MALAPPURAM: The Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University, an institution established exclusively to promote study and research of Malayalam language, literature, and Kerala culture, will soon start courses in arts and science.
The university authorities, in a syndicate committee meeting held here on Friday, decided to begin the Faculty of Arts and Faculty of Science apart from the already existing five other faculties - linguistics, literature, cultural heritage and history, media studies, and social sciences.
Vice-Chancellor V Anil Kumar said the decision was taken to make courses in science and arts available in Malayalam medium to the students in Kerala. “Students in the state will get a better institute to learn arts and science subjects in Malayalam medium, once we start these faculties.
The courses under the faculties will be decided by a soon to be appointed boards of studies and advisory boards for these faculties.
At present, we are offering the MSc Environmental Studies under the Department of Social Sciences. Soon, the MSc course will be started under Faculty of Science,” said Anil Kumar.
Meanwhile, a section in the university has raised concern over the decision.They said providing science courses in Malayalam will not be easy and finding Malayalam translation for scientific terms will be a Herculean task for the professors in the new departments as well as students.
However, the VC expressed confidence and said the curriculum for science courses would be developed by experts in science and Malayalam literature.
“We may not find exact translations for all scientific words. But the curriculum will be developed by giving least importance to other languages,” he added.
The committee has also decided to confer literature stalwarts Akkitham Achuthan Namboothiri, C Radhakrishnan, and Scaria Zacharia with honorary D.Lit.
The doctoral certificates will be handed over to them at a function to be conducted soon in the university. Governor Arif Mohammad Khan will attend the function. This is the first time, the university is going to confer an honorary doctorate since it was established in 2012.
Registrar-in-charge T Anitha Kumari, Higher Education Department joint secretary R Vijayakumar, Finance Department Additional Secretary Ferold Xavier, Cultural Department joint secretary K Geetha and other syndicate members attended the meeting.