Decision riles teachers, students

Hyderabad: Pressure is mounting on Osmania University Vice-Chancellor S Ramachandram as teachers and students joined hands against the postponement of the 105th Indian Science Congress (ISC).

Osmania University Teachers Association (OUTA) termed the postponement as a sudden and unilateral decision of the university and condemned it.

The OUTA, president Prof Battu Satyanarayana condemned the university’s decision and said it was a sudden and unilateral decision of the authorities expressing their inability to host Indian Science Congress in the last minute.

He said, “In the 105-year history of the Indian Science Congress (ISC) it has never been postponed barely two weeks before it was to commence.”

He added that about 20 committees consisting faculty members have been working relentlessly for the last four months and have completed the major part of the work assigned to them.

The inability expressed by the Vice Chancellor to host the ISC had rendered all these efforts useless, he said.

The OUTA president said more than 16,000 delegates had already registered to participate in the event, after paying registration fees, and have made all their travel and accommodation arrangements.

He said number of Bhatnagar awardees, Noble laureates and plenary speakers, ISCA awardees and many other eminent personalities had expressed their consent to participate in the Science Congress.

Satyanarayana said “Traditionally, the event is the first public function the Prime Minister addresses in the calendar year. Postponing the 105th ISC undermines the reputation of Osmania University, as this event is being hosted as part of centenary celebrations of the University.”

The students, research scholars, faculty members, and other stakeholders are greatly pained and saddened by the sudden and shocking unilateral decision of the university administration.

The University had hosted Indian science congress successfully five times in the past without any problem.

The OUTA feels that the stature and academic excellence of Osmania University has taken an irrecoverable beating with the unilateral decision. It demanded that the university reconsider its decision and host the event, so the university’s image is not tarnished.

Meanwhile, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) demanded that the 105th Indian Science Congress should be held in Osmania University campus. The student’s union demanded that the VC resign from his post as he undermined the image of 100-year-old university.

The students’ organisation's central working committee member M Raghavender alleged that the cancellation had come following the pressure mounted by the State government. “It shows how the VCs in the State are toeing the line for the State government, which is, trying to take away the autonomy of the universities in the State,” he added.

When the Andhra Pradesh government led by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu could successfully hold the 104th ISC, why the Telangana is not able to do the same, he questioned.