ranked higher in the most corrupted nations list.
N Manish said:
Hello Friends,
I believe it is absolutely possible to have a corruption free society as we are the largest democratic country. We have many rights in our hands but as far as corruption is concerned democracy opposes it. If we know our rights and our responsibilities, we can surely throw away corruption from its roots. We have to change at first place because removing corruption is neither a one day job nor a one man’s job. We must stop giving bribe in public offices, to traffic police, we all must abide by rules and regulation then only the cure of corruption is going to come.
Rushil said:
Friends,
What I believe is that democracy is not the price we pay for corruption but corruption is the consequences of unawareness of people towards this everyday topic of life. Corruption has to be stopped in any way and the main thing is to increase the awareness of common people towards this problem of bribes. The main power that could help in controlling this is the media. It could be the newspaper, TV or radio they have to start campaigns against this life taking disease. They can contribute a lot in creating a corruption free society.
Pooja Said:
Though India is a democratic country, we still have to pay to get what is our right. Corruption is the base for each and every evil thing that happens in India. Nowadays, we see news full of corruption scandals by leaders of the country who are ruling the country. Common man is responsible for the corruption, because he has no options left to complete his work without giving bribe. Corruption will not end unless there is awareness among the people regarding the bad consequences like hike in petrol prices, LPG, and other daily requirements which a common man has to pay for.
Akshita said:
Now-a-day we can't find a place where there is no corruption. But by the year 2020, world's 50% of the youth will be in India. If we blame others, nothing will happen and even corrupt people won't change. So we have to be mentally very strong and we must have the determination to make the India the powerful country in the world. That means not only in the sense of money, but we have to be respected by every person in the world due to our cultures and mind set. If we have the courage to achieve a corruption free society, then we will be the number one in the entire world. We should have the confidence that we can achieve anything, not only the corruption free society but also whatever we want to change in our society.
Rushil said:
Now, if you all will please allow me to sum up the discussion and put forth the important points as discussed.
We all agree that it is not impossible to achieve a corruption free society, provided, we, the citizen of India, takes an oath that now and in future we will try to make our country a better place to live.
Remarks:
Team – A good team with members willing to participate as no one asked anyone to speak; rather everyone picked their own chance of entering the discussion.
Pooja:
Confident and sharp
Strong determination
Knows how to take leadership
Knowledge wise, on a very superfluous level who believes politicians are the only problem
Chances of selection are not very bright
Vishal:
Very confident
Does not believe in joining the bandwagon
Has clarity of thought and to the point argument
Knows how to put forth his point
Although spoke only once, he outshines all the other
Very Strong chance of selection
Akshita:
Confident and sharp
Strong determination
Optimistic
Knowledgeable
Has clarity of thought and to the point argument
Knows how to put forth his point with excellent examples
Very Strong chance of selection
N Manish:
Not very confident
Presented loose points
Rephrased others comment
Not very bright chance of selection
Rushil:
Confident
Knows how to take leadership
Added a very valid point to the discussion
Optimistic
Knowledgeable
Analytical
Very bright chances of selection
Time: 20 mins
Pooja said:
A very Good Afternoon Friends. The topic, that we will discuss today, beholds the future of our country.
The reality of Primary Education in India is the entrenched system that perpetuates inequality. Thus, while mention of reservation for schedule castes and tribes and OBCs in institutes of higher learning leads to demonstrations and heated debates in the media, the pathetic state of primary education continues virtually unnoticed and unaddressed. And millions of Indian children still go to schools without buildings, without books and without teachers. This is the disheartening state of primary education in India and the Government should understand that whether there are seats reserved at higher levels for the disadvantaged matters little if they continue to be deprived of quality education at the entry level.
Aman said:
Hello friends,
I agree with what my friend has just stated that Government should focuses more on primary education so that it could come out of the wretched condition it is in. We can say that primary education is a root of tree. If a tree's root will not strong how will it grow. Elementary education should be given the highest priority because this is the child’s stepping-stone. If they are able to undergo their elementary education, there is a great probability that they will not even continue up to high school, forget about higher degree colleges. The Government should remember that the journey to a thousand miles begins with the first step.
Sunil said:
Hello friends,
I also agree with my friends.
The present system of primary education does not serve the purpose for which it has been started by the Government. And in private schools, primary education itself has become so profitable a business that the quality is lost. The purpose of primary education for a child should be the all round development of his personality but the present day scenario of Indian primary education is neither imparting true knowledge of life & world to the students nor helping them in standing on their own legs which will help them achieve laurels in the field they are interested in.
Swati said:
Good Afternoon Friends.
I think the Indian primary educational system is lagging in all the respects. Whether its school building, teachers, updated study material or motivation for the poor students. This situation has proved the greatest barrier in the way of our progress. Primary or elementary education has remained basically a paper tiger and has not been realized properly. School buildings are non-existent in tribal and hilly areas, study materials are not up-to-date and poor parents and students are not properly motivated to avail of these educational facilities. This alone states the pathetic situation of Indian Primary Education System.
Saurabh said:
Hello friends,
Recently I saw a report on the situation of Primary Education in India in one of the leading newspapers. According to that report, about 20% of Indian children between the ages of 6 and 14 are not enrolled in school. Even among enrolled children, attendance rates are low and 26% of pupils enrolled in primary school drop out before Grade 5. The situation is worse in certain sectors of the population: the poor, those living in rural areas, girls, and those living in some states, such as Bihar and Rajasthan. Literacy rates are 21% lower for females than for males. Among those children aged 6 to 14 not enrolled in school, more than 60% are girls. Some communities do not see the need to educate daughters because they will be married off at an early age and live and work with their in-laws, mostly doing housework and raising children. These figures are proof enough for showing the dismal condition of our primary education.
Sunil said:
So now if we put our concluding remark, we all agree that the Government has failed to upgrade our primary education system to a large extent and primary education facilities are not yet available to all. Also, that before providing for higher degree colleges like IIT’s and IIM’s, Government should make sure that the students get the best of primary education which is in wretched situation for now.
Remarks:
Team – The whole team was on a very superfluous level and no any member tried to dig down into the real problem. Everyone was repeating the issue in their own words. Only Saurabh was seen backing his argument withsome data. All the other members discussed what it was already mentioned in the topic.
Also, no one discussed the following important topics:
1) Cricket game is promoted by the way of advertisement.
2) Cricket sport stars are being seen in most of the advertisements related to cricket or promotion of any other product from honey to alcohol and potato chips to insurance.
3) One of the main reasons for the game of cricket being preferred is when there is a match between India and Pakistan. And the way it is advertised on the news make cricket not only detriment to other sports but to national peace.
4) In newspapers, most of the sports page is filled with cricket news, wherever it is held.
So, along with cricket, the Indian media too, is playing the role of detriment to other sports of India.
Media has the highest power today in our country. If it wishes, it can change the shape of sports too.
Abin Thomas said:
Hello everyone,
I don't, at all, think that cricket is a detriment to other sports. But, it is the Indian people's supportive spirit towards cricket is what is destructing other sports. Most people do not even know that India has teams in Hockey, Rugby, Soccer, Basketball, etc. It feels mortified extremely, to know that a huge nation like India does not support its athletes. I hope that we will recognize our athletes of all games and supports them in their respective sports.
Rahul Reddy said:
As I said earlier, according to me cricket is not at all detrimental to any other sports, it is suppressed by ourselves, we-the people are totally responsible for that. Well, I think that there is no comparison between 2 sports. Each has its own existence, so how can cricket suppress the other sports? It is just the matter of fact that Indian people are crazy about the cricket .So the comparison lies not in sports but in our thinking only. Few days ago, the Economic Times conducted a survey to find out who inspires the people in the field of sports and the results announced that almost -
43% people inspires with S R Tendulkar
35% people inspires with M S Dhoni
11% people inspires with S. Nehwal
04% people inspires with Vijendra Singh
04% people inspires with A. Bindra
This survey observed that a total of 78% people inspired by the cricketers, that shows the craziness of the people towards cricket.
Mayank Aggarwal said:
Well, I personally feel that obsession with cricket is a detriment to other sports. It is all because of the way it is promoted. It is just like in the case of a movie, if a movie is hyped about, all of us go to watch it. But on the same time some epic movie just gets neglected because of poor advertisement. Also, it is not the case that there is less talent in other sports. If other sports are unable to match up to the expectations, it is only because of improper training due to lack of finances.
Smriti Nigam said:
Well friends, although I like and support cricket a lot, I fell that, unintentionally only but cricket has come to a point from where it has become detrimental to other sports. You can see among yourself only, tha how many of us watches other sports played by Indian sportsmen. Of course, a handful! Why is it so? One definite reason could be the hype that cricket gets through the media. People not only watch the match with shear attention but also the pre and post-match shows. Other main reason is the investment of money either by the Government and/or, now as we can see, by the business individuals which lures young minds to have a great profession in cricket. Lastly, I would say that the Government should definitely see to this and take necessary measures to allow other sports perpetuate.
Abin Thomas Concluded:
Now, if we conclude our discussion I would like to highlight the main points that were discussed.
First: Majority of us agreed that the Game of Cricket, in itself, is not spoiling other streams of sports but it’s the audience that goes crazy for its favorite sport.
Second: Media should give as much exposure to other sports as much it does to cricket.
Third: Government and Corporate people need to fund other sports as well so that they could get better training and bring home as much popularity as cricket does.
Remarks:
Team – A good team with members willing to participate as no one asked anyone to speak; rather everyone picked their own chance of entering the discussion.
Rahul:
Confident and aware of his stance
Knows how to take leadership
Started the discussion and paved the way throughout
Aware of current happenings
Believes in producing proper data
Strong chances of getting selected
Smriti:
Confident but loses her stance
Gets drifted by others persuasive arguments
Believes in accepting what comes along
Strong analyzing power
Does stand a chance to get selected
Himanshu:
Not very confident
Spoke only once in 20 mins
Believes in joining the bandwagon
Not in a habit of going through newspapers and thus not updated about sport stars.
Does not stand chance of selection
Mayank:
Extremely confident
Believes in walking down his own path
Very clear on his stance
Knows how to put across his points and views
High chance of selection
Abin:
Confident
Aware of current happenings
Patriotic
Analytical mind
Does stand a chance of selection
WE
WILL NEVER BE CORRUPTION FREE SOCIETY
Number of Participants: 5Time: 20 Mins
Pooja said:
A very good morning everyone! I feel very proud to be sitting here for this exciting discussion. I hope this will lead to a very productive exercise.
When it comes to predict that whether we will have a corruption free society or not, I would say it is not impossible but also very difficult to achieve as I strongly believe that corruption is the price we pay for democracy. Corruption is the abuse of power and consequently the people. It not only prevents enough money to go in the pockets of the people who need it, but makes it easy for the politicians to grab it all. This problem is not only prevalent in India, but also in developed countries. So, I think corruption is caused by greed, which is inevitable pull of emotion in humans.
Vishal said:
Hello Friends,
Corruption is NOT the price we pay for democracy. Thus, it is possible to have a corruption free society. If you think about it, being a democracy is the only thing that helps us put our views out here. A democratically elected government is answerable to the people, through the opposition party. Yes, there is rampant corruption in the society, not just in the government services, but also in private sector industries, such as Satyam. But think for a moment. A lot of money has been looted with a legal check on power. What if we had no rights to say what we want to? If there was no opposition, who would have pointed out the embarrassing flaws in the ruling party? The corrupt will have a license to do it in the open, and a lot more money would be taken away from each of us. Thus politicians can also help in discarding corruption from our system.
Akshita said:
Good Morning friends,
What I believe is that it is very easy to say, that corruption is unstoppable, and crack jokes about the corruption in India. But if none of us pay a bribe to anyone, try to use monetary power to cut corners, this is possible. Government agencies might refuse to work without your bribe, but if none of us pay a bribe and he still refuses to work, the whole system will collapse. He will not be able to take it after a point. This doesn't happen in a day, of course, but with a clear destination set in our minds, we can get there.
This won’t be the first time when a mass public agitation will rise in the country, where the government seemed to be in power of everything. What it needs is persistence and non-cooperation of the public. Think of our fight for independence. Corruption was much more rampant, and the Englishmen were in control of all our government undertakings. We got them out of the country. It is possible to do that to corruption as well, we just need persistence and faith.
I also would like to mention that if corruption was the price paid for democracy, communist nations such as China wouldn't be corrupt, and they are ranked higher in the most corrupted nations list.
N Manish said:
Hello Friends,
I believe it is absolutely possible to have a corruption free society as we are the largest democratic country. We have many rights in our hands but as far as corruption is concerned democracy opposes it. If we know our rights and our responsibilities, we can surely throw away corruption from its roots. We have to change at first place because removing corruption is neither a one day job nor a one man’s job. We must stop giving bribe in public offices, to traffic police, we all must abide by rules and regulation then only the cure of corruption is going to come.
Rushil said:
Friends,
What I believe is that democracy is not the price we pay for corruption but corruption is the consequences of unawareness of people towards this everyday topic of life. Corruption has to be stopped in any way and the main thing is to increase the awareness of common people towards this problem of bribes. The main power that could help in controlling this is the media. It could be the newspaper, TV or radio they have to start campaigns against this life taking disease. They can contribute a lot in creating a corruption free society.
Pooja Said:
Though India is a democratic country, we still have to pay to get what is our right. Corruption is the base for each and every evil thing that happens in India. Nowadays, we see news full of corruption scandals by leaders of the country who are ruling the country. Common man is responsible for the corruption, because he has no options left to complete his work without giving bribe. Corruption will not end unless there is awareness among the people regarding the bad consequences like hike in petrol prices, LPG, and other daily requirements which a common man has to pay for.
Akshita said:
Now-a-day we can't find a place where there is no corruption. But by the year 2020, world's 50% of the youth will be in India. If we blame others, nothing will happen and even corrupt people won't change. So we have to be mentally very strong and we must have the determination to make the India the powerful country in the world. That means not only in the sense of money, but we have to be respected by every person in the world due to our cultures and mind set. If we have the courage to achieve a corruption free society, then we will be the number one in the entire world. We should have the confidence that we can achieve anything, not only the corruption free society but also whatever we want to change in our society.
Rushil said:
Now, if you all will please allow me to sum up the discussion and put forth the important points as discussed.
We all agree that it is not impossible to achieve a corruption free society, provided, we, the citizen of India, takes an oath that now and in future we will try to make our country a better place to live.
Remarks:
Team – A good team with members willing to participate as no one asked anyone to speak; rather everyone picked their own chance of entering the discussion.
Pooja:
Confident and sharp
Strong determination
Knows how to take leadership
Knowledge wise, on a very superfluous level who believes politicians are the only problem
Chances of selection are not very bright
Vishal:
Very confident
Does not believe in joining the bandwagon
Has clarity of thought and to the point argument
Knows how to put forth his point
Although spoke only once, he outshines all the other
Very Strong chance of selection
Akshita:
Confident and sharp
Strong determination
Optimistic
Knowledgeable
Has clarity of thought and to the point argument
Knows how to put forth his point with excellent examples
Very Strong chance of selection
N Manish:
Not very confident
Presented loose points
Rephrased others comment
Not very bright chance of selection
Rushil:
Confident
Knows how to take leadership
Added a very valid point to the discussion
Optimistic
Knowledgeable
Analytical
Very bright chances of selection
INDIAN
PRIMARY EDUCATION IS PATHETIC
Number of Participants: 5Time: 20 mins
Pooja said:
A very Good Afternoon Friends. The topic, that we will discuss today, beholds the future of our country.
The reality of Primary Education in India is the entrenched system that perpetuates inequality. Thus, while mention of reservation for schedule castes and tribes and OBCs in institutes of higher learning leads to demonstrations and heated debates in the media, the pathetic state of primary education continues virtually unnoticed and unaddressed. And millions of Indian children still go to schools without buildings, without books and without teachers. This is the disheartening state of primary education in India and the Government should understand that whether there are seats reserved at higher levels for the disadvantaged matters little if they continue to be deprived of quality education at the entry level.
Aman said:
Hello friends,
I agree with what my friend has just stated that Government should focuses more on primary education so that it could come out of the wretched condition it is in. We can say that primary education is a root of tree. If a tree's root will not strong how will it grow. Elementary education should be given the highest priority because this is the child’s stepping-stone. If they are able to undergo their elementary education, there is a great probability that they will not even continue up to high school, forget about higher degree colleges. The Government should remember that the journey to a thousand miles begins with the first step.
Sunil said:
Hello friends,
I also agree with my friends.
The present system of primary education does not serve the purpose for which it has been started by the Government. And in private schools, primary education itself has become so profitable a business that the quality is lost. The purpose of primary education for a child should be the all round development of his personality but the present day scenario of Indian primary education is neither imparting true knowledge of life & world to the students nor helping them in standing on their own legs which will help them achieve laurels in the field they are interested in.
Swati said:
Good Afternoon Friends.
I think the Indian primary educational system is lagging in all the respects. Whether its school building, teachers, updated study material or motivation for the poor students. This situation has proved the greatest barrier in the way of our progress. Primary or elementary education has remained basically a paper tiger and has not been realized properly. School buildings are non-existent in tribal and hilly areas, study materials are not up-to-date and poor parents and students are not properly motivated to avail of these educational facilities. This alone states the pathetic situation of Indian Primary Education System.
Saurabh said:
Hello friends,
Recently I saw a report on the situation of Primary Education in India in one of the leading newspapers. According to that report, about 20% of Indian children between the ages of 6 and 14 are not enrolled in school. Even among enrolled children, attendance rates are low and 26% of pupils enrolled in primary school drop out before Grade 5. The situation is worse in certain sectors of the population: the poor, those living in rural areas, girls, and those living in some states, such as Bihar and Rajasthan. Literacy rates are 21% lower for females than for males. Among those children aged 6 to 14 not enrolled in school, more than 60% are girls. Some communities do not see the need to educate daughters because they will be married off at an early age and live and work with their in-laws, mostly doing housework and raising children. These figures are proof enough for showing the dismal condition of our primary education.
Sunil said:
So now if we put our concluding remark, we all agree that the Government has failed to upgrade our primary education system to a large extent and primary education facilities are not yet available to all. Also, that before providing for higher degree colleges like IIT’s and IIM’s, Government should make sure that the students get the best of primary education which is in wretched situation for now.
Remarks:
Team – The whole team was on a very superfluous level and no any member tried to dig down into the real problem. Everyone was repeating the issue in their own words. Only Saurabh was seen backing his argument withsome data. All the other members discussed what it was already mentioned in the topic.
Also, no one discussed the following important topics:
- How to handle this situation?
- What actually Government is doing and what should it do differently?
- Innovative Projects and Programs like –
District Primary Education Program - The program
that was first introduced in 1994 in 42 districts spread over seven
states is now under implementation in about 240 districts of fifteen
states. The program is structured in such a fashion so that it can provide
additional inputs over and above the provisions made by the state governments
for elementary education. Eighty five per cent of the project cost is
shared by the Government of India and the rest 15 per cent by the
concerned project states.
Lok Jumbish and Shiksha Karmi Projects - Apart from DPEP, Lok Jumbish (Peoples' Movement) and Shiksha Karmi Projects are the other two important programmes, which are, received attention at the international level. Both these projects are under implementation in Rajasthan since 1992, which is one of the most educationally backward states of India. Lok Jumbish and Shiksha Karmi are funded by SIDA. The main objective of LJP is to achieve EFA through people's mobilization and participation. Whereas, SKP focuses its attention on universalisation and qualitative improvement of primary education in remote, arid area and socio-economically backward villages with primary attention given to girls.
Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) - The main goal of this program is that all children of 6-11 years of age should complete primary education by the year 2007 and all children of 6-14 years of age should complete eight years of schooling by 2010. This plan covers the whole country with special emphasis on girl education and education of Schedule Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribe (ST) children and children with special needs. The SSA centers are mainly opened in those areas, which do not have any school or where schools are very far off.
Operation Blackboard - It was started in 1987-88. The aim of this program is to improve human and physical resource availability in primary schools of India. According to this program every primary school should have at least two rooms, two teachers and essential teaching aids like blackboard, chalk, duster etc.
National Bal Bhavan - The National Bal Bhavan was opened with the aim of developing overall personalities of children of all strata of society irrespective of their caste, creed, religion and gender. It supplements school education by helping children to learn in play way and natural environment.
Special girl oriented programs like:
Lok Jumbish and Shiksha Karmi Projects - Apart from DPEP, Lok Jumbish (Peoples' Movement) and Shiksha Karmi Projects are the other two important programmes, which are, received attention at the international level. Both these projects are under implementation in Rajasthan since 1992, which is one of the most educationally backward states of India. Lok Jumbish and Shiksha Karmi are funded by SIDA. The main objective of LJP is to achieve EFA through people's mobilization and participation. Whereas, SKP focuses its attention on universalisation and qualitative improvement of primary education in remote, arid area and socio-economically backward villages with primary attention given to girls.
Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) - The main goal of this program is that all children of 6-11 years of age should complete primary education by the year 2007 and all children of 6-14 years of age should complete eight years of schooling by 2010. This plan covers the whole country with special emphasis on girl education and education of Schedule Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribe (ST) children and children with special needs. The SSA centers are mainly opened in those areas, which do not have any school or where schools are very far off.
Operation Blackboard - It was started in 1987-88. The aim of this program is to improve human and physical resource availability in primary schools of India. According to this program every primary school should have at least two rooms, two teachers and essential teaching aids like blackboard, chalk, duster etc.
National Bal Bhavan - The National Bal Bhavan was opened with the aim of developing overall personalities of children of all strata of society irrespective of their caste, creed, religion and gender. It supplements school education by helping children to learn in play way and natural environment.
Special girl oriented programs like:
- Girl education at elementary level.
- National Program for Education of Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL)
- Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV)
- Mahila Samakhya Scheme
Discussion of these topics would have provided more insight over why the
Government is failing every time even after announcing so many new and
innovative programs.
The chances of selection of any one from this team is not very bright.
Time: 20 mins
Pankaj said:
Hello Friends, this is a topic in which we, the youth of India, should take immense interest so that in future we are ready to face any kind of challenge proposed from China.
Chinese have been creating trouble in North Eastern States, giving training to insurgents, making their presence felt in strategic areas around India and giving massive military aid to Pak. China remains a bully knowing very well that India does not have an aggressive International policy and have no support from any of the major powers. We will have to shift our focus from Pakistan to China now. We are aware that Chinese are trying to minimize the Indian impact on South Asia by picking up Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and their 'all season friend' Pakistan. We need to strengthen and speed up our infrastructure projects in North-East Sector, Uttarakhand, Himachal and we can easily predict that Chinese incursion is the result of India’s increasing efforts of deploying 60,000 soldiers along the border line with China. They are aware that they cannot compete with USA in the pacific region. So they are trying to create pressure in the Himalayas. We will have to give up "non-aligned' international diplomatic policy and have an aggressive International Policy against such countries.
Kirti said:
Hello friends,
And yes, you are right about the Chinese bullish behavior. According to its vision of a multi-polar world and a uni-polar Asia, it has continued to implement its encirclement strategy towards its strongest rival India. It continues to support its all weather friend Pakistan and help it in enlarging its nuclear arsenal. Recent reports have shown of an accelerated nuclear activity in Pakistan and also of the reports that china is helping Pakistan in modernizing its nuclear warheads with plutonium. It has also supplied Pakistan the conventional weaponry. Latest being JF-17 and J-10. China is also increasing challenging USN in the pacific theatre. It is building a robust AA/AD capability and with its massive naval modernization program, it seems to me a potential challenger to US. Therefore, I would also suggest an aggressive diplomatic posture, building of huge military infrastructure in north-east and ties with like mind nations like US, South Korea and Japan.
Ankit said:
I do agree with my friends here,
China is bullying India as this is obvious with the insurgent attacks by the Chinese forces. We know that Chinese have very good army and so we should be prepared to counter any infiltration by the Chinese forces. India is much focused in the border line across Pakistan and neglecting Chinese border. The BSF should be strengthened with much more arms and weaponry to counter foil infiltration bid.
Anurima said:
A very good morning to all of you. Although, the points that have been discussed so far are very true, but I believe, that only through military power, China or any other country can never defeat another country. This is in the case of India and China as well.
India surely enjoys a lead over China, thanks to its low cost model which is difficult to emulate, followed by the number of cost benefits such as the cheapest available manpower after countries like Argentina and Brazil, which makes the Indian software industry a more lucrative proposition.
India also scores over China as it enjoys the benefits of having the largest English speaking population (even more than the United Kingdom) which makes it easier for the Indian software experts to understand the demands of their foreign customers.
India also enjoys the lead thanks to the biggest pool of technocrats and engineers; it churns out more than 400000 engineering professionals every year and the efficiency of an Indian software graduate is considered more than above average as compared to software professionals belonging to any other part of the world as per the software industrial norms.
India’s long-term potential may be greater than China’s as the communist giant faces a shrinking work force due to its “one child policy” whereas India enjoys an ever increasing work force. Population, in this case, seems to act as a boon for the Indian software industry rather than a liability.
Manish said:
Good morning friends,
I believe China has bullied and toyed with India right since the Fifties. In 1962, the whole world knows what happened, but India wants to imagine that it never did, because till date it simply does not know how to formulate a proper response to what happened then, and to subsequent developments. China, on the other hand, recognized pretty early that in the long run India would pose a real threat to Chinese domination, even hegemony, in the region. Having done that, they have systematically worked to ensure that India remains a small player, so constantly harassed and fatigued by Pakistan that it has no time to even think about China till is too late.
Kirti said:
So now if we conclude our discussion, we certainly agree that China has been bullying India for a long time now. And that we need to be ready for any future action to be taken against such countries. But some very interesting points that came up is that India, although, is bearing China in a lot of things but there are few fields in which India still has, and will continue to have, its rule over China like low cost model, cheapest available manpower, benefits of having the largest English speaking population, biggest pool of technocrats and engineers and ever increasing work force.
Remarks:
Team – A very confident team with active participants who participated and put forth their points in a very confident manner.
Pankaj:
Confident and aware of his stance
Knows how to take leadership
Started the discussion and paved the right path
Aware of current happenings
Strong chances of getting selected
Kirti:
Confident but loses her stance
Gets drifted by others persuasive arguments
Believes in accepting what comes along
Strong analyzing power
Does stand a chance to get selected
Ankit:
Not very confident
Presented loose points
Rephrased others comment
Not very bright chance of selection
Anurima:
Very confident
Does not believe in joining the bandwagon
Has clarity of thought and to the point argument
Knows how to put forth his point
Although spoke only once, he outshines all the other
Very Strong chance of selection
Manish:
Confident and sharp
Strong determination
Knows how to take leadership
Knowledge wise, on a very superfluous level who believes politicians are the only problem
Chances of selection are not very bright
The chances of selection of any one from this team is not very bright.
CHINA
BULLIES INDIA
Number of Participants: 5Time: 20 mins
Pankaj said:
Hello Friends, this is a topic in which we, the youth of India, should take immense interest so that in future we are ready to face any kind of challenge proposed from China.
Chinese have been creating trouble in North Eastern States, giving training to insurgents, making their presence felt in strategic areas around India and giving massive military aid to Pak. China remains a bully knowing very well that India does not have an aggressive International policy and have no support from any of the major powers. We will have to shift our focus from Pakistan to China now. We are aware that Chinese are trying to minimize the Indian impact on South Asia by picking up Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and their 'all season friend' Pakistan. We need to strengthen and speed up our infrastructure projects in North-East Sector, Uttarakhand, Himachal and we can easily predict that Chinese incursion is the result of India’s increasing efforts of deploying 60,000 soldiers along the border line with China. They are aware that they cannot compete with USA in the pacific region. So they are trying to create pressure in the Himalayas. We will have to give up "non-aligned' international diplomatic policy and have an aggressive International Policy against such countries.
Kirti said:
Hello friends,
And yes, you are right about the Chinese bullish behavior. According to its vision of a multi-polar world and a uni-polar Asia, it has continued to implement its encirclement strategy towards its strongest rival India. It continues to support its all weather friend Pakistan and help it in enlarging its nuclear arsenal. Recent reports have shown of an accelerated nuclear activity in Pakistan and also of the reports that china is helping Pakistan in modernizing its nuclear warheads with plutonium. It has also supplied Pakistan the conventional weaponry. Latest being JF-17 and J-10. China is also increasing challenging USN in the pacific theatre. It is building a robust AA/AD capability and with its massive naval modernization program, it seems to me a potential challenger to US. Therefore, I would also suggest an aggressive diplomatic posture, building of huge military infrastructure in north-east and ties with like mind nations like US, South Korea and Japan.
Ankit said:
I do agree with my friends here,
China is bullying India as this is obvious with the insurgent attacks by the Chinese forces. We know that Chinese have very good army and so we should be prepared to counter any infiltration by the Chinese forces. India is much focused in the border line across Pakistan and neglecting Chinese border. The BSF should be strengthened with much more arms and weaponry to counter foil infiltration bid.
Anurima said:
A very good morning to all of you. Although, the points that have been discussed so far are very true, but I believe, that only through military power, China or any other country can never defeat another country. This is in the case of India and China as well.
India surely enjoys a lead over China, thanks to its low cost model which is difficult to emulate, followed by the number of cost benefits such as the cheapest available manpower after countries like Argentina and Brazil, which makes the Indian software industry a more lucrative proposition.
India also scores over China as it enjoys the benefits of having the largest English speaking population (even more than the United Kingdom) which makes it easier for the Indian software experts to understand the demands of their foreign customers.
India also enjoys the lead thanks to the biggest pool of technocrats and engineers; it churns out more than 400000 engineering professionals every year and the efficiency of an Indian software graduate is considered more than above average as compared to software professionals belonging to any other part of the world as per the software industrial norms.
India’s long-term potential may be greater than China’s as the communist giant faces a shrinking work force due to its “one child policy” whereas India enjoys an ever increasing work force. Population, in this case, seems to act as a boon for the Indian software industry rather than a liability.
Manish said:
Good morning friends,
I believe China has bullied and toyed with India right since the Fifties. In 1962, the whole world knows what happened, but India wants to imagine that it never did, because till date it simply does not know how to formulate a proper response to what happened then, and to subsequent developments. China, on the other hand, recognized pretty early that in the long run India would pose a real threat to Chinese domination, even hegemony, in the region. Having done that, they have systematically worked to ensure that India remains a small player, so constantly harassed and fatigued by Pakistan that it has no time to even think about China till is too late.
Kirti said:
So now if we conclude our discussion, we certainly agree that China has been bullying India for a long time now. And that we need to be ready for any future action to be taken against such countries. But some very interesting points that came up is that India, although, is bearing China in a lot of things but there are few fields in which India still has, and will continue to have, its rule over China like low cost model, cheapest available manpower, benefits of having the largest English speaking population, biggest pool of technocrats and engineers and ever increasing work force.
Remarks:
Team – A very confident team with active participants who participated and put forth their points in a very confident manner.
Pankaj:
Confident and aware of his stance
Knows how to take leadership
Started the discussion and paved the right path
Aware of current happenings
Strong chances of getting selected
Kirti:
Confident but loses her stance
Gets drifted by others persuasive arguments
Believes in accepting what comes along
Strong analyzing power
Does stand a chance to get selected
Ankit:
Not very confident
Presented loose points
Rephrased others comment
Not very bright chance of selection
Anurima:
Very confident
Does not believe in joining the bandwagon
Has clarity of thought and to the point argument
Knows how to put forth his point
Although spoke only once, he outshines all the other
Very Strong chance of selection
Manish:
Confident and sharp
Strong determination
Knows how to take leadership
Knowledge wise, on a very superfluous level who believes politicians are the only problem
Chances of selection are not very bright
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