A gathering with a difference

Updated on: Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Jawaharlal Nehru University is gearing up for a unique and special event. Come Saturday, February 18, the university will play host to its students who were enrolled in the university from 1969-1982, roughly the first decade of its establishment.

One of the country's premier institutions for higher learning, teaching and research, JNU's alumni present a formidable force in society and the university alumni list reads like a veritable who's who, comprising women and men who have made their mark in fields ranging from academics, politics and administration to entrepreneurship, media and social activism.

Alumni from countries such as Australia, Scotland, Bahrain, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United States, Saudi Arabia and other countries will participate in the meet, which is being organised by a loosely-structured group, the “Global JNUites.” Group coordinator Chandrashekhar Tibrewal said: “The larger aim of the meet is to pave the way for a series of discussion on the role of universities in society. Another objective is to create a corpus of funds for use by JNU and to pool our resources for secondary issues in the university which are not usually funded by general resources.”

Those expected to attend include CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury, Nationalist Congress Party leader D.P. Tripathi, BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman, Naz Foundation founder Anjali Gopalan, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies senior fellow Yogendra Yadav and Centre for Social Research director Ranjana Kumari.

Part of the organising committee and Professor in the School of Social Sciences, Geetha Nambissan, added: “The alumni from the first decade will reflect on what should be done for the university. To this end, a panel will be organised in which discussions will take place on the university's first decade. Ways to contribute to the university given the current context of the university and the larger debates surrounding it will be chalked out. How do we look at JNU and how will it evolve in the next two or three decades? Even within university circles, such a thinking process is already underway.”

“The University: JNU and its role in India today” will form the topic of the panel discussion while Romila Thapar, Professor Emeritus, JNU will deliver a talk on what the vision was for the university when it started.

Most students have a deep sense of gratitude to their alma mater and for its contribution in their growth as individuals. JNU students are no different and take pride in their association with the university; they possess a strong sense of affiliation. Sohail Hashmi, also an organising committee member and a trustee of SAHMAT said: “All of us from JNU owe a lot to the university not just academically but also because of our evolution as human beings. The alumni meet will be an effort to reassert the vision of JNU.”

The advent of Internet technology has meant that alumni could be easily contacted.

“However, some of our alumni have passed away. We will have a short memorial service for them. About 500-600 alumni are expected. The meet will provide an occasion for students to reunite, reminisce and share memories. We might have a sort of mock general body meeting -- it is very much part of the JNU tradition. Plans to organise an annual alumni lecture series and publication of a series of these lectures in book form will also be discussed,” Mr. Hashmi added.

A gathering with a difference

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