SRIRAM LAW TIMES - A BI-MONTHLY NEWSLETTER November - December 2012

After the exams, you

will have all the time to get

anxious.

This issue contains: SRIRAM Students crack CLAT in large numbers!

PAGE 1

Toppers speak PAGE 2-3

Interview with CLAT Topper PAGE 4-5

News in brief PAGE 6-9

Quiz Corner PAGE 10

Law Times Exclusively for SRIRAM Students

SRIRAM Students CRACK CLAT in large numbers!

Sriram Law Academy, the

trusted name among students in the

field of Law School Entrance

Preparation, has produced All India

1st Rank for the 10th year in a row!

Doing it this time was Dhruva

Gandhi, our online student from

Mumbai with a whopping total of

over 160 marks, an incredible feat

notwithstanding negative marking.

Over 360 SRIRAM students from

both classroom and online programs

have made it to top law schools.

This year also saw an increase of

5000 more students, taking the

number to 30000 students who took

CLAT. With static GK becoming a

part of GK segment and introduction

of negative marking posed great

challenge students.

Students who had put in painstaking

labour, coupled with implicit faith in

SRIRAM’s faculty team and resource

materials made it to their dream colleges

in style.

With 2012-13 batch coming to a

successful close, we at Sriram Law

Academy have shifted our focus on the

2013-14 batch of students with renewed

enthusiasm.

This issue of SLT carries an interview with

CLAT topper Mahima Priyani who has

spoken to SRIRAM TEAM with clarity. Do

read her interview and take her tips

seriously. Other regular columns such as

News in brief, Quiz are also part of this

edition. We have also published below

the “straight from the heart” feedback of

some of our students. Do mail us your

feedback on SLT to

sriram_vidyashram@yahoo.co.in

SRIRAM TEAM

APRIL – MAY 2013

Current Affairs

SLA Times

Students reminisce their coaching stint @ Sriram Law Academy It would not have been possible to get into NLS if it wasn't for Sriram Law Academy. The coaching at Sriram has been a wholesome experience. The material provided is very concise and makes facts easy to remember. The best part was the legal classes. They were extremely interesting as well as fun. Another important part of the experience is that we are able to interact with so many future lawyers. The teachers provide support and guidance throughout. I am truly grateful for having had the opportunity to study at Sriram.

Sarangan Rajeshkumar

National Law School, Bangalore.

My Sriram experience has indeed been great. The modules provide a great means for a comprehensive preparation. Mock tests are very well structured and intelligently planned, providing a good challenge to every aspirant. The worksheets and supplements have been of great help and the faculty has always been available for doubt clarification.

Harshavardhan Sunder

National Law School, Bangalore.

The sriram online mocks are easy to navigate and well-made based on past papers and pattern. The newsletters are also helpful keeping in mind our needs. The website has useful information for law school aspirants.

Gaurav Haresh Bhawnani

National Law School, Bangalore.

The course offered by Sriram Law Academy opened new horizons for me and provided in depth knowledge about the law entrance test. Timely availability of the study material and standard of the mock tests are excellent. Also, the kind and quick reply to all the problems is very helpful. The Sriram Law Times covers the most essential topics and is the best aggregation of current affairs.

Ishita Khokhar

National Law School, Bangalore.

First of all, I am thankful for the endless support, encouragement and guidance which I have received from SRIRAM Law Academy, without this my preparation would have been incomplete. SRIRAM RAPID COURSE/TARGET PLUS COURSE laid a resolute foundation for my entire preparation. The classes @ SRIRAM, the daily tests and the mock exams were very indeed helpful. I can say with confidence that a law aspirant would be in safe hands if he/she with SRIRAM LAW Academy.

Siddharth Bajpai

National Law School, Bangalore.

APRIL – MAY 2013

PAGE 2

Students reminisce their coaching stint @ Sriram Law Academy

I would like to express my gratitude for all the help I received from you :) I'm sincerely indebted for the excellent material provided by your team. The legal aptitude book 1 and the A-Z GK were especially good. The online mock tests really gave me practice and confidence which really helped me go that extra mile :) Thank you once again and I know you don't advertise but I'll be telling everyone interested in Law all about you. Thanks a ton.

Aarant Sarangi

NALSAR, Hyderabad

Sriram helped me by giving me high quality knowledge, constant consistent practice with regularity. Thanks to Sriram I have been able to practice for Law entrances in a manner that will ensure success. Sriram Academy is the best of the best and the top of the tops in Law entrance training.

Sameera Balani

NALSAR, Hyderabad

Enrolling to sriram has been a good experience. the study material and the mock tests have really helped me to practice all sorts of questions.The elaborate and exhaustive explanations given along with the answers cleared my concepts to a great deal.

Pranjal Gupta

NALSAR, Hyderabad

Sriram Law Academy was just the ingredient I needed to nurture myself for this oncoming examination. I have been able to pull through because these classes have given me the necessary knowledge and information to get through.

Anurag Gupta

NALSAR, Hyderabad

Sriram Law Academy was instrumental in my cracking the CLAT. The Sunday classes during the year helped me to ensure that my work was organized and that my preparation was regular.The mocks helped me find my weaknesses and work on them. The online mock series was especially helpful in dealing with the negative marking scare. And most importantly, Hema ma’am and the faculty at Sriram were always there to clear my doubts, however trivial they may have been. The personal attention I received was heartening. Vishnu Sumanth

NALSAR, Hyderabad

My 2-year Sriram experience was a great one from the very first day of class in 11th. The faculty was great and the class discussions were electric. The best part of Sriram is the accessibility of the teachers, mainly Hema ma'am. They are always there to answer any doubt you have at any time, however basic your doubt is.

The material was very informative and was the key in my CLAT preparation. The icing on the cake is the mock tests. The many mock tests we took put us at ease for the actual exam. I owe my success in CLAT completely to Sriram Law Academy and especially Hema ma'am.

Rahul Chandramouli

NUJS, Kolkata.

APRIL – MAY 2013

PAGE 3

An interview with

Mahima Priyani, CLAT 2013 topper, now in

National Law School, Bangalore

MAHIMA PRIYANI AIR 59, CLAT 2013.

I realized I wanted a good career through which I could have an impact on the society. Though, the whole idea of choosing law as a career, going to law school and pursuing what I really wanted to begin to take solid form only around 11th grade and that’s when I decided that this is my cup of tea. Also, I loved the idea of being in the invigorating environment law school would provide, of being around similar minded people and of the opportunities that would open up once I am there.

When did you start preparing for CLAT 2013? I joined Sriram Law Academy in the beginning of 11th grade and went for classes on Sundays for a 2 year period. Attending these classes, especially the Legal Aptitude and Reasoning classes by Hema mam only made me realize how right my decision was and that I really liked studying law. Although I didn’t take things too seriously in 11th, I started working harder at coaching in 12th because I realized time was running out and I didn’t have much done. In the last 47 days (post board exam, pre-CLAT period), I intensified my preparation and did majority of the work in this time. I would say by the time I reached this period, I had more or less of a bridge ready. My work towards the end was to repair and mend parts of this bridge that required attention.

How did you juggle between your preparation for Board Exams and CLAT?

I took Science stream in school and that demanded quite a bit of work and attention on my part. Hence after November (4 months before boards) CLAT prep had to take a backseat. But until then I tried very hard to give CLAT prep at least around 3-4 hours a week (excluding classes). I would regularly download the newsletters and other material on the Sriram website besides laying my hands upon as much practice material as I could get.

Describe the role played by Sriram Law Academy in your success. Being a part of Sriram Law Academy was vital to my success. I attended the Classroom program for two years and the hours I spent here were invaluable to my prep. Besides the extremely well planned and concise study material and the resourcefulness of the amazing faculty, these classes played an important part in keeping me motivated. Every Sunday was like a fresh reminder of my goals and how much I still had to do to achieve them. My favorite days were when some seniors, who were studying in NLU’s and had been a part of SLA, would come and talk to us about their experiences and inspire us with their CLAT stories. I also loved the debates and discussions that became a part of our Legal classes and will forever be grateful for all the information, stimulus and guidance that SLA provided me with.

You have achieved a top rank in

CLAT 2013. How does it feel?

It feels pretty amazing. When I look

back at the last two years, I realize I

have grown a lot as a person and that

if you have a passion for something, it

doesn’t remain all that hard anymore.

I have gained a lot of knowledge in

the process and realized that I could

achieve a lot more than I thought I

could if I just set mind to it. In fact,

anyone can if they determine to.

What / Who inspired you to consider law as a career option? I was in 9th grade when my seniors organized our school’s first MUN. It is basically a stimulation of the United Nations Organization wherein people pose as diplomats from various countries and debate on global issues. Needless to say, it was a stimulating experience and I fell in love with debating and found out that I really liked finding out more about how the world worked, how governments co-operated and dealt with pressing matters and what rules governed their methods.

APRIL – MAY 2013

PAGE 4

How did you manage to tackle

negative marking in CLAT?

This was the tricky part. You have

to try and answer as many possible

questions leaving out only the ones

you have NO IDEA about. When

you’re getting 1 mark for every

correct answer and -0.25 marks for

every wrong answer, the laws of

probability are on your side.

Nevertheless, be careful. Leaving

out around 20-50 questions is the

last thing you should be doing. It’s

about intelligent guessing. If you

don’t know the answer to a

particular question, try and

eliminate one or two options using

logic. Between the remaining two,

if you can’t eliminate, go with your

gut instinct. Such risks you’ll have

to take. The key to be able to this in

limited time in an efficient way in

the exam is: PRACTICE! Take as

many mocks as possible to sharpen

your guessing skills. When you do

simple practice tests, apply

negative marking to them too.

Most importantly, don’t panic. It

kills your reasoning skills.

Personally, you should have enough

practice and confidence to be able

to answer at least 185 questions

(out of 200) with 80-100% surety in

each.

GK is a vast area. Given that you

had to work on both Current

Affairs and Static GK, how did you

go about it?

The GK section requires a lot of

brainstorming on your part. It is

impossible to remember ALL THOSE

names, dates, places and events, so

you have to make patterns and

connections inside your head as you

try to remember them.

Also, leaving this section entirely to

the last few days is folly, start now!

Highlight the important points or

make notes, whatever suits you, but

make sure they don’t leave your head

the minute you turn the page.

Besides, this way, you can always

come back and easily revise. For

Static GK, I used Pearson’s Concise

General Knowledge Manual. I found it

had pretty much everything I needed

to know. The Sriram A-Z on GK was

very good and handy. The Sriram

newsletters were also extremely

helpful. If you look online, there is no

shortage of supplementary material

available. Something I found

particularly useful was online GK

quizzes. They were a great of learning

new things I didn’t know and a quick

Google search would give me a

background of the question and I was

one piece of information richer.

Would you like to share some tips

with our students who are gearing

up for the 2014 examination?

Use your time efficiently. There goes

a saying, “plan the work, and work

the plan” which is precisely what your

mantra should be.

To start with, make a list of what you know and what you don’t know (roughly) and then work your way towards realizing just how much more work you need to do to get where you want to be. It is very important to judge accurately the gap between where you stand and where you think you should. This will help you keep focused. When you plan, fix the no. of hours you’ll be studying each day of for that particular day. Make short term goals and stick to them. Keep them practical and achievable. If you’ve got a 4-6 months at hand, 6-8 hours a day should be enough. If you’re in the last one month of your preparation, make that 12-14 hours a day. Sounds harsh? It is, I never said it’s going to be easy. I didn’t achieve the above immediately, I had to work my way towards it. Know this, it isn’t impossible, you can do it too. Lastly, I can’t stress enough on the value of keeping a calm mind. Easier said than done, I know, but it can be the difference between getting a seat in the top NLU’s and not getting one at all. Keep yourself level headed and don’t think about what’s at stake. Instead think about your strengths and how you’ve worked on your weaknesses and you’ll find a strange feeling of content and confidence. All the Best!

Mahima

APRIL – MAY 2013

PAGE 5

1. Britain’s first woman Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, known as the Iron Lady, passed away on April 8, 2013 in London.

2. N. Ravi, director of Kasturi and Sons Limited publisher of The Hindu, and a former Editor of the paper, was

unanimously elected President of the Editors Guild of India.

3. Industrialist Rama Prasad Goenka architect of the RPG Enterprises conglomerate spanning varied interests from power to music passed away in Kolkata on April 14, 2013.

4. The former Chief Justice of India, J.S. Verma, who headed a three-member panel to examine laws dealing with

crimes against women died in New Delhi on April 22, 2013.

5. Mathematical genius Shakuntala Devi, nicknamed ‘human computer’ for her ability to make complex mental calculations, died in Bangalore on April 21, 2013.

6. Lalgudi G. Jayaraman, the violinist whose tonal quality and chiseled rendering elevated Carnatic music to new

heights, died in Chennai on April 22, 2013.

7. Ravuri Bharadwaja, the Telugu writer on April 17, 2013 was selected for the prestigious Jnanpith Award 2012. He got the award for his contributions to Telugu literature for over a period of six decades.

8. Legendary actor, Pran Krishan Sikand on April 12, 2013 was awarded with Bollywood’s highest honour in

Indian Cinema Dadha Saheb Phalke Award 2012.

9. The Planning Commission of India on April 19, 2013 launched IBIN (India Backbone Implementation Network) for effective implantation of its core programmes and policies. IBIN will address the need to improve implementation of policies and programmes chartered out in the 12th Five Year Plan as critical necessity for accelerating more inclusive and faster growth.

10. International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its latest release on April 16, 2013 of the World Economic Outlook

(WEO) slashed the growth projection of India from its earlier prediction of 5.9 per cent to 5.7 per cent for the calendar year 2013.

11. The Union Cabinet of India on April 18, 2013 approved the National Policy for Children, 2012. The policy was

approved to reaffirm the commitment of the Government towards the realization of the rights of the Children in the Country as it recognized that every person below 18 years in age as a child. The policy has identified survival, nutrition, health, development, education, protection and participation as undeniable rights of every child, and these have been recognized as the key priority areas.

APRIL – MAY 2013

PAGE 6

NEWS IN BRIEF

2

12. Nicolas Maduro of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela has been sworn in as the new President of Venezuela.

13. The New York Times won four Pulitzer Prizes on April 15, 2013, including the award for investigative reporting

for stories that detailed how Wal-Mart used bribery to expand in Mexico.

14. Adam Scott won the Augusta Masters Golf championship on April 14, 2013. He beat Angel Cabrere in the play-off for the title. It was his maiden major title.

15. Tennis star, Serena Williams was ranked number one in an unchanged top 10 issued on April 8, 2013 by the

WTA (Women Tennis Association). Williams has 11,115 points to her credit.

16. Mukesh Ambani retained the top spot among Indians on Forbes’ annual list of the wealthiest world’s billionaires with an estimated worth of $21.5 billion.

17. Mr. Krishnakumar Natarajan took over as Chairman of NASSCOM for the year 2013-14.

18. In its report “Asian Development Outlook 2013,” the Asian Development Bank maintains that the Indian economy could grow at an improved rate of 6 percent during 2013-14, provided reforms are put in place at a faster pace.

19. A high-level panel headed by space scientist and Planning Commission member Dr. K. Kasturirangan

recommends ban on mining in 37% of Western Ghats including thermal power, major construction, and some hydel power projects.

20. Rising Indian star shuttler P.V. Sindhu won the women’s singles title at the Malaysian Grand Prix badminton

championship in Kuala Lumpur, beating Juan Gu of Singapore in the final.

21. Celebrated Indian hornbill conservator Ms. Aparajita Datta was conferred the prestigious Whitley Award, also referred to as the Green Oscar, by the Royal Geographical Society, London, for her work to save the threatened hornbills in the forests of Arunachal Pradesh.

22. The Union Cabinet granted the Classical Status to Malayalam, thus putting it in the league of Tamil, Kannada

and Telugu. Thus all the four languages of South India, have been accorded the Classical Status.

APRIL – MAY 2013

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NEWS IN BRIEF

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23. The Supreme Court upheld the government’s proposal to allow foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail trade (MBRT) and held that the move does not suffer from any unconstitutionality, illegality, arbitrariness or irrationality.

24. The Rajya Sabha passed the Railway budget and the Finance Bill

25. Vice-President of India Hamid Ansari inaugurated the International Centre for Environment Audit and

Sustainable Development (iCED) in Jaipur.

26. India nominated a group of six hill forts in Rajasthan and the Great Himalayan National Park in Himachal Pradesh as candidates for World Heritage Sites.

27. Senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah was sworn in as Chief Minister of Karnataka before a mammoth

gathering at the Kanteerava Stadium in Bangalore by Governor H.R. Bharadwaj.

28. The Centre set up an expert committee under Raghuram Rajan, Chief Economic Advisor to the Finance Ministry, for evolving a composite development index for States.

29. The Union Cabinet gave its approval for increasing the “creamy layer” income criterion from Rs. 4.5 lakh to

Rs. Six lakh per annum throughout the country.

30. Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt surrendered before the designated TADA court in Mumbai to serve his three-and-a-half-year sentence in the 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blast case.

31. Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma was appointed as Comptroller and Auditor-General of India.

32. Arunima Sinha, a former national volleyball player who lost one of her legs having been thrown off a moving

train in 2011, created history, becoming the first Indian amputee to conquer Mount Everest.

33. The Union government gave the nod to a proposal to grant the Rajali National Park in Uttarakhand the status of a tiger reserve.

34. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCC) announced that a three-member commission will probe the role

of Chennai Super Kings official Gurunath Meiyappan in the spot-fixing and betting scandal that rocked IPL-6.

35. Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl shot in the head by the Taliban, announced the first grant of $45,000 from the Malala Fund for girls education to an unnamed organization in Pakistan’s Swat Valley.

APRIL – MAY 2013

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NEWS IN BRIEF

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36. The Conference of Parties to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, meeting in Geneva, approved non-chemical as well as chemical alternatives to Endosulfan.

37. The US and the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) discussed a wide range of

pressing regional issues, including maritime security and transnational crime, during the annual dialogue between the two sides in Washington.

38. Brazil’s Roberto Azevedo won the race to become the next head of the World Trade Organization, the first

candidate from the BRIC club of emerging economies to take the job.

39. The Group of Seven (G-7) industrialized nations agreed in London that collective action is needed to target tax evasion and avoidance, including by multinational companies using transfer pricing rules to shift profits into tax havens.

40. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates regained the title of world’s richest person with a fortune valued at $72.7 billion

on Bloomberg’s billionaire index.

41. Samina Balg, a 22 year old woman became the first female Pakistani to scale the world’s tallest mountain when she reached the 8.848 metre summit of Mount Everest.

42. The heads of States and Government of the 27 nation EU, at a one-day summit in Brussels, decided to curb

corporate tax avoidance by plugging the legal loop-holes.

43. Yichiro Miura, a professional mountaineer, set a new world record by becoming the oldest climber to reach the summit of Mount Everest, world’s highest peak at the age of 80.

44. Seven months after deadly super storm Sandy devastated the coastline of New Jersey and parts of New York,

all New York City beaches were reopened.

45. African Union (A.U.) leaders met in Addis Ababa to tackle conflicts on the continent.

APRIL – MAY 2013

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NEWS IN BRIEF

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46. Sebastian Vettel extended his lead in the 2013 title race when he claimed victory for Red Bull at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Manama.

47. Gibraltar was granted full UEFA membership, becoming the 54th and smallest member of European football’s

governing body.

48. Mumbai Indians won their maiden Pepsi Indian Premier League title beating the Chennai Super Kings by 23 runs in the final in Kolkata.

49. India’s bid for observer status in the Arctic Council was successful on May 15, 2013 along with that of five other

countries – China, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Singapore at a meeting in Kiruna, Sweden.

50. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, was on a three-day visit to India in the third-week of May. During this visit India and China expressed a strong desire to resolve pending issues and take the relationship forward in new spheres such as civil nuclear energy.

51. Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has secured majority in Pakistan’s National

Assembly after 18 independent candidates joined the party, allowing it to form government as the centre without striking alliance with any other party.

52. International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) approved Japan’s Mount Fuji to be declared as the

UNESCO World Heritage site. Mount Fuji is the snow-topped volcano in Japan. Formal decision would be taken about its declaration as the world heritage site when the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO will meet in Cambodia in June 2013.

53. The Union Cabinet of India on May 1, 2013 approved the launch of the National Urban Health Mission to

reduce rates of infant mortality, maternal mortality and for universal access to reproductive health care. The cost of the National Urban Health Mission for 5 years is 22507 crore rupees and the Central government will share 16955 crore rupees. The mission will be implemented in 779 cities and towns each with the population of more than 50,000 has expected to cover about 7.75 crore

APRIL – MAY 2013

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NEWS IN BRIEF

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1. A young Indian biologist was honoured with the Whitley award, also known as Green Oscar, in London on 2

May 2013. Who is she?

2. Singer Hariharan was conferred with the Lata Mangeshkar Samman Alankaran on 20 May 2013. Which Indian

state government confers this award?

3. The Ministry for Information & Broadcasting, on 10 May 2013 presented the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke

award for life time achievement to______.

4. According to the Economic review 2012-13, presented by the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council

(PMEAC) in April 2013, at what per cent will the Indian economy grow in the new financial year that began on 1

April 2013?

5. International Monetary Fund, in its latest release on 16 April 2013 of the World Economic Outlook (WEO),

slashed the growth projection of India from its earlier prediction of 5.9 percent to ______.

6. The Supreme Court of India on 1 May 2013 upheld the constitutional validity of Government’s decision allowing

51 percent foreign direct Investment in the ______ sector.

7. The Union Cabinet of India, on 9 May 2013, decided to declare the year 2013 as the year of ______.

8. The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, on 21 May 2013, relaxed the eligibility parameters for a

scheme which provides financial assistance to mothers for institutional deliveries. Which is that scheme?

9. Who is the renowned space scientist of India, who was inducted into the highly coveted “Satellite Hall of

Fame”, Washington?

10. Name the eminent Indian journalist who was named the new editor of Time International.

11. Who was conferred the Pakistan’s highest civil award ‘Nisha-e-Pakistan in May 2013?’

12. Which creative writer was conferred the 2013 Man Booker International Prize?

13. What was India’s position in the Human Development Report of the UNDP brought out in March 2013?

14. Which Indian city would host the 2014 Thomas and Uber Cup finals?

15. Who has been appointed as new President of the ‘Editors Guild of India’?

APRIL – MAY 2013

PAGE 11

Quiz Corner

Refer Page 12 for answers

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SRIRAM COURSES FOR LAW ASPIRANTS

PROGRAM GENRE TARGET ADMISSION STATUS

SRIRAM TARGETEDGE ONLINE cum POSTAL PROGRAM CLAT 2014 OPEN

SRIRAM TARGETPLUS ONLINE cum POSTAL PROGRAM CLAT 2014 OPEN

SRIRAM ACHIEVER ONLINE cum POSTAL PROGRAM CLAT 2015 OPEN

SRIRAM POWER CLASSROOM PROGRAM @ CHENNAI CLAT 2014 CLOSED

SRIRAM EXPERT CLASSROOM PROGRAM @ CHENNAI CLAT 2015 OPEN

APRIL – MAY 2013

PAGE 12

Answers to QUIZ

8