In The Telegraph on March 27, author JP Das had thrown open a debate demanding renaming of Ravenshaw University. Here are some voices that take the debate forward

BITTER MEMORY

Renaming of institutions, especially educational ones, takes place at regular intervals. Oxford University's library was renamed after Sir Thomas Bodley, who had made a huge donation in 1598. So also was the case with Cambridge University/College in 1973. But when a proposal is mooted to change the name of a college/university established by a person who is quite controversial, it sparks a furious debate among the academic community. This has been the case with renaming Ravenshaw University, whose history and influence have made it one of India's most prestigious institutions of learning. This oldest citadel of scholarship of the state was named after T. E. Ravenshaw, a British civil servant in the mid-19th Century. He had said: "The establishment of a college at Cuttack is an object of personal importance to myself and also greatest importance to the spread of higher education."

I agree with J.P. Das (The Telegraph, March 27) when he says that Ravenshaw's name should be removed from the university. His name evokes bitter memory of the British exploitation of India. As the American historian and philosopher Will Durant wrote, Britain's conscious and deliberate bleeding of India is a dark chapter in India's history. Several anglophile Indians see British colonial rule as essentially benign, a version of the enlightened despotism. They should read Dadabhai Naoroji's Un-British rule in India and his economic drain theory, where he has devoted a chapter to the Great Odisha Famine. He says, the destruction of a million-and-a-half lives in one famine is a strange illustration of the worth of human life. It is rather strange, when the Maharaja of Mayurbhanj donated substantial amount for the establishment of the college, he suggested the name of Ravenshaw. Ravenshaw was quite insensitive to the miseries. He did not protest when The Economist bitterly attacked English officials for allowing Indians to think as the duty of the government to keep them alive. Pro-British historians argue that Englishmen like Ravenshaw ruled generously and wisely for the greatest good of their subjects. Eulogising benevolent acts of Ravenshaw and his compatriots is a part of this process. Educating the masses was not a British priority. The Indian mind has been made barren of any originality and deliberately kept in ignorance. Odisha has been the worst victim of this vicious effort. Therefore to cherish the memory of a man who was an inseparable part of this process is an insult to our self-respect. He had given the impression that the Cuttack College properly equipped would civilise Odisha as the Presidency has civilised Bengal and as the Patna College Bihar. We missed an opportunity in 2006 to remove Ravanshaw's name when the College was upgraded to a University. Now we can do something to remedy this. A philosopher had said - "They teach us to remember, why do not they teach us to forget? There is not a man living, who has not, sometime in his life, admitted that memory was as much of a curse as blessings."

Pabak Kanungo,
former head of political science dept,
Christ College, Cuttack

SHAMEFUL

I am entirely in agreement with J.P. Das that perpetuating the memory of Ravenshaw is like glorifying General Dyer. Ravenshaw as Commissioner of Odisha Division was primarily responsible for suppressing the developing scarcity conditions that led to the Orissa Famine of 1866 in which a million people perished. The ghastly catastrophe shook the conscience of even the imperial government in London and compelled Secretary of State Sir Stafford Northcote to make the following statement in British Parliament: "The catastrophe must always remain a monument to our failure, a humiliation to the people, to the Government of this country, and to those of our Indian officials of whom we have been perhaps a little too proud." Retaining the name as Ravenshaw College or University after 70 years of Independence is shameful, to say the least. Even more regrettable is the claim that this British official was the saviour of Odia language. It only demonstrates how colonial regime servile mindset still persists. Ravenshaw had no credential as a linguist or orientalist. To credit him as a savior of Odia is not only disservice to Fakirmohan and Gaurishankar but also to ignore the crucial role played by another colonial administrator John Beams.

Sovan Kanungo,
retired bureaucrat

TRIVIAL MATTER

The name Ravenshaw has seeped into the minds of people to such an extent that no one cares these days about its origins. Moreover, Ravenshaw has lost its sheen in the current scenario. So, I believe we should work on that first to restore its lost glory instead of being bothered about trivial things like renaming it.

I am an alumnus of UCE, Burla. After it was renamed to VSSUT, people (not directly connected to the institution) found it difficult to recognise it. This problem may crop up with an old institution like Ravenshaw as well.

Having said that if we still go for renaming it, I would suggest it be renamed after some legendary person of Odisha and not after someone from outside the state so that these legends find a place and recognition at least within the state.

Pragyan Sundar Biswal,
MTech student, IIIT Delhi