CHENNAI: Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy was shocked when students and professors of political science and public administration at the Tamil Nadu Open University could not explain what a unitary state is. He was speaking at an event organised on the occasion of World Constitution Day at the university on Friday.
Initially, he directed the question to the students and expressed his disappointment when they were unable to answer. He then proceeded to ask them to give an example of a unitary state, to which a student responded with ‘India’.
Shocked by the response, he turned to the professor on stage, hoping for a correct answer. He was baffled when the professor answered ‘Puducherry’. “What are you teaching the students? Professors should be trained properly first. Only then will students learn,” he said.
The minister, who holds a doctorate in political science, educated those present on the concept of unitary states. “A unitary state is where the central government holds all the power. An example of this is England. US, on the other hand, is an example of a federal state.”