Assertion of rights of individuals and groups on campuses across the country is a natural evolution of development and universities should be responsive, and not reactive, in dealing with the challenges on campuses, secretary-general, Association of Indian Universities, Furqan Qamar has said.
“We need both formal and informal interventions in dealing with issues of intolerance and inequality on campuses. Formal interventions could be in form of making board of management more diverse, accommodating more social groups and women and changes in academic curriculum; while informal interventions could in the form of creating spaces for more dialogue, dissent and debate on campuses and cultural interaction. But it is very difficult to do the informal intervention,” Professor Qamar told The Hindu on the sidelines of the South Zone Vice Chancellors meet being held on the campus of Vignan University on Wednesday.
Making a pitch for creating a culture of equal rights in the wake of a raging debate of intolerance on campuses such as JNU, New Delhi, and at Hyderabad Central University in the wake of suicide of Rohit Vemula, Prof. Qamar said values of equality and tolerance, which we have inherited in democracy, should be percolated in campuses.
“Life of students should be made hassle-free. Students have built-in dissatisfaction with the system and that gets manifested in different forms. For instance, a student who has a sleepless night will vent out his frustration on the system. Life on campus should be made more comfortable. Student spaces on campuses in the U.S. and Canada are about 30 per cent and it is just 2 to 3 per cent in India,” said Prof. Qamar. On the other hand, he said that the higher education scenario has undergone major changes with more number of students from different backgrounds getting admitted in universities, and students being more aware of their rights and democracy becoming more mature.
“We should welcome this assertion among the students and universities should act as a facilitator among the various groups and encourage free debate on campuses. This is a sign of mature democracy,” Prof. Qamar added.
