Save Punjabi as Subject of Study in the Colleges of Delhi
Delhi University has recently introduced a new Four Year Undergraduate
Program (FYUP). Under this Program only three colleges of Delhi
University are eligible to offer Punjabi from first year as DC-I (major
subject).Inother 13 or 14 colleges of Delhi,Punjabi (including Urdu and
other Indian languages) will be taught as a minor subjectonly from the second
year of admission (Under so called DC-II). In other words there is no
provision for Punjabi students to be admitted to this subject in the first year
of admission because the University has clearly specified that the admissions
will be made on the basis of Discipline I only. The other colleges where
Punjabi was being offered as Compulsory Subject of M.I.L from the first year, have
been denied to offer Punjabi as DC-I. It means that there will be no admissions
to the subject of Punjabi at entry level.
The argument of the DU authorities is that there is a provision of
Foundation Course (Language literature and Culture in Modern Indian Languages) and
Applied Course (language) in which students can opt for Punjabi in I Semester
only. But the fact is that admission cannot be made on the basis of this
Foundation/Applied Course. Moreover these FC/AC courses are of purely
elementary level as their names suggest.
The other argument of the DU authorities is that there is a
provision under this new Program for offering Punjabi as DC-II (Minor Subject)
starting from third semester of the second year. Since no admission can be made
on the basis of DC-II, the colleges will be left with no student offering
Punjabi. Moreover, the students offering DC-II are not required to pursue the
subject of their option for all the six semesters. They can change their
option after three semesters. In other words Punjabi as DC-II shall
remain for three semesters only which is clearly detrimental to the subject. Moreover,
Punjabi as DC-II has been clubbed with other subjects like Science, Commerce
and Humanities. This clubbing of Punjabi with these subjects isnot at all
conducive to Punjabi as a subject. Under this scheme of things the fate of
minority languages like Punjabi and Urdu hangs in balance. They will be at the
receiving end, without adequate protection. As per previous practice, these
languages need weightage for admission, which is being denied by the present authorities.
Before the inception of this new Course, there was a provision for
Punjabi as compulsory subject and the students could offer Punjabi for all the
three years. I had been associated with the teaching of Punjabi language,
literature and culture in Delhi University for 40 years and have never
witnessed such a threatening situation for Punjabi Studies.It never happened in
the entire history of Delhi University, which has produced some of the eminent
scholars and critics inthe field of Punjabi Studies, when the teaching of
Punjabi was sought to be marginalized in such a manner. Therefore, under this
newly introduced Program no option other than DC-I ensures proper place for
Punjabi as a subject of study. All the colleges offering Punjabi should be
provided this facility.
As a matter of fact Punjabi and Urdu have been accorded the status
of a second language in Delhi. So the teaching and learning of these languages
needs more to be encouraged rather than discouraged. Language is not merelya vehicle
of communication;it is part of our cultural identity and way of life. All the
regional languages represent the rich diversity of our national culture and
civilization. Marginalization of these languages under the newly introduced
FYUP of the Delhi Universityisa retrogressive step which needs to be
opposed.All the right thinking individuals, educationists, teachers and
scholars should raise their voice against this unjustified and discriminatory
decision of the authorities.
The
following relevant portions of the Discipline-I, Discipline-II & Applied Courses
as taken from Website of the University of Delhi are given for your ready
reference.
Discipline Courses-I (DC-I) (Major Subject)
Under this programme, students will have to study
total 20 major subjects at a deep level for Bachelor with Honours in each
course which are called Discipline Courses-I (DC-I).
Discipline Courses-II (DC-II) (Minor Subject)
In the 4 Year Undergraduate Programme, students
will have to choose total 6 minor subjects of their liking for additional
knowledge and building their competencies outside their main subjects of study.
These subjects are called Discipline Courses-II (DC-II). This offers a wide
variety of courses as minor subjects those will help the students to learn
about the national and global scenario of interdisciplinary mode and enhance
their knowledge for getting employment or initiating for self-employment and
allied areas.
Applied Courses (AC)
Students will have to choose total 4 skill based
subjects that will give practical knowledge which are called Applied Courses
(AC). The outcomes of these applied courses are very useful for producing well
trained manpower on the one hand and getting employment or initiating for
self-employment in the concerned subject area and allied areas on the other.
Note: All the students are required to take all the
papers of Foundation Courses & IMBH, Discipline Courses-I and all the papers
of Applied Courses. In addition, they will be required to take papers from
Discipline Courses-II from same subject or other than main subject.
Men’s Health is often neglected, said Professor Frans MJ Debruyne of Netherlands, formerly, Secretary General of the European Association of Urology [EUA], President of Genito-Urnary Group of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer [EORTC], President of the European Association of Urological Research [EAUR], Vice President of the Societie Internationale Urologie [SIU], in a lecture delivered at the CMCH. Male Erectile Dysfunction, Chronic Prostatitis, Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms due to Benign Enlargement of the Prostate, Metabolic Syndrome, life style diseases and Andrapause are problems of men’s health. Urologists are the only experts who are experienced to efficiently deal with these issues related to men’s health. Professor Vinod H Nargund, Lead Consultant Urologist at the Bartholomew’s, Royal London and Homartons Hospitals, highlighted that the present day credit crunch and stress are important factors that aggravate problems pertaining to men’s health. Stress at home, work place and inter-personal relationships can aggravate urological problems of men. Dr Kim Mammen, Professor & Head of Urology at CMCH, pointed out that patients with erectile dysfunction have an increased incidence of coronary artery disease, and therefore, it must be treated immediately. A recent study done at CMCH pointed out that there is definite relationship between erectile dysfunction and coronary artery disease
