Not Walking the Talk

The Central University of Himachal Pradesh (CUHP) is the only central university established under the Central University Act, 2009 that has not been allotted a permanent land for its campus. And, there are mostly political reasons behind it. It is a fight between two political parties, where one is trying to take it to Dehra and the other wants it to be established in Dharamshala. As a result, the CUHP has been, since its inception, stuck (with very little hope of moving to a permanent place) in the Temporary Academic Block (TAB) at Shahpur, which was originally constructed for the Government College.

There are serious problems faced by the teachers and students of this university because of non-allotment of land. It must be kept in mind that students are basic beneficiaries of a university. The extent to which a university can contribute to their learning depends on both good teachers and supporting infrastructure. The delay in land allotment is creating problems on both fronts. The lack of necessary infrastructure is discouraging good candidates from joining this institute. The existing faculty is also looking for other options. Some of the faculty members have already left the university. The lack of basic infrastructure, such as the required number of classrooms and proper hostel facilities, is increasing the hardship of the students and hindering teaching as well as research activities. The limited number of classrooms is the most problematic part of the present campus. Due to dearth of rooms, classes are held from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm in two batches. The science departments are unable to establish labs as per the requirements of their subjects. In the absence of proper labs, the science faculty finds it extremely difficult to do their research.