After the administration decided to order suspension of classes for three days in view of their annual cultural festival, the Delhi University teachers on Tuesday slammed the decision and alleged that there is no statutory approval for the amount being spent on the event. The two-day cultural extravagansa, Antardhwani, is scheduled to begin on February 20.
A statement issued by Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) president Nandita Narain said, “The decision to suspend teaching is forced and unwarranted. It shows scant regard, on the part of the DU administration, for the teaching-learning process. The tight semester schedule, within which teachers and students are struggling to complete the syllabi of courses, does not allow such a break.”
The DUTA had last year also boycotted the festival claiming it to be a university administration’s “propaganda” and raised serious objections to the funding of the festival. “The DUTA ‘White Paper’ has underlined, among other issues, the fact that the large amount of public money spent on wasteful and ostentatious props like elephants, has no statutory sanction. While the MHRD has asked the DU to explain this misdemeanour, it has shown defiance and utter disregard for public accountability by going ahead with the festival,” Narain said.
“The DUTA finds it shocking that the university administration can continue the spate of arbitrary decision-making wherein teachers are not consulted on any such occasion.