BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY On the Global Route
Green boulevards, a hospital, a museum, the country’s largest library, a 500- strong private security force, a temple, a 100acre agricultural farm, 72 hostels, four post offices, a petrol pump, a shopping centre, a swimming pool, an airstrip, four helipads and even an IIT— all on the campus. Sprawled over 1,350 acres, Banaras Hindu University ( BHU) is a well- planned township within the ancient city of Varanasi. Established in 1916 by freedom fighter and educationist Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya, the university isn’t letting tradition come in the way of exploring newer frontiers in disciplines such as management, medicine, agriculture and engineering.
The university, consistently ranked among the top five in the INDIA TODAYNielsen Best Universities Survey, is all set to further its legacy of knowledge. To arm its students with the technological know- how essential to compete on a global platform, the university has undertaken a number of e- initiatives this year. A 24- hour, air- conditioned cyber library with a seating capacity of 200 students was inaugurated in March 2013. “This facility is particularly for economically backward students who may not own laptops and for those who do not reside on campus but want to study till late in the night,” says Lalji Singh, 65, the vice- chancellor ( VC) of the university, also an alumnus. Singh is a molecular biologist and a Padma Shri awardee.
The administration has also made provision for vehicles with security guards that ferry female students from the library back to the hostel. “I plan to set up cyber libraries for the university faculty soon. Plans to expand the cur- rent cyber library are also afoot as its seating capacity is insufficient for a university as large as ours,” says Singh.
The university is also set to minimise the use of paper from the 2013- 14 academic session. Under the e- governance initiative, college and hostel admissions, faculty appointments and all financial operations and records will be maintained electronically. “In another two months, the university operations will be automated completely. This will also ensure complete transparency in
Earlier science was driving technology, but now technology is driving science. If we do not develop technology, we will never become leaders.