An Interview with Professor Abhay Maurya

by Bhoomika Meling

Prof. Abhay Maurya, a former student of JNU is presently the first Vice-Chancellor of the newly formed English and Foreign Lanaguge University, Hyderabad.

Bhoomika: Congratulations on being appointed as the first Vice-Chancellor of the English and Foreign Languages University.

Prof. Maurya: Thank you.

Bhoomika: How long has your association with JNU been?

Prof. Maurya: It goes back to 1969. Actually I was a student of the Institute of Russian Studies which was founded in 1965. My friends and I were students of the first batch of the Institute. JNU was inaugurated on the 14^th November, 1969 through its very first Convocation. Since I.R.S. was merged into JNU, our batch was the first official batch of students passing out of JNU. We received our degrees in the inaugural convocation. Since my roll number was 01, I received degree no.01 from JNU. That is how I am associated with JNU. I remember that the function was held at Vigyan Bhawan and Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan was present on the occasion. So, in a sense, we were the first students of the University.

Bhoomika: How has your career shaped up since then?

Prof. Maurya: I went to Moscow for further studies and stayed there till 1974. That year, I was awarded Ph.D from Moscow State University. On coming back to India, I joined the Russian Department of Delhi University as Lecturer. D.U. was the first University in India to establish a Russian Department, which was in 1946. We began with a one year Foundation Course. Gradually B.A, M.A and M.Phil were also added. Though most of my friends were already working in JNU, I opted for D.U. But I have kept up my relations with JNU. I am a member of CRS and of the Board of SLL&CS. I became Professor in 1988. I also have ten to twelve publications in different areas.

Bhoomika: It has been a huge leap for CIEFL from an Institute to a Central University. As the First V-C of EFLU, what vision do you have for the University?

Prof. Maurya: The first V-C has to lay the foundation of everything right from the University Act to the Rule Book. In EFLU, two aspects are involved- Foreign Languages and English. Now, English is the world language, whether we like it or not. This language can become a very important factor in the life of any country. We can not be skeptical about English anymore. It has to be considered as an asset and a link language for educated people both nationally and internationally. We in India need expansion of English in a big way. Since EFLU is entirely dedicated to English and Foreign Languages, we can really concentrate on teaching our younger generation how to connect with the outside world through language. We shall try to take English to the interior parts of India. Only the elite have harvested the fruits of English in India till date. As a result, large margins have been created. The fruit of this asset has to reach rural people. We shall be opening campuses in different parts of the country. Under the District Centre scheme of the University, we already train teachers at district level. Now we intend to expand the system. In a nutshell, this is going to be a democratic University, eager to provide the needy with the best of education and worldview. 

We are also entering into collaboration with foreign Universities. Exchange Programmes are being designed to generate resources. But the focus in this regard would be on admission of foreign students from non-English speaking nations like China, Korea, Gulf and South-East Asian nations to courses in English. The MHRD is funding some of such programmes. We also hope to open up Centres in countries like Vietnam and eight of our teachers have already gone abroad to explore the possibility of these plans.

We are concentrating on certain key issues right now. Firstly, we have a plan for students who come to study in India from countries like Iran but fail their B.Com and other exams because of their bad English. We are looking for collaboration with ICCR to be able to train them in English within a year. Secondly, we are developing a hostel along international standards. We can not expect to attract foreign students without proper facilities. So a hostel and a guest house have been conceptualized with 3000 and 200 rooms respectively. Our strategy is to provide foreign students with courses that are useful and affordable, and to take good care of them so as to create good friends of India. This can contribute constructively to the channel two diplomacy. Thirdly, we aim at making education inter-disciplinary in this University. We don’t want students to study English, or for that matter any language in isolation. The Faculty of Inter-Disciplinary Studies in EFLU will work at presenting a holistic view of knowledge. Apart from all this, the Multi-Media Centre which makes films, documentaries and advertisements to teach English will be upgraded. We have campuses in Lucknow and Shillong already. Shortly, two new campuses will come up in Haryana and Kerala too.

Bhoomika: Have you planned any special assistance for students from economically backward areas and those with disability? 

Prof. Maurya: As far as students in the V.H and P.H. categories are concerned, we shall strive to implement the reservation policy in letter and spirit. The campus is already quite friendly to such students. We are seeking to develop certain other schemes which would be helpful for the students from not very sound financial backgrounds. For instance, while I was the Provost of the P.G. Men’s Hostel in D.U., we introduced a Students’ Welfare fund which was utilized in upgrading the gym, library, computer centre and in helping needy students. We might experiment with such ideas even in EFLU. The University already runs remedial courses for Karamcharis’ children on the campus. The key to progress right now is Resources. Our focus is now on managing our finances as well as we can. I have appointed a Dean of Non-Formal Courses and Resources who is supposed to generate innovative ideas for fund management. You see we have at least four to five crore rupees coming a the royalty from text books compiled by the University.  All this money, if utilized wisely, can raise our academic standards and also the infrastructure.

Bhoomika: What expectations should we have from universities today in India? How far do you think Indian universities have lived up to these expectations? 

Prof. Maurya: What happens in the society happens in the university too. But we are not entirely powerless in the flow of time. A university must groom pioneers in all fields of social life. Idealism must be encouraged and social ailments such as casteism must be eradicated. This has unfortunately not happened in most of the Indian Universities. According to Nehru, a university is a place where all kinds of knowledge blossom. It should be a place where the young generation comes into full bloom. Etymologically, it is a place of universal values. It is therefore a place where universal values (and not globalization) must thrive. Universities should not produce robots. Universities must not be used for vested interests. Universities must not create committees for inequality. Inequality in terms of caste has been perpetuated for centuries. But universities in India must strive to discontinue this and show a way to the nation.