The Hindu : New Delhi News : `Keep politics away from campus'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 13, 2005

New Delhi

New Delhi

`Keep politics away from campus'

Staff Reporter

Outgoing DU V-C says it is not good for country's future

NEW DELHI: Stressing the need to keep politics away from its everyday functioning, outgoing Delhi University Vice-Chancellor Deepak Nayyar on Thursday said: "universities are temples of learning that have been turned into an arena of politics. It is not good for the future of the country".

Speaking at a press conference here, Prof. Nayyar brushed aside allegations of his having practiced favouritism in the selection of teachers. "These allegations are without any foundation. When I came to this University I did not know any of the people who later went on to become part of my team. They were chosen for their abilities," he said. Asked about the steady decline in the number of foreign students on the campus, Prof. Nayyar while accepting the sharp drop described lack of infrastructure as one of the important reasons.

While noting that the country's universities were losing their share from the world market, Prof. Nayyar said: "Unlike the 1960s when Delhi was one of the most attractive option for students, things have changed with the changing world order. Today neighbouring countries like Bhutan have their own Universities and their students don't come here. But it is also true that we have not been able to provide enough international facility and infrastructure, which has led to students opting for other places like Australia. But we are making efforts to improve things," he said.

Asked about the lack of teachers for Telugu and Oriya, Prof. Nayyar said although the Department of Modern Languages was the largest in the country, it did face a shortage, and not just in teachers but also students at times. "There are difficulties in finding teachers for some languages like Sindhi in which even peer experts are hard to find. In fact, there are courses where we have teachers but no students," he said.

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