Punjab retreats from its earlier proposal to make Punjab University a central university
September 3rd, 2008
Following is an excerpt from a report in worldsikhnews.com.
“I have written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union Human Resource Development Minister Arjun Singh not to grant central university status to PU,” Badal said on Monday. He said he has revised the decision because of “misgivings in the minds of the intelligentsia,” a shameless euphemism that basically meant that the government had totally misread the people’s sentiments …
Among the Punjab scholars, academicians and public spirited men who opposed the Badal government’s initial decision, said such a move would have adversely affected not only Punjab’s claims overChandigarh but also the university’s commitment to propagation of Punjabi language, culture and tradition.
They said the Punjab Government will no doubt save Rs 16 crore every year but will cause incalculable harm to Punjab.
Some senior academicians and former vice-chancellors formed a ‘Save Panjab University Forum’ and met in Ludhiana’s GGN Khalsa College where former secretary Higher Education, Dr Manmohan Singh, explained the disadvantages of the central takeover of the varsity.
Guru Nanak Dev University former vice-chancellor Dr S.P. Singh said the Panjab University had a closely-knit relationship with Punjabi language, culture and distinct Punjabi identity which would be lost with the Central status.
Punjabi University former vice-chancellor Dr. J.S. Puar averted that Central status to varsity will neither enhance its status nor academic standard. “It would have dwarfed the university by weaning it away from its legitimate heritage.”
Other academicians present were GNDU former pro vice-chancellor Prof Prithipal Singh, Punjab School Education Board secretary Prof J.S. Sidhu and former principals of government colleges and schools. Dr Darshan Singh, aChandigarh based scholar often consulted by the SGPC, also strongly opposed the move.
Some professors from Panjab University tried to gain support of Prof Randhir Singh, the giant among academics in India and a scholar of Marxism, but he refused saying the PU, Chandigarh academics were only interested for their narrow gains of salary and funds, not for any better reason.
As per a report in Indian Express, Punjab would now request the central university to be in Bathinda; the national university is already scheduled to be established in Amritsar.
I think the above has a lesson for Orissa in regards to identifying the location for the announced national university in Bhubaneswar, and whether pushing for an exisiting university in Orissa to become the national university is a good idea or not.
Entry Filed under: Learning from others
1 Writeup
1. Abhishek Tripathy | September 4th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
I think the chief reason behind the move in Punjab is political. Being the alma mater of our PM, Mr. Manmohan Singh, there is a pressure on the Punjab Govt. to allocate funds for its upkeep. therefore the clamour for not making it a Central University as the political parties deem it the State Govt.’s duty to fund the University for the above reason rather than to wash its hands off the funding of the University altogether by making it a Central one.
(Source: Times of India, Kolkata)