The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : `Mother universities' to share resources

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Apr 29, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

`Mother universities' to share resources

Akhila Seetharaman

CHENNAI: : Modern India's first universities have come a full circle. Born three years after the East India Company first recommended in 1854 that institutions of higher education be set up in Madras, Mumbai and Calcutta, the grand old universities have come together 150 years later. This time, through a joint initiative to share resources and personnel.

Signing a memorandum of understanding at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here on Wednesday, the three Vice-Chancellors paved the way for networked electronic libraries, high-speed data link facilities, tele-education, joint degrees and collaborative research. "It's a call for synergy of thought," S.P. Thyagarajan, Vice-Chancellor, University of Madras, told presspersons. The President, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, said the convergence of universities would improve the standards of research and "create high quality scientists and professionals, in a borderless way."

In the coming academic year, microbiology postgraduate students in the University of Madras will attend a semester in Mumbai and vice-versa. So can students doing research in physics, biophysics, bioinformatics, genetics, anthropology, history, economics, public administration and comparative literature and language. Eventually, even undergraduate students will be able to study at more than one location through a transfer-of-credits system.

Faculty member exchange is on the cards. The universities plan to institute 150 inter-university students' fellowships for postgraduate studies and research (50 for each). Interuniversity cultural festivals and sports events are scheduled for 2006-07.

Dr. Abdul Kalam emphasised the need for research and development in the interface of science and engineering. To begin with, the universities plan to collaborate on a national research project on nano sciences and nanotechnology as soon as possible. While Madras University will focus on nano biomaterials, the University of Calcutta will research nano chemical materials and the University of Mumbai will deal with nano nuclear materials. Each university will expand on its strengths.

"All universities in the country were given birth to by one or the other of the three pioneers," said Dr. Thyagarajan. For example, the University of Madras has played midwife to 23 other universities.

In the run-up to the 150th year, the universities plan to tell students about their heritage. Through a programme, `Remembering Mother Universities', conferences, exhibitions and festivals celebrating the occasion would be held in the new universities.

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