NEW DELHI: Acknowledging the demand for the tag of Institute of Eminence raised by the Jawarharlal Nehru University (JNU) Vice-Chancellor to alleviate the financial stress the university is presently undergoing, CPI Rajya Sabha floor leader P Sandosh Kumar has written to the Union education ministry urging it to declare JNU as an Institute of Eminence.
In a letter to education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, the CPI MP raised several issues related to the financial crunch, poor infrastructure and promotions of teachers. These were some of the major issues highlighted by the JNU V-C Santishree D Pandit during an interview with The Morning Standard last week.
The CPI MP also said he has written to Pradhan in regard to the JNU V-C’s suggestion to sell or rent JNU properties for want of funds. “The proposal seems to be an attempt to hand over prime location real estate to private hands. It is extremely unfortunate that an esteemed institute like JNU is reduced to pennies as government expenditure on research and public education has come down.
All major public educational institutes are heavily burdened due to lack of funding... this neglect that higher education will soon become an exclusive domain of the rich,” said the MP.