For an institution that first began from rented buildings initially, and then went on to become one of the best centres of education in South India, the iconic Arts College in Osmania University has come a long way from the time it was first set up on August 28, 1919.
With just 25 teachers and 225 students in 1919, the institution was later shifted to its present historic edifice and formally inaugurated by the seventh Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan on December 4, 1939. Today, the Arts College has etched itself a place in the city’s history, known more for being the face of Osmania University (OU), and the Telangana agitations in the recent past.
While it is definitely a landmark in the heritage building’s history, the 75 anniversary of the University College of Arts and Social Sciences also perhaps is a time for varsity officials to reflect on the lacuna that has set in over the years. Renowned for its education in the past, it is a shadow of its past glory today. Case in point being the Russian department, which is dysfunctional now due to lack of teachers.
Other departments in the Arts College have suffered over the last few years, pointed out senior faculty members from the institution. “After senior teachers retire, they are not replaced, and that has resulted in academics suffering badly,” lamented a professor on condition of anonymity.
For example, the French, German, Kannada, Tamil and Marathi departments have only one professor each, when they should clearly have at least a few, said faculty members. “The Russian department had shut down because there was no one to teach the subject after the permanent faculty members retired,” said Prof. Mallesh Sankasala, former principal of the Arts College, who remitted office earlier this year.
One of the major reasons behind the academic slowdown was lack of funds, he said. However, Prof. Krishna Rao, principal, Arts College, dismissed the charges. “French and German are foreign language diploma courses and have only one professor. The remaining language courses also have academic consultants and contract lecturers to teach,” he mentioned.
