The classic novel, set in Delhi of 1911-1919 with the backdrop of colonial rule and Indian independence struggle, chronicles the rapidly changing socio-political happenings through the eyes of Mir Nihal, his family, and the denizens of beloved old Delhi.
Like a lot of people I got to hear about Twilight in Delhi through City of Djinns by William Dalrymple. In William Dalrymple’s own words ‘Twilight in Delhi is not only a very fine novel; it is also an irreplaceable record of the vanished life and culture of pre-war Delhi.” After reading the 275 pages of this 1940 classic, which was originally published in Britain on the behest of E. M. Forester and Virginia Woolf, I can second every single world said in its praise.
Writer Ahmed Ali has succeeded in bringing the Delhi of the early twentieth-century alive. The story revolves around Mir Nihal, his family, and other inhabitants of the city. The story-telling is so vivid that one can actually feel, smell and sense the activities that are being described. One could hear the cries of fakirs and pigeon fliers, the buzz of Chandni Chowk, the renditions of poets, and smell the stink of sewers, the fragrance of jasmine and the medicated scent of hakims. The changing seasons of Delhi are illustrated so well that the stark oppressive heat, dampness of rainy July and chill of December could be eerily felt. The novel also encapsulates many historical moments, such as the coronation of the British King George V as the Emperor of India, the pillage of old city walls which was followed by the construction of Lutyens’ Delhi.
Even though there really is no plot to speak of, the story remains engaging. The characters are endearing and you will find yourself rooting for them at a crossway between their most joyful and most vulnerable moments. In one particular scene when Mir Nihal is left heartbroken after the death of his beloved pigeons, the sadness drips through the pages, but when he recovers from the loss one feels relieved.
What is most interesting is that the snippets of daily lives of characters give precious insights into the norms of that time. For instance, during a sandstorm, Begum Nihal tells her house help to place a broom under a leg of the cot as it was believed that doing this stops the sandstorms.
Another special feature is that couplets of Ghalib, Zauq, Zebun Nisa and Bahadur Shah Zafar are bestrewed liberally throughout. While the bland English translations rob the verses of their essence, the tone of the book remains very poetic. Sample this – “The night, with its awakening cold, was spreading her dark and star-bejeweled wings over the earth.”
For the love of poetry, family saga that delineates cruel restlessness of life, and Delhi – pick this book as your next read.
Mukhatib 2017, the annual streetplay festival organised by Shunya-the theatre society of Ramjas College on 31st March 2017 saw four plays being censored by the authorities to avoid any type of unrest in the campus. The organisers of the event were reportedly asked for the scripts of the plays which were to be performed in the festival just before the event. This was followed by the cancellation of four plays which had elements of nationalism in them. The students replied to this attempt of the administration by sealing their lips with black tapes and tying black bands around their arms.
There were seven plays scheduled to be performed in the event out of which only three were allowed. The plays of the colleges which were cancelled were SGTB Khalsa college’s play ‘Trump Card‘, Dyal Singh Evening college’s ‘Jokistaan’, Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce’s ‘sawal to uthega’ and Gargi College’s ‘Main Kashmir, aur aap? Main Manipur’.
Out of the three teams that were allowed to perform, Lady Shri Ram College did not perform as a mark of protest while Miranda House and Kirori Mal College went ahead with their performances “Hadsa-e-Paidaish” and “The Accidental Death of an Anarchist” respectively.
However, the authorities refuted the claims of censorship and said that it was the students who themselves decided to scrap the plays. The acting Principal P.C. Tulsiyan said “The administration did not cancel the plays but Ramjas students who are members of the drama society did it themselves. We had just advised them to not include anything which may hamper the peaceful atmosphere at the college.”
However, speaking to DU Beat on the condition of anonymity, a student organiser said “We were made to sign an undertaking by the authorities who refused to give us permission otherwise. We have been organising Mukhatib for years but never before we have seen this type of censorship and silencing of voices on the pretext of safety.”
The college saw violent protests last month by ABVP against a seminar which featured ‘Umar Khalid’ and ‘Sheila Rashid’ as two of the speakers.
With growing demands against the grant of ‘autonomous’ status for colleges, Delhi University Teacher’s Association(DUTA) called had called for a joint protest of students, teachers and karamcharis on 29th March.
What drew along the course of the March? On 29 March 2017, the Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) organised a march from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar in protest against the recent actions of the government in light of the demands for autonomy by certain colleges in the University. The government has supported these demands for autonomy without any exhaustive deliberation in the Parliament or even in any public domain. The march was a rally against the privatisation of education through the fragmentation of Delhi University. Teachers were quoted as saying that “education was not for sale” and that the government’s move would lead to quality education becoming unaffordable.
The teachers, students, and non-teaching staff, numbering more than three thousand, rallied against the proposal of the government to grant autonomous status to colleges on the basis of commercial ideas of accreditation and ranking. They stated that this would lead to self-financing and ergo the commercialisation of education. DUTA was also supported in their demand by the Delhi University and College Karamchari Union (DUCKU) as well as several student organisations such as the National Students Union of India (NSUI), the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), the Students Federation of India (SFI), and the All India Students Association (AISA).
Protesters held banners asking the government to “Say No to the Fragmentation and Privatisation of DU through Autonomous Colleges
Why is ‘Autonomy’ not so good for DU Colleges? The march was conducted specifically against the granting of the autonomous status to certain colleges by the government. To understand why this move matters, it is imperative to look at the actions of the government with scrutiny.
A leaflet given out during the march stated that the Autonomous Colleges Scheme aims to privatise and commercialise higher education by reducing the gap between public and private institutions in terms of fee structure.
DUTA claims that the granting of autonomy will in actuality only give autonomy to the management instead of providing academic autonomy. It shifts the focus from the betterment of education to the generation of resources by granting autonomy, and thus power, to the governing bodies and trustees of these colleges. The aim then essentially becomes to improve infrastructure and indulge in greater physical maintenance as opposed to providing a platform for academic growth.
As these colleges, which currently receive 95% of their funds from the University Grants Commission (UGC), will no longer be able to rely on government subsidies, they will turn to other measures including raising students’ fees and cutting costs to raise revenue. This affects the students as well as the teachers and the non-teaching staff. Firstly, students from economically and socially vulnerable backgrounds will have fewer avenues for availing quality education. Moreover, when education becomes expensive, the historically deprived sections of society such as women and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are further adversely impacted. Secondly, the autonomy of the management may lead to a decline in the job security or career advancement of the working staff. Working conditions may deteriorate and the pay structure may be compromised in the face of a profit-minded management.
DUTA claims that these harms outweigh the benefits that the government claims will occur. The autonomous status may allow colleges to start new academic courses and change their style of teaching, but they will not be free from the semester system or the Choice Based Credit System (CBCS). Additionally, colleges will still need to affiliate with DU in order to give degrees. This results in a mere “ceremonial connection with DU”, as stated by Abha Dev Habib, an active member of DUTA. Thus, as a direct consequence of the cutting down of funding for higher education, the granting of autonomy will only privatise and commercialise education.
Members speak out at the rally against autonomy
What were the consequences of the march? Students and teachers who took part in the march are confident that the government will be forced to take notice of the citizens’ demands.
Ms. Abha Dev Habib, a member of DUTA acknowledged that the response from teachers was “tremendous” and that “the mobilisation for the programme was very successful”. She talked about Arun Jaitley’s inclusion of autonomous colleges in his budget speech with the establishment of the Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA). Speaking of the current situation in autonomous institutions in our country she said, “IITs are a clear example of the rising fee structure in public institutions and the government’s plan of closing the gap between private and public educational institutions.”
Ms. Nandita Narain, the president of DUTA called upon all stakeholders of the institutions to join them in coming days. Giving a wake up call to the govt. she said, “Privatisation is not going to be accepted by the community and the people at large. We are going to fight all out.”
In the recent pasts universities have seen a lot of disturbances. Happenings around the campus like forcing the autonomous status on St. Stephens College, the fiasco at Ramjas College, attack on free speech and the massive seat cut in JNU admissions makes it eminent that the incumbent government is not so happy about the environments in campuses, and is determined to change it by hook or …!
