The Fine Print Issue Three, September 2014 | Page 3

At the encouragement of the Students’ Union, the English Press Club has decided to
come up with a section recording the update of the progress in the work undertaken by the
Union. The Club recognises that it is important for the Union to be held accountable to the
students, and will thus endeavour to use this opportunity for the same, in addition to increasing
awareness of the various measures implemented. This one is the first in the same series of
articles. This article was composed based on the inputs provided by Ashutosh Ajay
Mundhada, General Secretary and V V Sai Praneeth, President, Students’ Union.
First off, the Cycle Club has been restructured on popular demand. The
first lot of cycles was given out to students a week ago on the condition that the
students would be responsible for their repair. The next batch of 150-200 cycles
is expected to be released in the coming week.
One of the facilities that very few people have availed due to a lack of awareness
is cashless travel. This year, the tender for the same has been awarded to Verma
Tours and Travels ([phone], [phone]). To make use of this
service, a form has to be filled out by the travelling student(s) which can be
found at the SWD office or with the Hostel Representative. One can also get it
directly delivered by the aforementioned travel service. The initial and final
odometer readings are noted pre- and post-travel. The resulting money is
divided among all the travelling students and is deducted from their mess bills.
A Web Portal is being built by the SU tech team which features “BITS Wiki.”
Other than standard Wiki features like public-written articles it will include an
event calendar, a BITS merchandise store and a ‘help-a-fest’ corner where
people can choose to help fests without being a part of a department. The site is
still under development without a fixed release date.

Another important step taken by the Student Union is the formation of the
emergency fund for the members of GBM. It will cater to three needs: air travel,
cab travel and emergency cash. For emergency travel or other emergency
situations cash will be provided under an upper cap of Rs. 10,000. In case of
emergency travel requirements, a call to the SU members by the student will
lead to a cab being booked at reasonable rate for travel to Delhi/Jaipur, as the
case may be, and an air ticket being booked to the student’s home town. Cash
will also be provided to the student for use during this phase. Money for these
expenses will later be charged from the student's card. The money for the
Students' Emergency Fund comes from a separate SU fund which exists with
the Chief Warden, the General Secretary and the President. A sum of Rs. 20,000
has been allotted to the Students’ Union for this purpose.
The Students’ Union wishes to be a more approachable and student-friendly
body which can cater to the public’s needs in a more efficient manner. In this
regard, the students are invited to be more involved in the decision-making
process, by any means. For instance, if any help can be provided towards the
implementation or betterment of any of the manifesto points, the respective
representatives can be contacted for the same. This, the English Press Club
learnt, was high on the list of the Studen ts’ Union Representatives’ priorities.
In closing, while the earnestness is unmistakeable, and that the quantum of
work undertaken is appreciable, other more complicated schemes await
implementation. One can, however, be optimistic, albeit casually, and support
the Students’ Union as a slew of measures seek to be implemented. Watch out
for an update in every issue of The Fine Print.

...continued from page 1 (Student Affairs: The Way Forward)
ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY
If a student is caught engaging in any of these activities, says Professor Das,
corrective action will be deemed necessary according to institute guidelines.
Apart from guiding the student, such a consequence sends out a message to the
entire student community about the institute’s views on the matter. A
punishment will never be made more severe just to make a point, though, the
Chief Warden firmly clarifies.
…AND ALL THE REST
Professor C. B. Das tells us that he is worried about the scripts of the
performances at regional associations’ nights in the auditorium and that he has
discussed this with the secretaries of the associations. The curfew and the single
-gate policy will stay; an extra kilometer’s walk to La Pizzeria or Gliders’ Club is
a small price to pay for students’ safety. Did you see faculty members having
dinner in your mess? That was an initiative by the Academic Counselling Cell to
encourage student-faculty interaction, especially with regard to first-year
students. If the fluctuating voltage is bothering you, be happy to know that the
institute is making arrangements for cheaper and more efficient power supply.
Expect this semester’s electricity bills to be higher, owing to the fact that the
institute is currently buying electricity from BET.

“Hey boss, you’ve got mail!”
“Thanks, shorty. What have we got here? Looks like someone’s onto our little
scheme here. It’s a letter asking us about the “coal shortage” that’s been sweeping
the northern grid. They don’t get it, I just tell them what I’m told. It’s not like we
voluntarily knocked out the power and it just happened to turn out that out of all
the states up here, Rajasthan got the least electricity. I mean, so what if a few
teenagers get a good sweat on? We’re doing this for the country right?! Without
people like us, the country would be in ruins. They need us on this plant, they
want us on this plant!”
“Sure thing, boss.”
“They should be thanking us: at least we warned them about it on the first day. I
mean, the second day, we just weren’t able to stick to the same schedule but
whenever there are shortages, we do tell everyone in advance. Let’s just hope that
those guys down at AVVN limi-”
“The what, boss?”

...continued from page 1 (BOSM 2014: An Inside Scoop)

“The Ajmer Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited, you unwitting coal-digger. They’re the
ones who are keeping in touch with that college down in Pilani. Let’s just hope
they don’t say anything to make the situation worse for everyone”

FOOD ON CREDIT

“Of course, boss.”

We almost forgot to mention the tastiest scoop of them all: food, on credit!
Yes, you can fish out your ID card at the stalls like a boss (to a Rs. 2000 cap,
mind you). Rumour has it that even this cap may be done away with, hear hear
(conditions applied)!

“Now take a look at these clowns. They’re bragging about how even through
flaring temperatures, their students thronged to some New Academic Block for
their classes. Apparently, that runs on a generator, so our quote unquote
corporate siphoning of electricity won’t stop them. Apparently, even their labs,
hostel toilets, cooperative stores, all have backup-”

NICE WEATHER FOR EAGLES
This year, a particular bulked-up desert eagle seems to be missing in action. Last
year, Baxter became quite an integral part of the fest (and DoPy’s revenue, yes).
And yet, our beloved mascot was nowhere to be seen for pre-BOSM events,
leading to several interesting questions (translation for the paranoid: conspiracy
theories). The official answer remains that the mascot is ‘under repair’.
With respect to BOSM’s arch nemesis, rain, there are some contingency plans in
place. A provision for tarpaulin covers has been made and there are plans to
shift stalls to the concrete structures adjacent to the tennis courts as and when
the heavens decide to break loose.

So, we eagerly await BOSM 2014: spirit, rains, food, grit, guts, glory et al!

“Why are they telling us all this, boss?!”
“Oh, who knows, young blood, who knows? Maybe the heat got to them, or
maybe not. Anyway, I’m sure that we won’t be hearing from this lot any time
soon. What with the coal supply almost back to being reasonably alright and
pleasant weather now, the demand should be less. That doesn’t mean you can
have a smoking break every half hour, got that?!”
“That thought never crossed my mind, boss.”
“I just worry what the years ahead will have for us, young’un. How long can we
last?”