Our varsities face the risk of slipping into oblivion

Pioneer of DNA Fingerprinting in the country, Lalji Singh headed the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), and later moved to the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) as the Vice-Chancellor.

After completing his three-year term with BHU, he is back in the city to pursue his interest and passion in science by setting up the Genome Foundation.

Universities in the country have to change, improve infrastructure and adopt global style else they face the risk of slipping into oblivion, Dr. Lalji Singh tells T. Lalith Singh, in an interview with The Hindu.

How was your experience heading BHU?

Banaras Hindu University was my alma mater. I call it a university for the talented poor. I did my B.Sc. and M.Sc. free of cost there, and when I was asked to serve as the V-C, I took it as an opportunity to give back whatever I can. The institution made me what I am today.

What are the issues faced by our universities?

The threat for universities in the country is real. Some private universities are really good with appropriate infrastructure and teaching standards, but they do not have research. Our varsities, mainly the State-run ones, are in a bad shape. There is a need to quickly improve infrastructure and adopt innovative and global standards to stay in the race.

What can be done?

The government has to provide resources to more than 700 universities in the country, and preparing a student for the 21 century is very expensive. Inter-disciplinary research holds the key, and thats where I tried new methodologies at BHU.

A Central Discovery Centre was set up in BHU with Rs.100 crore, offering facilities for all streams from agriculture, biology, chemistry to information technology and students could share it for their pursuits.

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Our varsities face the risk of slipping into oblivion