The Decimation of a University

The University of Delhi has been one of the premier institutions of postsecondary education in India for almost ninety years. Although it is named after the city in which it is located – a city renowned as a seat of learning with a centuries-old culture – the university is a microcosm of the versatile mosaic that is contemporary India. In its classrooms and corridors, in its libraries and cafes, in hostels and at bus-stops, you can hear every language spoken in every accent across the country, listen to its numerous forms of music, and see the rich physical diversity of young people from different regions of the sub-continent. With more than 80 affiliated undergraduate colleges, ‘DU’ as it is popularly called, has drawn lakhs of students to enter its threshold, and each one of them has carved out her path in life because of the experience of those three years which led to the award of a B.A. Honours or Pass degree. Many seamlessly moved on to postgraduate studies and research at the Departments, and a substantial section have been ‘absorbed’ as faculty at their alma mater.