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Spice of Life | Man of three continents and a question for India
What ails the Indian education system? Over three-fourth of a century since Independence, and we still have not secured a place in the top 200 universities of the world, writes Gursharan Singh
I fear receiving early morning calls. During the past couple of years, morning callers have given me bad news of the passing away of three of my near and dear ones; one being my mother. But this call at 5am was a pleasant surprise. My friend and former colleague Dr Amarjit Basra, now settled in the US, broke the news, “Our Deep Saini is the new president and vice-chancellor of McGill University in Canada.” I felt elated with the academic-cum-administrative achievement of the alumnus of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana, Dr Hargurdeep Singh Saini.
I knew Dr Deep Saini as a sincere student pursuing his master’s degree in botany at PAU, while I was a student of MSc, entomology, there. Our departments were in the same building but only the floors were different. He then availed the opportunity to obtain his doctorate from Australia and subsequently found employment in Canada but later returned to Australia to become president and vice-chancellor of the University of Canberra. True, the ladder is never crowded at the top and he was back in Canada in 2020 to take over as president of another renowned institution, Dalhousie University.
And now here was the news of his being selected as president of McGill University, the first time in McGill’s 202-year history that a person of colour occupies the prestigious position. That made a golden (academic) triangle for Dr Saini; India, Australia, Canada.
I view Dr Saini as humility, integrity and competency personified. During a conversation, he told me that when he sees students graduating from an academic institution, it gives him ultimate pleasure and contentment. For him, achievements of his students are the biggest asset.
Dr Saini’s family roots are in the village of Pathlawa in Jalandhar district and he is committed to remaining connected with them.
The news took me down memory lane where I could see Indian scientists, including alumni of PAU, doing well abroad. My mind went to Dr Har Gobind Khorana, a Nobel laureate. I wondered if they could ever achieve the same distinction had they been in India.
What ails the Indian education system? Over three-fourth of a century since Independence, and we still have not secured a place in the top 200 universities of the world. Seeking false solace, we put in our own NIRF ranking. Probably, that is the way to justify our achievements. Degrees are saleable and employability of our graduates is hovering around 15%.
The words of Albert Einstein come to mind: “I never teach my pupils but create an environment in which they learn.” Probably, we have failed to provide such an environment where teaching is ‘student-centric’. The new education policy has been implemented; but one fails to understand what was wrong with the old policy. Changing policies will remain worthless till we develop the will and passion to revamp our education system.
The writer is a former dean of postgraduate studies, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. He can be reached at gursharansinghpau@gmail.com.
