The reprisal of an old idea has set the cat among the pigeons in Odisha. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s suggestion of rechristening the 156-year-old Ravenshaw College—named after the British Commissioner of Odisha from 1865 to 1878, Thomas Edward Ravenshaw, who founded the state’s first institution of higher education—has triggered a debate and a backlash.
Pradhan recently questioned Ravenshaw’s role in the Na’anka Durbhikhya or the Great Orissa Famine of 1866, that devastated the state and claimed more than 20 lakh lives. While the minister clarified it was his personal opinion and called for a larger debate, it was seen as an intention to provoke a now-familiar line of thought. The statement fits a decade’s pattern of the BJP making efforts to replace colonial baggage with nationalistic symbols. And what better edifice could be found in Odisha than a colossus of the educational, cultural, intellectual and political identity of the state?
There are differing views on Ravenshaw’s role as Odisha’s administrator during the famine. Many historians say he did not have the experience in handling revenue administration when posted to a province that faced a devastating calamity within a year. Others believe he did not do enough to ensure food for the people, as a result of which around a third of the state’s population was wiped out.
However, there is no denying that in his later years he pioneered the development of formal education in the state and played a central role in ensuring that Odia flourished as a language of learning. The college founded by him has gone on to become synonymous with the history of Odisha and Odia identity. The who’s who of the state emerged from its hallowed corridors. When the state was carved out in 1936, the governor was administered his oath in the college hall. Being a Ravenshawvian is an identity its students wear proudly on their chests. To this day, the university has maintained its academic excellence.
There have, though, been feeble voices in the past—in 1949 and more recently in 2017—for renaming the institution. But they died down fast. Pradhan has stoked the ember again. A broader debate this time will hopefully settle the matter.