Journalism of Courage
The Home Extension Department of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) is in a complete mess as a fresh order was issued on Thursday again to re-shift the department from the building of Old Communication Centre to College of Home Science.
The order issued by Vice-Chancellor B S Dhillon has left the whole department in distress as on February 25, they had shifted all the offices and logistics from College of Home Science. Head of department Sukhjit Kaur Aujla had resigned immediately.
Now the fresh order, accessed by Newsline, says the building has been allotted to School of Business Studies and Home Extension Department should vacate the rooms occupied by them immediately and shift back to the College of Home Science.
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The fresh order has raised a question mark on why earlier the Home Extension Department was forced to shift to communication building two months back and now when they have shifted again, the order has been issued to re-shift.
“After we moved from College of Home Science, no one occupied those rooms. They are still lying vacant and teachers faced so many problems for two months. Classes were held there and office work was done here in the communication building. We paid from our own pockets to labourers to install blinds, noticeboards and shift books, furniture, computers here. Each teacher spent Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 in getting things shifted. It was not even two months that we settled and now we have been asked to re-shift. Our department head resigned resisting earlier order, and now we are back to our original space after two months of drama,” said a faculty member.
Lying vacant since September 2013, the old building of Communication and International Linkages of Punjab Agricultural University near Thapar Hall became the reason of spat between various departments of PAU and the vice-chancellor in February.
Reportedly, Dhillon in February ordered Aujla to get the entire department shifted within a few hours to the old communication building. Sources present inside the closed-door meeting confirmed that Dhillon specifically said that he would not attend the convocation of College of Home Science if the department did not start the shifting process.
Even the Extension Education Department of College of Agriculture was issued an order in February to shift to the Old Communication building but they resisted and never shifted.
Then the School of Business Studies of College of Basic Sciences and Humanities were willing to shift to the old building but were not allowed to and now they have been allotted the building.
Instead the order was issued to the Extension Department of home science and agriculture to shift their base to the old building.
In February, the staff was also told that if they did not shift as per order, they would be transferred to Krishi Vigyan Kenders.
At present, the Home Extension Department has no head. When contacted, Dr Neelam Grewal, dean postgraduate studies, said, “The decision must have been taken for convenience of faculty who had to move to College of Home Science to take classes. It is a routine process.”
