‘We plan to increase intake of women’:Jamia’s vice-chancellor Najma Akhtar

Jamia’s newly appointed vice-chancellor says her focus will be on gender equality and introducing job-oriented courses

Last week, Najma Akhtar, who was appointed vice-chancellor (V-C) of the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), scored a historic double — not only was she the first woman to hold the post, but she was also the first woman to head any central varsity in the national capital. In an interview to Hindustan Times, Akhtar, 65, spoke about her priorities for the university, which will turn 100 next year.

Najma Akhtar, who was appointed vice-chancellor (V-C) of the Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), scored a historic double — not only was she the first woman to hold the post, but she was also the first woman to head any central varsity in the national capital. (HT Photo)

We plan to focus on increasing the number of women students in the university, which stands at around 38% at present. It should ideally be 50% or more. There should also be some courses, which are exclusively for women, and set up necessary hostels. I will also consult teachers and other stakeholders to find out what prevents girls from pursuing higher education here and try to fix that. I will try to get women representatives on all important administrative posts in the university so that female students feel comfortable in reaching out to them.

It is very important to have a students’ union in the campus. I have worked with such unions at other universities as well. I have to look into the reasons behind Jamia not having one in the last 12 years. I am not in a hurry. It will take time to fix things.

I am only scared of one thing — that I should not be linked to any terrorists. The rest of us are all Indians. I will always be in contact with the ruling party, which can give us funds and take the university forward. I am not bothered about what others feel. This is the only government that has taken this bold step of appointing a woman to this position that any other political party could not do.

We are thinking about increasing the intake of foreign students at the campus by collaborating with some foreign academic institutions of excellence. I have already started discussing these things with Jamia’s chancellor Najma Heptulla.

I am also thinking of ways to introduce a setup similar to community colleges to sort of level up the expertise of skilled workers. This way, they can get associate degrees, which would have higher market value as well.