Language: Lower cut-offs

In second list, Hindi, Sanskrit courses see 5 per cent drop. Joyeeta Ghosh & Astha Saxena report.

Like every year, courses like Hindi (H) and Sanskrit (H) have witnessed a remarkable drop in cut-offs in the second list.

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The cut-offs for Sanskrit (H) in Kamla Nehru College, for instance, saw a drop of five per cent, while Hindi (H) saw a maximum drop of 5.25 per cent in Jesus and Mary College.

Although this is not new for Delhi University, but with lower cut-offs as compared to other subjects, some colleges had hoped to fill in the seats for language courses this year by introducing some incentives.

For instance, the cut-off for B.A. (programme) with Bengali, offered at Kirori Mal College, has barely seven-eight seats.

However, the college has found it difficult to fill in even those and had to declare a second cut-off, with a drop of five per cent, from 45 to 40.

The college had relaxed its rules for those applying for this combination last year. Earlier, a student would have to study Bengali till Class X, but now, even those who studied it till Class VIII could take admission in the course.

“There are not many takers for this course. So, we had to relax the guidelines. But it has not really made a difference,” said Bhim Sen Singh, principal, Kirori Mal College.

In Shri Venkateshwara College too, the earlier qualification required one to study Sanskrit till Class X but this has been relaxed and anyone who has studied it till Class VIII can apply for an Honours in Sanskrit.

However, there are hardly any takers.

“As per University guidelines, we had relaxed the criteria this year and hoped to attract students. But out of the total 39 seats, there have been only four admissions till now,” said Principal Hemlata P Reddy.

For most students, language courses are the last option. “Most students with relatively-low percentages want to take admission in BA (programme), wait till the seats are over in that course and only then apply for the language courses,” said Aslam Parvez, Principal, Zakir Hussain College, which offers Urdu, Arabic and Persian.

The reasons for this, teachers said, are market oriented too. “Job opportunities are lesser for those who pursue language courses, as compared to other subjects. Hence, the reluctance to take up these courses,” said Pankaj Mishra, Assistant Professor of Sanskrit, St. Stephen’s College.