Tagore's Visva Bharati divided over V-C's plan for a 'goshala' with 200 cows

Rabindranath Tagore's Visva Bharati University in Shantiniketan is embroiled in a fresh controversy, this time over the management's decision to set up a 'goshala' (cowshed) with 200 cows.

The plan, set afoot by current Vice-Chancellor (V-C) Swapan Kumar Dutta, has been opposed by a section of faculty members terming it an "appeasement policy".

The move comes amidst reports that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is also the Chancellor of the university, has been invited to preside over the annual convocation.

According to the V-C, dairy farms were actually started by Tagore himself. "As an agricultural scientist it was of obvious interest for me. I looked upon all the farms available and found that the dairy farm was non-functional for more than two decades. So we wanted to revive them in order to realise Tagore's dream. We want to expand the farm so that we can meet the requirement of about 80-90 litres of milk per day for our school children," Dutta told India Today.

PLAN OPPOSED

But Dutta's plan is facing resistance from within the university with the Visva Bharati University Faculty Association (VBUFA) opposing the move. "In our perception, it is an appeasement policy of the officiating Vice-Chancellor, who would like to be appointed as a regular V-C by appeasing the central government. He is not bothered about the faculty members not having quarters or living in quarters that are in abysmal state, much worse than his proposed cowsheds," alleged Sudipta Bhattacharya, VBUFA president.

Like Bhattacharya, other faculty members too claim that money for the V-C's pet project was being allocated out of the university's own funds and there are other more pressing issues that need to be addressed than building cowsheds.

"Dairy farming course requires ten cows, not 200! Still, if he can arrange funds from UGC for his project, we don't mind. But at a time when there are insufficient rooms for laboratories at Siksha Bhawan, anthropology building is in a dilapidated condition and comparative literature faculty member do not have proper rooms, such a step would be a wasteful expenditure," said Bikash Chandra Gupta, another faculty member.

At present, Visva Bharati does run a BSc Agriculture course which includes animal husbandry and dairy farming.

Some also allege that during his one-and-a-half year tenure, the V-C had invited several politicians rather than academicians to deliver lectures with an aim to fulfilling his personal interests.

Founded in 1921 by Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore in Shantiniketan, Visva Bharati was declared a central university and an institution of national importance by an Act of Parliament in 1951. However, questions have been raised about the standard of academia in recent times with the institute being embroiled in several controversies.

Visva Bharati has slipped to the 19th spot from 11 in the all India ranking of universities conducted by the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

SUPPORT FOR V-C'S PLAN

The Bengal BJP has welcomed the Vice-Chancellor's move terming it a positive step. "A Goshala always existed there. They are now trying to revamp it. So how is it saffronisation?" asked BJP leader Rahul Sinha.

"There is a nefarious attempt to hinder every positive work using the garb of saffronisation. What is problematic about the colour saffron? It is the colour of our national flag. Saffron is the symbol of renunciation and we should be proud of it," Sinha added.

When asked about the development, Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee said, "It is a central government institute. It is their jurisdiction and we have nothing to do with it."