On Republic Day, AMU to bury time capsule: Here's what you need to know

The time capsule containing the history and achievements of AMU will be buried in front of the Victoria Gate on the campus.

Authorities at Aligarh Muslim University in Uttar Pradesh's Aligarh will bury a 1.5-tonne time capsule with documents narrating the history of the 100-year journey of the institution on Tuesday on the country's 72nd Republic Day. The time capsule containing the history and achievements of AMU will be buried in front of the Victoria Gate on the campus, spokesperson Rahat Abrar said. He added that the ceremony, which is a part of its centenary year celebrations, would be carried out by vice chancellor Tariq Mansoor.

Aligarh Muslim University. (HT file)

Here's what you need to know:

1. The five-foot-long capsule weighing 1.5 tonnes will be placed 30 feet beneath the ground.

2. The time capsule is made of highly tempered steel weighing 1.5 tonnes. Nitrogen gas has been filled and acid-resistant paper is being used to ensure the longevity of the time capsule.

3. A committee was constituted to determine the content to be placed in the capsule and Abrar was made its chairman while AMU registrar Abdul Hamid was its general convenor.

4. “Sir Syed was in Varanasi when he thought of the university, which came into being in 1920. We have compiled the history and achievements of AMU since its beginning,” Abrar added.

5. Lord Edward Robert Lytton, the then Viceroy of India, was in Aligarh on January 8, 1877, for the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the Muhammadan Anglo Oriental (MAO) College. At that time, a similar exercise of burying a time capsule was undertaken by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, the founder of AMU.

7. The then viceroy, Lord Chelmsford, had n September 9, 1920, passed the bill for the upgrade of Muhammadan Anglo Oriental (MAO) College to the status of a university.