Former PU V-Cs share their memories,advice

Professor R P Bambah,who was the Vice-Chancellor of PU from 1985 to 1991,said that he had the best of faculty at the university and many researchers who are eminent personalities today. Remembering the university’s attitude earlier towards encouraging academics,he recalls his appointment to PU. The then V-C had allowed him a two-year study leave for his fellowship at Cambridge University just three months after joining as a reader.

He lamented,“Somewhere we lost the way and the university got bogged down by petty issues and personal agenda. As V-C I wanted to appoint Dr Manmohan Singh as a professor in the university. He was 58 and I proposed a seven year contract for him. This was opposed strongly by some powerful elements of the senate and we could not make him an offer”.

From 1997 to 2000,professor M M Puri was chosen to lead Panjab University. He is the man behind the revival of the democratic process of students’ elections in PU after an interval of 14 years. The elections had been discontinued following terrorist activities in the region. Professor Puri recalls the constitution of new chairs at PU,which was headed by researchers and scholars from across India. He also says that there was much physical expansion of the campus during his tenure as V-C,and the layout of the university was modified.

However,unlike Professor Bambah’s stress on the Sciences,he wished for the improvement of the social science departments. “With the new V-C being from a science background,the social sciences and humanities should not be ignored. The faculty of these departments must be enriched far more than they are at present and vacant positions should be filled,” says Professor M M Puri.

Professor K N Pathak says that he was appointed V-C at a time when the university was facing a heavy financial crunch. He mulls,“I had to make attempts at curtailing expenses and saving up on a lot of funds in order to pay the staff. There were many loans to be repaid also,for which the interest amount itself was about 25 lakh rupees”.

However,he says that the hard times passed and there were many memories to be cherished during his tenure from 2000 to 2006. The Human Genomics Centre,UILS,UIET,Ludhiana and Hoshiarpur centres,Dental College and the Laws department were all established under his leadership.

Professor Pathak maintains,“The senate and syndicate are important institutions and should be credited with being the strength and support system for the Vice-Chancellors”. He suggests that more attention should be paid to the growth of departments like the Dental College and Centre for Stem Cell Research and Drug Designing.

According to Professor Pathak,petty issues should not interfere with developmental issues. Active professors must be encouraged and supported by their peers,and research should face less interference from the administration. “In all areas of academics,nurturing is very important,” he says.