UNIVERSITY OF CALCUTTA For the Greater Good

Striving for excellence is a motto many exalted institutes have upheld. But the University of Calcutta has gone a step beyond. “We believe in striving for excellence, but with principles of equity and justice. The fruits of excellence should be shared with the society at large,” says Vice- Chancellor Suranjan Das.

Education with a heart is a belief that echoes in the value system of the university students. “Our motto is ‘ not me but you’,” says political science postgraduate student Mousumi Mazumdar, who has been a National Service Scheme ( NSS) volunteer with the university for five years. “We are one of the few universities where the University Grants Commission ( UGC) has sponsored the establishment of the Babu Jagjivan Ram Chair for social empowerment. This is recognition that the University of Calcutta has been able to transmit knowledge from within the campus and beyond for social betterment,” says Das.

NSS volunteers of the university, commonly known as CU, actively organise blood donation and thalassaemia camps as well as cultural activities. They rush to help whenever disaster strikes. “When the shanties near the Ultadanga Railway Colony caught fire on January 26 this year for instance, our volunteers rushed from across the city and suburbs to help,” says Arpita Das who was awarded the best NSS volunteer prize in 2012- 13. It is for

Organising the 100th Science Congress was a special experience in keeping the university’s motto of developing a link between science and society.