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DDeeppaarrttmmeenntt ooff MMaassss CCoommmmuunniiccaattiioonn Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University

Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Educational Campus, Amravati Road, Nagpur - 440033

Tel: (0712) 2500085, e-mail: journalism.nagpur.university@gmail.com

About the Department

The media and entertainment industry in India, and indeed across the globe, is estimated to be the fastest

growing among all other industries.

Even as the new media continue to grow in leaps and bounds, the traditional print medium is not far

behind. Very interesting, fulfilling and financially lucrative career options are available to young people

in the field of Mass Communication. While the focus of Mass Communication education remains on

Journalism, the other attractive career options that open up are in the areas of Advertising, Public

Relations/ Corporate Communications and New Media (including Social Media).

As for the entertainment industry, there are courses to train people in TV and Radio anchoring, reporting,

editing, directing, shooting (camera persons) and such other specialized jobs for which skilled people are

in great demand.

History

Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University could well claim to be a pioneer in mass

communication education in India, for offering the first structured and well-planned journalism course

after the country won freedom in 1947.

It was to the credit of Hislop college, Nagpur and its then Principal, the Late Dr.D G Moses, who

established a full fledged Department of Journalism with the approval and encouragement of Nagpur

University in 1952-53. Prof. K E Eapen was the first Indian scholar to be the head of the department. The

begining was made with a diploma course in Journalism, which was later elevated to the degree level in

the mid sixties.

The university’s Department of Journalism was set up as a unit of the Social Sciences faculty in July

1969. Mr.S T Puranik was the first Honorary Head of the Department. The Department was renamed as

the Department of Mass Communication in 1989 and was shifted to its own building in the sprawling and

verdant setting of the university’s post graduate teaching campus on Amravati Road, Nagpur.

Facilities

The Department offers:

A well-equipped Television studio with Interactive Board backdrop, lights and Production

Control Room (PCR),

A 14-Track audio mixer for sound recording

Digital Video Cameras PD 170 P,

Digital Recorder DSR - 11,

I-Mac and Final Cut Express professional video editing equipment,

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The latest Sony MCS-8 Multi Format Switcher (8-source vision mixer),

Multi-media LCD projectors

Interactive Board for classroom teaching,

Canon 60D SLR Digital Camera for photography lessons,

Computer Laboratory with the A3 colour printer.

The entire building, including computer laboratory, TV studio, library, faculty rooms and

classrooms are networked to enable Internet connectivity at all these places.

Training

The stress is on practical training. The students are required to produce news reports, interviews, features

and articles on a variety of subjects. They are also required to make newspaper pages and produce video

and audio news bulletins and documentaries. Besides, the students learn to conceive and prepare print

advertisements and various forms of Public Relations literature.

Other than all the practical assignments given throughout the year by the concerned faculty, the students

undergo a minimum 30 days of internship at newspapers, news agencies, TV news channels, advertising

agencies and public relations firms or departments.

The students also produce a tabloid news bulletin called ‘Campus’ each year.

The Department holds specialized workshops by outside experts to provide hands-on training in areas

such as page-making, ad-making, video editing and television production.

The students are regularly taken out for learning visits. The places visited range from printing presses and

TV studios to the Maharashtra Legislature, the tribal areas of Gadchiroli and Chandrapur and the hills,

forests and tribal villages of Melghat.

Faculty

Besides the highly-qualified and experienced full time teachers, the Department boasts of an outstanding

panel of visiting faculty who are all people of rich experience and great expertise in news reporting,

editing, feature writing, photography, advertising and public relations.

Alumni Alumni of the department are highly successful individuals who have made a name for themselves in

print, electronic and interactive media, besides in myriad other fields ranging from academics to politics.

The Alumni Association of the Department is full of stalwarts eager to help the students not only in

improving their skills and making the right career choices, but also in getting them suitably placed.

Placement

The quality of professionals produced by the Department is appreciated by the media industry. The

Department has a nearly 100 per cent placement record in terms of getting jobs for those interested in

joining the print media in particular. Alumni of the Department are also highly placed in the electronic

media, advertising and public relations industries. Over the last four years, our students have been placed

in the following organizations: The Hitavada, Lokmat, Sakal, Nav Bharat, Dainik Bhaskar, Rashtra

Prakash, Punya Nagari, IBN Lokmat, GTPL, BCN News, InCable, UCN, ABP News, Youth Junction,

News Bharati, Nagpur Today and other media outlets.

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Courses Available

1. Master of Arts (Mass Communication) Duration: Two years (four semesters)

Specialisation: Print, Electronic, Online, Advertising, Public Relations

Intake : 30

Admission Eligibility: Bachelor’s Degree of any statutory university or any other degree

recognized as equivalent thereto with minimum 45% marks or equivalent grade or a higher

degree in Mass Communication/ Journalism.

Admission is done through Entrance Test (Written and Interview)

Subjects: First Semester:

i) Principals of Mass Communication

ii)Development of Media

iii)Print Media – I (Reporting and Editing)

iv)Electronic Media (Radio and Television)

v) Practical Paper of 150 marks

Second Semester:

i) Development Communication

ii) Communication Research

iii)Media Management & Media Laws

iv)International Communication

v) Practical Paper of 150 marks

Third Semester:

i) Print Media – II

ii) Electronic Media – II (Radio & Television)

iii) Advertising

iv) Public Relations & Corporate Communications

v) Practical Paper of 150 marks

Fourth Semester:

i) New Media Applications

ii)Intercultural Communication

iii) Practical Paper of 150 marks

iv)Project (Specialisation – Print, Electronic, New Media, Advertising, Public Relations)

v)Internship at Media Organisation

2. Bachelor of Journalism (BJ) Duration : One Year

Specialisation : Print Media

Intake : 50

Admission Eligibility : Any Graduate from recognized university

Admission is done through Entrance Test (Written and Interview)

Subjects: I. Principals and History of Journalism

II. Modern News Reporting & Feature Writing

III. Editing in Electronic Era

IV. Modern Newspaper Management & Press Laws

V. Public Relations & Mass Communication

VI. Current Affairs, Language Study & Soft Skills

VII. Information Technology Application in Mass Media

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3. P G Diploma in Video Programming (News & Current Affairs) Specialisation : Electronic Media

Intake : 25 students

Admission Eligibility : Any Second Class Graduate

Admission is done on "First Come First Served Basis"

Subjects: I. Principles of Communication and Development & Comparison of Mass Media

II. News Gathering and News Reporting

III. Editing and Script Writing

IV. Presentation & Production

V. Interviews & Discussion/ Quiz on Current Affairs

VI. Documentaries on Current Affairs

Teaching Faculty

Mr. Moiz Mannan Haque

Asst. Prof & Head

Educational Qualifications:

B.Com., M.B.A., B.M.C., M.M.C., Advanced Diploma in Journalism (International Institute for

Journalism, Berlin, Germany), AFP Fellow (Washington DC, USA), Cert. in French, NET (UGC)

Industry Experience:

Senior Reporter, The Hitavada, Nagpur (1987-1992)

Senior Reporter, Indian Express, Nagpur (1992-99)

News Editor, The Peninsula, Qatar (1999-2004)

Business Writer, The Greenville News, South Carolina, USA (AFP Fellowship 1998)

Correspondent: The Indian Post, The Sunday Observer, The Independent (for different periods

between 1988 and 1992)

Academic Experience:

University approved Lecturer at NBA-accredited NYSS Institute of Management & Research,

Nagpur, specializing in Advertising and Marketing Communications (2004-09).

Head of the Department of Mass Communication, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur

University (2009-present)

Member, Board of Studies in Mass Communication, RTMNU and Gondwana University

Member of Equal Opportunities Cell, RTMNU

Member, Syllabus Drafting Committee for M.A. (Mass Communication) and B.J., RTM Nagpur

University

Member, Annual Report Committee, RTM Nagpur University

Member, University Newsletter Editorial Board

Member, University Students’ Newsletter Editorial Board

Member, University Research Journal Editorial Board

Visiting Faculty at Indian Institute of Mass Communication and Nagpur School of Journalism

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Dr. D.V. Dhawankar

Asst. Prof.

Educational Qualifications:

M.M.C., M.A. (Adv. & PR), P. G. Dip. Video Programming, M.S.W., M.A.(Hindi), M.A. (Pub Adm)

Industry Experience:

Reporter, Citicable (1996-97)

Academic Experience:

Lecturer and Head, Dept. of Mass Communication (2003-06)

Chairman, Board of Studies, Mass Communication, RTMNU (2003-06)

Chairman, Board of Studies, Mass Communication, Gondwana University

Research Supervisor at RTM Nagpur University and JJT University, Rajasthan

Presented research papers at 25 national and international conferences

16 Research papers published in national journals

Winner of ‘Shiksha Ratna’ Award

Visiting Faculty

Mr. Sudhir Pathak, ex-Chief Editor, Tarun Bharat

Mr. Arun Phanshikar, ex-Bureau Chief, Hindustan Times

Mr. Jaideep Hardikar, Special Correspondent, The Telegraph

Mr. Dinesh Tekade, Senior Reporter, Nav Bharat

Mr. Chaitanya Deshpande, Senior Sub Editor, The Hitavada

Mr. Shekhar Soni, Senior Photojournalist

Dr. Ram Prakash Saxena, Linguistics Expert and ex-H.o.D

Mr. S.M.Joshi, senior faculty

Mr. Jayant Barve, retd. News Editor, All India Radio

Dr. Advocate Vasant Khaparde, High Court Lawyer

Mr. Jalandar Purohit, ex-PRO, MECL

Mrs. Reeti Pandharipande, free lance journalist

Mrs. Pratibha Pande, ex-Asst. Station Director, Doordarshan

Mrs. Kalyani B., professional television producer

Mr. Anand Kumar Patil, IT Expert

Dr. Atul Kulkarni, Research Consultant

Research Activity

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The students of the department are engaged in periodic research on the topic of media, its

development and its impact on the society. These are in the form of survey reports, dissertations,

video and radio news bulletins and documentaries.

Industry-Institute Interaction

The Department has initiated various initiatives to strengthen interaction with the Industry.

An Industry-Institute Interaction Cell has been set up under the umbrella of the Department’s

Media Club.

The visiting faculty is drawn from the mass media and related industries and professions.

Experts from the industry are regularly invited for Guest Lectures, Seminars and Workshops.

From the time to time, the Department assists news media in areas like reporting during special

events and public relations activities.

Industry Internship

The B.J. and M.A. (Mass Communication) students undergo a compulsory Internship/ Attachment

Programme wherein they are placed in leading media organizations and assigned various tasks related to

the functioning of the mass media.

The students are required to compile a file of all their work, including published reports, pages made,

copies edited, reports broadcast, etc.

The P.G.Diploma in Video Programming students are attached for various periods to Doordarshan, Zee

News, ABP News, UCN, In-BCN and AIR or to the local correspondents of private national and regional

news channels for hands-on training.

Students have been placed in the following organizations:

1. The Hitavada

2. The Times of India

3. Tarun Bharat

4. Sakal

5. Lokmat Samachar

6. Lokmat

7. Lokmat Times

8. Nav Bharat

9. Dainik Bhaskar

10. Star News/ ABP News

11. UCN cable TV news

12. InCable New Network

13. BCN News Network

14. Office of the Defence PRO

15. PR Dept. of Western Coalfields Ltd.

16. Directorate of I & PR, Govt. of Maharashtra

17. Profit Advertising Company

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The students receive certificates from the media organizations after completion of the Internship

Programme.

Major Activities during 2013-14

1. Interaction with visiting Alumni

The Department of Mass Communication’s alumni have achieved professional and personal success in

different fields, particularly in journalism. Realising the importance of the inputs from alumni and the

value of their experience, the department organized an interactive session with some of its past students.

The alumni who participated in the session included Mr. Dharmendra Jore, Associate Editor, Hindustan

Times, Mumbai and Mr. Abhijeet Sathe, Senior Assistant Editor (Crime), Mumbai Mirror, Mumbai. They

were accompanied by Mr. Chetan Kulkarni, who has worked as a sports journalist with The Indian

Express, Nagpur and The Gulf Times, Qatar, and is now the Head of Media Communication with Asian

Football Confederation, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Another past student, senior journalist and faculty member, Mr. Arun Phanshikar presided over the

session.

Mr. Sathe, who started out in Nagpur as a

Crime Reporter, recalled his experiences

and stressed the importance of creating and

nurturing contacts. He also spoke about the

importance of field work in a journalist’s

career.

Mr. Jore who began his career with Sports

and went on to report politics with great

impact, advised the students about career

paths. He said they should draw the most

out of their course and single-mindedly

prepare for a career. He emphasized the

need for practical training.

By his own example, Mr. Kulkarni described how journalists also have the option of public relations and

corporate communications if they do well. He said his love of sports and passion for the field has greatly

helped him in journalism as well as media communication.

2. Getting tips on News Photography

Students of the Department attended an interaction session to mark

World Photography Day, organized by Nagpur Press Photographers

Association (NPPA) at Tilak Patrakar Bhavan.

The students spoke as a group and in one-to-one discussion with

senior photojournalists attached to major newspapers of the region

and got valuable tips on news photography and career options in

photojournalism.

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3. Session on ‘Regulating Social Media’

In the era of networking using social media and blogs the knowledge of the scope and future of New

Media assumes great significance for students of Mass Communication. Cyber Law Consultant,

Advocate Mahendra Limaye, who is also involved with an NGO creating cyber awareness, spoke to the

students about the different aspects of the new phenomenon.

Mr. Limaye focused on the cyber laws at international level and also gave the students a detailed

understanding of pertinent legislation in India. He was of the view that while the New Media gives a lot

of freedom to users, if it is not properly regulated the consequences could be disastrous. He lamented that

cyber security is not being given the serious attention it deserves by the government or the users.

4. Understanding Financial Journalism

At a time when the Indian rupee was plumbing new depths owing to a host of global and domestic

factors, the Department invited noted economist Dr. Vinayak Deshpande, Head of the University’s

Department of Business Management for a talk on “The Rupee Story: Understanding Financial

Journalism.”

News and other content writing skills in Finance are in great demand in India at

the present time and students with a back ground of commerce education stand

good chances of making a career in business/ finance journalism. With this in

mind, Dr. Deshpande explained in lucid terms to the students the basic economic

structure in place in India and the various policies adopted by the ministries of

finance, commerce and industry, etc. He elaborated on economic phenomena such

as inflation, balance of trade and balance of payments to make the students

understand how the economy works and what a journalist should look at while

reporting on it.

5. How media can fight corruption?

The mass media in India has played a major role in strengthening the hands of vigilance agencies such as

the CBI in the fight against corruption, said Mr. Sandeep Tamgadge, Superintendent of Police, Central

Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Nagpur.

He was delivering a guest lecture on

“Corruption – A serious menace” at the

Department of Mass Communication.

The session was chaired by Mr. Sanjay

Tiwari, Senior Correspondent with

NDTV.

Mr. Tamgadge narrated several

instances where the media has helped

in exposing corruption, ensuring the

registration of criminal cases,

following-up on investigations and

trials, and prompting systemic changes.

The media has also been actively

bringing wrong-doing into the public

domain and bringing pressure to bear upon the investigating agencies.

He made the students aware of the different vigilance and investigation agencies and organizations in the

country. Mr. Sanjay Tiwari stressed the media’s role in exposing corruption.

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6. Healthy Practices in Health Reporting

With is huge population divided starkly between rich and poor, India faces serious problems in terms of

public health. As awareness rises owing to education, the common people too are becoming more

conscious of their physical and mental well-being and expect to be

adequately informed by the media.

The Heath Beat, therefore, has assumed significance. It is one of the

specializations dealt with in the course content of the M.A. (Mass

Communication) Third Semester syllabus of the university as well.

Veteran health journalist, Mrs. Snehlata Shrivastava, Special

Correspondent, The Times of India, spoke to the students about the

health scenario in India, the new challenges before the public health

services, the growth of the private health sector and other related

issues.

7. The Language of Journalism

Among all other aspects of training to become a journalist, language holds special importance. It is the

vital tool that enables the reporter or writer to transform observations, experiences and feelings into

effective words that convey the import and

substance of a report or article.

Senior professor of linguistics and former

Head of the Department of Mass

Communication, Dr. Ram Prakash Saxena,

conducted a workshop on the basics of

linguistic purity in English, Hindi and

Marathi.

The expert distributed easy to use charts and

ready reference material that the students

could put to use in order to use language that

is grammatically and syntactically flawless.

Starting with the alphabet of each language,

he went on to explain the rules of grammar

and syntax as well as idiomatic and literary nuances in Marathi, Hindi and English.

8. Group Discussion on Sachin’s Retirement

When cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar announced his decision to retire from the game, it was the most-

talked about current event in India at that time. As future journalists, students of the department too had

their opinions and observations which they expressed at an open forum organized on the issue by the

department.

To moderate the discussion and give valuable insight into Sachin’s career, the Department had invited

noted Cricket writer who has regularly covered national and international fixtures, Mr. Ruchir Mishra,

Senior Correspondent, The Times of India.

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9. Session on Sports Reporting

Mr. Ruchir Mishra, Senior Sports Correspondent, The Times of India, moderated a student discussion and

later in the second session delivered a lecture on Sports Reporting. He traced his own career as an

example to illustrate

how important it is

to understand sports

in spirit rather than

in statistics.

He pointed out that

sports reporting

basically differs

from other beats, in

that, a sporting

event invariably

ends in a result.

Loss or victory,

therefore, is the

crux of sports news.

Other than that, the

job of print sports

reporters has

become more

challenging because

the electronic media

and the new media

are now giving instant updates and readers do not have to wait for the newspaper to come out. Mr Mishra

explained how newspaper reporters are still relevant, albeit in a different role.

10. Workshop on Video Editing on iMac

Students wishing to make a career with the many television news as well as entertainment channels have

the option of taking up an editor’s job. Video Editing is a highly specialized field that requires specific

skills both creatively and technically.

To give them these skills, a workshop on Film

Editing on Computer was conducted by

electronic media expert Mr. Neeraj Nakhate.

During the workshop, the students were

trained on various aspects of the hardware

and the software used in video editing. The

Department has obtained the latest IiMac

computer and Final Cut Express software that

is being used professionally by film editors

and in various news channels. Mr. Nakhate

explained the concepts of editing including

footage capture, vision mixing, sound tracks,

voice overs, special visual and audio effects

and other areas of editing, while working on raw footage taken by the students themselves using the

professional PD-170 video cameras available with the Department.

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11. RTI for News Gathering

“ The Right to Information Act is a tool to enhance the participatory decision making process,” said Mr.

Rahul Pande, City Editor, The Hitavada, while interacting with students of the Department of Mass

Communication in a session on 'News Gathering and RTI'.

"Before the Act, bureaucrats could deny giving

information citing the official secrets act. There

is a sea change in this attitude after RTI came

into force", said Mr. Pande. He highlighted the

importance of this new tool in effective news

gathering and urged the students of journalism

to use RTI as a weapon to get required

information.

On the misuse of RTI, Pande said, big business

houses unnecessarily flood departments with

RTI queries to trouble their rivals. Government

functionaries are more cautious while taking decisions as they fear RTI queries and this has led to policy

paralysis, he added. Many bureaucrats use RTI to obtain information about their colleagues and even their

department, he pointed out.

12. Industry Placement for one month

Various initiatives are undertaken by the Department to provide practical training to the students in fields

such as print and electronic journalism, advertising and public relations. One very important part of this

training is the 30-day internship in media and related organisations.

The Department arranged for its students to be placed, according to individual interests and preferences in

such organizations during the winter vacation at Diwali time. The students work as interns in the

organizations observing, studying and learning the various work procedures and systems. They are also

sent out on the field for assignments as and when required.

The organizations where students of the 2013-14 batch of B.J. and M.A. were placed included The

Hitavada, Lokmat, Lokmat Times, Lokmat Samachar, Sakal, ABP News, BCN Cable TV Network, ,

Information and Public Relations Department of Government of Maharashtra and Profit Advertising

Company.

13. The art of designing ads

A workshop in Newspaper Page Making and Advertisement Designing on Computer by Mr. Hemant

Abhyankar, Chief Design Artist, The Hitavada was organized for students wishing to join the print and

advertising media. Mr. Abhyankar, an expert in design, gave them practical training various aspects and

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concepts of layout and design and trained the

students on modern software such as Corel Draw,

Adobe Photoshop and Quark Xpress.

The areas of training included generating creative

concepts and use of computer software for Page-

making, Layout and Design, making pages and of

pictures, illustrations, graphics, sketches colours,

and other visual elements. The students were also

trained in advertisement layout and design

principles.

14. Legislature Reporting

At a time when the Second Capital was abuzz with the ongoing Nagpur Session of the Maharashtra

legislature, the students were given a primer on legislative practices, procedures and tools by senior

journalist, Mr. Arun Phanshikar, former Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times.

Mr. Phanshikar explained the basic tenets of parliamentary democracy and the structure of legislatures at

the national, state and local level. Focussing on the state legislature, he described in detail the powers,

duties and functioning of the Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad. He explained to them the

basic procedures and protocol followed during Question Hour, debates and discussion, passage of bills,

Zero Hour and other practices. He further explained the importance of the legislature in a parliamentary

form of democracy.

15. Experiencing a bustling newsroom

The daily Nava Bharat is the oldest surviving Hindi newspaper of the entire central India. It has a rich

tradition of journalism, having been founded by the late Mr. Ramgopal Maheshwari in 1934 to arouse the

masses during India’s freedom struggle.

Students of the Department spent half a day at the offices of Nava Bharat to get acquainted with the

newspaper’s functioning. Senior journalist Mr. Purushottam Datir gave them a detailed account of the

newspaper’s history and practices.

He spoke about the importance of value based journalism and social commitment. Nava Bharat is

publishing its editions from six centers in Maharashtra, two in Chhattisgarh, and six in Madhya Pradesh

along with presence in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat ,Goa, Rajasthan, Odisha and Uttar

Pradesh.

Senior Reporter Mr. Dinesh Tekade gave the students an overview of the working of various departments

and sections including news, features, regional, proof-reading, pagination, advertising, circulation and

marketing.

The students were also introduced to the working of the different desks including main desk, business,

education, crime, politics, cultural and sports.

16. The latest in Photography

Technology has changed the art and science of photography in unimaginable ways. Digital cameras and

processing have opened up new opportunities for photographers besides throwing up new challenges. As

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visuals are an integral part of the mass media, the students of the Department were taken for a visit to one

of the oldest yet most modern photography establishments of the city, the Moonlight Studio.

Established in 1950, the Moonlight Studio in Sitabuldi

has now been transformed into a huge ‘Photography

Mall’ providing a gamut of services and products. The

students were shown around the studio and processing

facilities and made aware of the latest cameras, lenses,

lights and other equipment. They are also given

demonstrations on how some of the sophisticated

equipment work and could be put to best use in news

photography. Similarly, they also witnessed the lab’s

technicians work live on computerized processing of

images with a variety of special effects.

17. Tips on Political Reporting

Even as the election mania for the 1014 Lok Sabha polls was setting in, students of the Department got a

primer on the basics of political reporting from Mr. Pradip Kumar Maitra, Assistant Editor, Hindustan

Times, and President of the Department’s Alumni Association.

Political reportage forms the backbone of India’s journalism. Political institutions and journalism are

considered two of the pillars of the parliamentary form of democracy. Mr. Maitra stressed the importance

of deeply studying the political intuitions and political parties and leaders and their history and

background for meaningful political reporting. He cited several examples of how leading political writers

in India have been able to maintain their credibility through objectivity. Ethics form an important part of

political reporting, he said.

He urged the budding journalists to take interest in politics even if the subject appears dry to begin with.

Speaking from his own experiences, Mr Maitra explained the importance of personal contacts, trust

worthiness and credibility in this type of reportage. He also explained how the policies of newspaper

managements and owners need not come in the way of unbiased reporting.

18. Mass Comm – The Cricket Champs

Students of the

Department of

Mass

Communication,

who are trained to

wield the

proverbial pen,

showed they were

equally skilled at

handling the

cricket bat and

ball. The

Department’s team

created a bit of

history this year by emerging champions in the university-level cricket tournament during the ‘Yuva

Spandan’ Youth Festival.

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Students from around 40 departments participated in the events held between February 6 and 14. The

cricket tournament was fought by teams from 30 departments. The Mass Communication team won the

glittering trophy by defeating the Sociology team by a margin of 37 runs. Rohit Mishra of Mass Comm

was the top scorer with 39 runs, including four massive sixes and one boundary. Mass Comm captain

Vinay Pande grabbed 3 wickets in 2 overs, giving away just 7 runs. Rohit Mishra was adjudged the man-

of-the-match, while man-of-the-series title was picked up by Vinay Pande for his all-round performance.

In earlier rounds, the Department of Mass Communication defeated teams from the Departments of

Marathi, Education and Economics to enter the semifinals, where they beat Chemistry on their home

ground to set up a final clash with Sociology.

19. Past students get nostalgic at Alumni Meet

The Alumni Association of the Department of Mass Communication, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj

Nagpur University, Nagpur, organized “Sampark-2014” – The Alumni Meet with great enthusiasm. The

atmosphere was nostalgic as nearly a hundred past students from batches as far back as the seventies,

turned up at the department to meet old friends and relive memories of their student days.

Alumni of the department are highly successful individuals who have made a name for themselves in

print, electronic and interactive media, advertising and public relations besides in many other fields

ranging from academics to politics. Interaction with them is a significant event for the students as part of

preparing for their careers and also to develop personal relations with important people.

Over the last four years, the Association has regularly been organising a major annual event. Last year,

the Association, in collaboration with Yeshwantrao Chavan Pratishthan, had organized a national Seminar

on Credibility of the Indian Media.

The existing batch of students got a chance not just to show off their talents and skills but also to interact

individually and in groups with the alumni who graciously shared their experiences and also advised the

students on making the best of their time with the Department of Mass Communication. As the guests

included editors of several major newspapers and senior professionals in the government and private

sectors, the personal discussions prove very useful for the students.

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A large number of them gathered for the 2014 meet and shared their experiences with the students. A

variety of events, including fellowship, games, quiz, entertainment items were staged during the event.

An exhibition of rare newspaper copies compiled by noted city collector, Mr. Deepak Sant, and a display

of photographs of past batches and events were also arranged giving nostalgic moments to the visitors.

20. Workshop on Media Careers

Students from different institutions offering Mass Communication courses under RTM Nagpur University

participated in a Workshop on Careers in the Media organized by the Department in collaboration with its

Alumni Association.

Senior professionals and experts in the field of Print Media, Electronic Media, New Media, Advertising

and Public Relations/ Corporate Communications guided the participants about the career opportunities

and how to prepare for them.

The workshop was inaugurated by Mrs. Shraddha Belsaray, Director, Information and Public Relations,

Govt. of Maharashtra, Mumbai. The expert panelists included Miss Sujata Anandan, Political Editor,

Hindustan Times, Mumbai, Mr. Sanjay Arora, CEO, Shells Advertising Inc., Mr. Chandramohan Puppala,

Editor-in-Chief and Channel Head, Saam TV, Mumbai, Mr. Ganesh Kanate, Senior Jouirnalist and Vice

President – Corporate Affairs, Reliance Jio Infocomm, Mumbai, and fourth-semester student of the

Department, Miss Richa Sainani.

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Narrating examples from her own long and rich career, Mrs Shraddha Belsare stressed the importance of

sensitivity and creativity in Public Relations.

The field of Advertising is growing at a rapid place and has many wonderful career opportunities for

students with Mass Communication degrees, said Mr. Sanjay Arora. Mr. Ganesh Kanate stressed the

importance of language proficiency and stressed on the knowledge of English. Mr. Chandramohan

Puppala floated the idea of ‘Content Farming’ involving students to provide material to the huge TV

entertainment industry. Miss Richa Sainani provided valuable information to students on how to get

started in New Media careers in areas such as content writing, search engine optimization and website

development.

21. Times debate on ‘Youth and Elections’

The RTM Nagpur University Department of Mass Communication was the first stop for a team of

journalists from The Times of India which conducted a series of open debates in various city colleges to

get an opinion of the youth on politics in general and elections in particularly.

In the run up to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections,

students of the Department were all charged up

with diverse views on politics, politicians, elections

and the future of the Indian democracy. Miss

Aparna Nair and Mr. Ranjit Deshmukh from the

Time of India, along with Head of the Department,

Mr. Moiz Mannan Haque, moderated the

discussions that ranged from corruption and

criminalization of elections to the growing interest

in the country’s governance shown by the youth.

The students animatedly debated the pros and cons

of democracy and the functioning of democractic

institutions at the national, state, municipal and

panchayat level. The effect of the ban on student

elections in churning out youth leadership was also

discussed. The discussion ended with a consensus

on the importance of well-meaning youth taking up

politics as a career to clean the system rather than

complaining as spectators.

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22. Field visit to The Hitavada printing press

To get the real feel of how newspapers are actually produced using the latest computerized printing

methods, the students were taken to visit the printing press of The Hitavada situated in the Hingna MIDC

area. Production Incharge, Mr. S.R.Sarode gave the students a guided tour of the entire facility and

explained each stage of the production from electronic transfer of pages and the computerized plate

making operations to the final printing of the newspaper pages.

The students saw the process right from the time the

soft copies of the pages are electronically received

from the city-based newsroom and digitally converted

into plates, the colour printing and the final cutting,

folding and packing.

Of the two units currently in use, one has a capacity of

printing 25,000 to 30,000 papers per hour and the

other has a speed of 30,000 to 36,000. Many of the

students saw a newsprint roll for the first time in their

lives. The various chemicals and colours used and the

manner of their application were also explained.

23. Understanding Graphic Arts

Extraordinary developments in graphic arts and printings technology have made life

easy for those in the print medium and at the same time posed certain challenges.

Journalists need to be aware of these developments and be able to use the new

technology to their advantage.

Veteran printing technologist Mr. Abhay Banhatti was invited for the guest lecture on

graphic arts. He spoke to the students about basic principles of graphics, elements and

types of newspaper design, importance of page make-up, layout and graphic styles in

newspapers, magazines and tabloid, types and styles of design, new trends in

newspaper production and printing, role of artists and art-work in modern newspapers.

Different newspaper design software & DTP professional software and fonts.

24. Workshop on Page-making on Computer

Senior journalist Mr. Anand Bhisey conducted a workshop in

Newspaper Editing, Layout and Design for students wishing to

join the print and advertising media. Mr. Bhisey, an expert in

editing, layout, design and production gave them practical

training various aspects and concepts of layout and design and

trained the students on modern software such as Adobe

Photoshop and Quark Xpress.

The areas covered included Page-making, Layout and Design, use of computer software for making

pages, use of pictures, illustrations, graphs, sketches and other visual elements, use of colour, pictures,

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graphics, fonts, planning a page make-up, page display variety and balance, Front Page, Inside Page,

Feature page, Regional Page, Editorial Page, etc. and Introduction to web production.

25. Entering the Tiger’s Den

One of the most important aspects of all learning in a Mass Communication course is awareness of

ground realities. For those who wish to practice journalism, in particular, it is not enough to just sit in

classrooms and lecture rooms and hear speeches about different issues affecting people.

They need to see and feel more than hear. There are issues aplenty in the Vidarbha region itself and those

who wish to enter journalism can’t afford not to know about these issues first. Over the past four years,

the Department of Mass Communication has arranged for its students to visit places like Gadchiroli and

Melghat where they got a firsthand experience of tribal life, Naxal activities, rural poverty and

malnutrition, etc.

This year, the learning visit covered Navegaon-Nagzira area in Bhandara and Gondia districts and the

gigantic Gosikhurd irrigation project near Bhandara. Vidarbha has most of Maharashtra’s forest wealth

and wildlife and therefore this makes for a vibrant and challenging beat for young reporters. Equally

interesting is the Development beat which covers the vast under-utilised irrigation potential of Vidarbha

region. An example of this is Gosikhurd which, apart from the developmental aspects, also provides a

study in the sensitive socio-economic issues related to resettlement and rehabilitation of the project-

affected people.

It was a happy co-incidence that the visit to Nagzira-Navegaon started on the International Day of

Forests.

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Bhandara

The students had a fruitful interaction with Mr. Vinay Thakare, Deputy Conservator of Forests at

Bhandara. Accompanied by senior officials as well as Honorary Wildlife Warden Rajkamal Job, Mr

Thakare briefed the students about activities of the Joint Forest Management (JFM) Committees.

The student were shown ‘camera trap’ pictures of different wild animals found even in non-forested areas

and told the astounding story of ‘Jai’ the gallant male tiger who migrated from Nagzira to Umred-

Karhandla in a journey that has become the foresters’ folklore.

Nagzira

At Nagzira Wildlife Sanctuary, the students were given a talk on Eco-Development Committees (EDC)

and tiger census by Mr. Sanjay Thaware, Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) at the Pitezari gate. The

students also interacted with the local EDC president Mr. Mangesh Madavi about the efficacy of

measures such as distribution of subsidized LPG and milch cows to ease pressure on the forests and job-

oriented training to local youths.

On a memorable jungle safari, the students were fortunate to spot the legendary tigress ‘Mai’, mother of

Jai, apart from a rare sighting of a pack of wild dogs tearing apart a Sambhar dear. They also spotted

Sambhar, Neelgai (Blue Bull), wild boars, Cheetals, Bisons (Indian Gaur) and other wildlife.

Navegaon

In Navegaon National Park, the Wildlife Wing organized a lecture and film show on tigers and a nature

trail for the students. They spotted dozens of rare aquatic birds besides a variety of deer. ACFs Mr.

Pramod Panchbhai and Mr. Sushil Gupta along with RFOs Mr. Vilas Kale and Mr. Sainath Narod made

the visit memorable for the students.

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The students were particularly grateful to Mr. Ramesh Marulkar, Deputy Editor, The Hitavada and noted

environmentalist, who not only made the arrangements but personally accompanied the group and gave

guidance from time to time.

Itiadoh Dam and Tibetan Settlement

The group also visited the sprawling Itiadoh irrigation project and took a tour of the Tibetan Settlement in

Gothengaon. Their visit to the Monastery and village coincided with the 53rd anniversary of the

settlement which transports the visitor to Tibet.

Gosikhurd Project

In the last leg of the visit, the students were given a tour of Gosekhurd irrigation project arranged by

Executive Engineer Mr. Ramesh Wardhane. From Sub-Divisional Engineer Mr. Bhatiya, they learned

about different developmental aspects of the project, its irrigation and electricity generation potential and

also the issue of rehabilitating the villages in the submerged areas. It was a first for most people in the

group to descend hundreds of metres down in the base of the dam and take a walk in the gallery and

maintenance tunnels below the massive concrete structure.

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26. Our own publication ‘Campus’

The student journal ‘Campus’ of the Department of Mass Communication, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj

Nagpur University, was released at the hands of Mr. Sanjay Tiwari, Resident Editor, Nav Bharat.

The journal is planned and produced by Bachelor of Journalism (BJ) and M.A. in Mass Communication

students of the department. The latest issue contains articles, photographs, poems and other matter

generated by the students as part of their practical training. The subjects handled range from the plight of

potters in a tiny MP village to the issue of unwed mothers in Yavatmal. The issue deals with the negative

aspects of Social Media as well as news of major events conducted at the Department and personal

accounts of past students.

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Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Tiwari applauded the quality of matter and production and urged the future

journalists to constantly read and write. “The more you practice writing, the more you will be required to

read; and the more you read the higher will be the quality of your journalism,” he said. Sharing his

experiences, the veteran journalist who specialised in crime reporting himself, advised the students to

make full use of the excellent facilities provided by the Department to prepare for a fruitful career.

27. Campus Recruitment of TV Network

There was excitement among the students wishing to

join the electronic media. BCN, a leading cable TV

network, had approached the Department to conduct a

campus selection process to recruit Reporters and Sub-

editors to work in Marathi and Hindi languages.

The selection team was led by the company’s H.R.

Manager, Ms. Rimpy Francis and Senior Executive,

Ms. Smita Gujar. Nearly a dozen students from the

B.J. and M.A. had applied to participate in the

selection process.

The BCN team began with conducting personal interviews in which they checked out the students for

initiative, drive, knowledge and awareness and skills. In the second phase, the aspirants were subjected to

two rounds of Group Discussion. As many as five applicants were short-listed by the television network.

For the others, it ended as a useful practical learning exercise in facing interviews and participating in

group discussions for job placement.

28. Seeing ‘Akashwani’ from inside

Radio is one of the most important vehicles of mass communication in India because of its wide reach and

high penetration among the masses. All India Radio has been at the forefront of radio communication in

the region and students from the department spent half-a-day at the Nagpur Station of Akashwani to get

firsthand knowledge of its functioning.

Station Engineer Mr Nandkishor Pokle took them around the Drama Studio, Musical & Playback Studio,

Live/ Commercial Studio and Talk Studio. The students witnessed a live programme being presented by

anchors Archana Gajalwar, Swati Tupkar and Ashok Jambhulkar. Later, the Head of the News Section,

Mr, Sunil Dabir, also an alumnus of the Department, gave them a briefing on the news gathering and

dissemination aspects of the station.

The students also took in details of programming from Mr. Sanjay Bhakte, Programming Assistant, who

explained the criteria and basis on which programmes are created keeping different sections of audiences

in mind. The methods of archiving content was shown to them in the Library and explanations on the

equipment and gadgets used in production were given in the Control Room by Technician Mr. K D

Atram.

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29. Interaction with French Journalist

It was an interesting experience for students of the Department of Mass Communication to have a

personal interaction with Mr. Fabrice Node-Langlois, a journalist with Le Figaro, the leading newspaper

in France.

He was touring India to cover the ongoing

general elections and was in Nagpur to do a

special story on the city because it lies in the

centre of India. He interacted at length with

the Head of the Department and senior

journalist, Mr. Moiz Mannan Haque, about the

political, social and economic history of

Nagpur and was curious to know about the

different dimensions of the demand for

Vidarbha’s statehood.

Speaking to the students, he said the basic

requirements of someone wanting to be a

journalist are the same all over the world – curiosity and interest in people. He lamented that the new

generation of journalists, owing to the easy availability of information on the Internet and other IT tools,

is not too keen to rough it out on the field and actually meet a lot of people face-to-face.

Online media, he said has thrown up many challenges for the traditional print journalists. Replying to a

question, he pointed out that the credibility of the media in France, as in most of the world, is at a low at

this time. Tough competition and the need to get things into public view as soon as possible, often makes

young journalists compromise on facts and fair play, he said. He offered his newspaper’s co-operation to

students who might want to conduct joint studies between Indian and French media.

Mr Node-Langlois was accompanied by Mr. Abhishek Singh, Managing Editor of the city’s first major

web news portal NagpurToday.

30. Sizzling Students

Apart from all the events organized at the Department, the students themselves through the vibrant

‘Media Club’ were busy with fun ways to learn. They picked up presentation techniques and enhanced

their self-confidence through seminars done by them on a variety of topics straight out of the syllabus.

On occasion, they used the ‘Media Club Hour’ each Friday to stage mock press conferences and role play.

The atmosphere was the most charged when Gargy Parate ‘played’ the role of US President Barrack

Obama and engaged in a live debate with Shreyas Ubgade who took on the role of Syrian leader Basher

Al Assad.

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Not only did the students lift the cricket championship in ‘Yuva Spandan’ but also made a mark in all

events including the fashion show and personality contest. They undertook a lot of practice interviews and

tried their hand at writing news and features on subjects ranging from eco-friendly Ganesh immersion in

Futala lake to youth’s views on corruption.

All in all, 2013-14 proved to be as action-packed as the earlier years, if not more.

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