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University of Delhi – The Cradle for Indian National Politics

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With a remarkable number of politicians on-field who have graduated from The University of Delhi (DU), one can aptly caption the Varsity as the cradle for Indian Politics. It then becomes very natural to ponder upon the question: ‘What makes DU the ideal place for politics?’

Shashi Tharoor, Arun Jaitley, Kapil Sibal, Maneka Gandhi… and the list continues.

A common thread which connects all of them is their Alma Mater= DU.DU stands as a place which serves as the first turf for experiencing and coming face-to-face with the many realities and images of India one hears through the thousands of students who come here from all walks of life, from all places, and from the lengths and breadths of our nation.

Calling it the cradle for Indian National Politics seems natural enough because of various factors, all of which fall just in the right place justifying the title so. These are:

 

  • LOCATION

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Vicinity and closeness to the lawmakers matter a lot. Being in the capital of the nation gives the student politicians and protestors of DU a handy advantage of being capable enough to have their voices heard in the power centre of the country, thereby not only presenting up the demands concerning university life, but also of the things they observe around themselves. The age-old proverb, Dilli door nahi, rings a familiar bell.

  • PLATFORM

 

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DU offers the ideal place to bring out your voice, your opinion, and your views on any and every matter that concerns you. Be it through performing arts or through student protests, your voice will not go unheard here. The ideal place for expression and to get into action, DU shapes your personality by bringing the importance of politics close to you.

  • DIVERSITY

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It is in DU that you get to actually experience India, through the eyes of students who come from all parts of the nation. Be it the North-East or down South, DU does not limit itself just to North India but accepts and stands as a melting pot of cultures, traditions and experiences students from all walks of life have to offer. Their experiences make you more receptive, aware and alert of things that are happening in the country and fail to reach up at levels of concerns. The DU experience sensitises you to the nation you are living in and what issues are pulsating through its veins.

Hence it wouldn’t be wrong to say that DU stands tall as the mighty cradle for grooming the leaders of our nation, leaders who are inspired, motivated, evoked and aware of the ground realities and ready to ace up the face of the Indian political scene.

 

 

Feature Image Credits: Niharika Dabral for DU Beat

Amrashree Mishra

[email protected]

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Arts & Culture

Language Courses at University of Delhi

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A prestigious institution in the country, the University of Delhi (DU) is a hub for students looking to make a career, and houses the best colleges in the field of science, commerce and arts courses in the country.

The University of Delhi not only offers the mainstream courses, but also offers certificate and diploma courses in languages such as Romanian, German, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Italian. As the world is turning into a global village and different foreign firms are entering the Indian markets, there are a large number of job opportunities that are being created to tackle the demand by these firms.

There are many factors that one should consider while choosing a foreign language to learn in DU, some of these factors being: difficulty level, personal preference, interest, target country or region, sectors or industries, possible immigration, and future goals, etc. French, Spanish, German, Chinese, and Japanese remain the most sought-after languages for most of the students interested in pursuing foreign language courses in DU. However, in recent years, demand for Portuguese, Italian, Russian, Korean and Arabic has also been on the rise.

Ayush, a Literature student from Kirorimal College who pursued Mandarin language from St. Stephen’s College found the experience to be ‘mixed’ and said, “The faculty was brilliant and I was able to learn the language as well as the culture, since our teachers made sure we celebrated Chinese festivals and devoured Chinese cuisine. Although, it was a task to handle the academics as the exams for the language courses start around ten days before the semester exam. Over all, it was worth it!”

Another student of Philosophy from Miranda House, Rupali Gujral, who pursued Spanish language from Hansraj College stated, “The fees was very feasible and although it did become a little hectic to juggle academics and language course, it was pretty amazing. I would advise students to go for it preferably in the first year itself as it is less tedious then.”

Application forms for the courses can be obtained from the respective colleges. St. Stephen’s College has made their registration process completely online. Colleges release merit lists based on the composite scores of best four subjects studied at Higher Secondary level. Once enlisted in the said merit list, students are required to report to the respective college and complete their admission. Self-attested documents including class 12 marksheets and class 10 marksheet-cum-certificate are required to be submitted along with the fees.

Considering the myriad options that DU has to offer and its wide-ranging opportunities, DU Beat brings you all the information you need about Language courses at DU.

(i) Delhi University – North Campus Colleges

  1. St. Stephen’s College, University Enclave – Certificate, Diploma & Advanced Diploma in French, Spanish, German, Chinese and Japanese. Certificate and Diploma in Arabic, and Certificate in Persian.
  2. Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce, Pitampura – Certificate in French, German, Chinese, Korean and Japanese.
  3. Satyawati College, Ashok Vihar – Certificate & Diploma in French and German.
  4. Daulat Ram College*, Maurice Nagar – Certificate, Diploma & Advanced Diploma in French, Spanish, Italian, German, Chinese, Korean and Japanese.
  5. Hansraj College, Malka Ganj – Certificate, Diploma & Advanced Diploma in French and German.
  6. Ramjas College, Maurice Nagar, Delhi University – Certificate course in French, Spanish, German, Italian, Korean, Japanese & Chinese, Diploma in French, Japanese & Chinese and Advanced Diploma in French.
  7. Keshav Mahavidyalaya, Pitampura, Near Sainik Vihar – Certificate course in French and German.
  8. Mata Sundri College*, Mata Sundri Lane – Certificate course in French, Spanish and German.
  9. Miranda House*, Patel Chest Marg – Certificate course in French, Spanish and German.
  10. SGTB Khalsa College, Mall Road – Certificate course in Spanish, Russian, German, Korean, Chinese and Japanese.
  11. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College, Karampura – Certificate course in Russian.
  12. Hindu College, University of Delhi – Certificate course in French, German, Spanish and Russian.
  13. Zakir Husain College, Jawaharlal Nehru Marg – Certificate course in Russian.
  14. LakshmiBai College*, Ashok Vihar – Certificate course in Chinese and Japanese.
  15. Kalindi College*, East Patel Nagar – Certificate course in Chinese language.

(ii) Delhi University – South Campus Colleges

  1. Jesus & Mary College*, Chanakyapuri – Certificate course in French.
  2. College of Vocational Studies, Sheikh Sarai Ph-II – Certificate course and Diploma in French and German.
  3. Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Netaji Nagar – Certificate course in French, German and Spanish, and Diploma in Spanish and  German.
  4. Acharya Narendra Dev College, Govindpuri, Kalkaji – Certificate in Russian; Certificate & Diploma in French, Spanish and German & Advanced Diploma in Spanish.
  5. Kamla Nehru College*, August- Kranti Marg – Certificate, Diploma & Advanced Diploma in French
  6. Bharati College*, Janakpuri – Certificate in Russian, French, Chinese and German, and Diploma and Advanced Diploma in French and German.
  7. Sri Venkateswara College, Dhaula Kuan – Certificate course in German and Chinese.
  8. Gargi College*, Siri Fort Road – Certificate course  in German.
  9. Lady Shri Ram College*, Lajpat Nagar 4 – Certificate course in Russian.

*Women’s  colleges of DU.

Certificate level requires candidates to have passed 10+2. For Diploma and Advanced Diploma level, certification and Diploma is required respectively in the corresponding language. Admission will be given on merit or entrance test.

All the colleges offer convenient time slots for the classes on all the days. The fee structure too is pocket friendly  varying from INR 12,000- INR 19,000 depending on the course and time slot one chooses.

It’s time to finally replace your ‘Proficiency in English’ to ‘Proficiency in Spanish/French/any other language’ that you want!

Happy learning!

Feature Image Credits: Hindustan Times

Bhagyashree Chatterjee                                   [email protected]

 

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Admissions 2019

High Court Denies Petition on Accomodation For All

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The Delhi High Court refused to consider a petition which sought University of Delhi to take responsibility for providing all regular college students with hostel accommodation on Wednesday.

The High Court bench comprising of Chief Justice D.N. Patel and Justice C. Hari Shankar gave unanimous decision on the aforementioned matter, and also said that the varsity was not under any statutory obligation to provide hostel accommodation to all students.

The petitioner Parveen Kumar Singh invoked section 33 of the Delhi University Act of 1922, which states that every student of the University shall reside in the College Hall or under such circumstances as prescribed by the Ordinances. This plea furthered that the regular students who were unable to secure a hostel seat should get a monthly stipend of INR 10,000.

The court was of the view that this interpretation of the section 33 was not economically viable as it would cost the University crores of rupees.

The petition which is filed through advocate Kamlesh Kumar Mishra further stated that of the 1,84,668 students enrolled in DU as per an RTI reply, only 6,235 or 3.37% have hostel accommodation.

Accomodation crunch in the University has been an issue for a long time. Due to lack of subsidised accomodation facilities, students have to give in to privatised facilities. The students who do not get the hostel accommodation are exploited by the landlords and property dealers who charge excessive amounts of money for accommodation.

The previously mentioned plea also sought to declare the area in and around the 5-kilometres radius of Delhi University’s South and North Campus as a “Special Students Zone”. It was suggested that this zone should have a fixed minimum rent for the accommodations.

The same plea also sought to end the inequal rates of departmental canteen food for staff members and canteen food for students. It stated that the prices of both should be harmonised, and operate on a break-even basis.  

On this matter, court pointed out that it is not incumbent upon the present judicial body to regulate prices in the University canteen. It is a policy issue that has to be looked at by the competent authority itself.

Advocate Mishra said that he would now move the higher court against the decision of High Court.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat archives.

Antriksha Pathania
[email protected]

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Admissions

Mission Admission: A Tough Bargain

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The continuing problems related to admissions in the varsity have raised several questions on the functionality of the administration.

Student organisations Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and National Students Union of India (NSUI) of the University of Delhi (DU) have voiced their concerns and demonstrated against the DU Vice Chancellor regarding the difficulties faced by students during the time of admissions. The demonstation also sought to question the fee hike that has taken place for almost all courses in the University.

ABVP has voiced the concerns of the students by protesting at the Arts Faculty, addressing various issues related to admissions. The increment in college fees has been challenged along with irregularity in Sports Category admissions. Provision of admission by accepting undertaking, and introduction of EWS category in M. Phil/ PhD admissions has been requested. Importantly, inadequate arrangement in colleges for parents at the time of the admission process are some of the issues amongst other key issues that have been raised by the ABVP.

They (ABVP) has brought into the limelight how the admission staff in colleges who were admitting students to the first cut-off were not aware of the rules prescribed by the University. This caused problems in the smooth functioning during the admissions process. Admissions of students were also cancelled due to loopholes in the admission process.

Siddharth Yadav, the State Secretary of ABVP Delhi, said that if the demands are not met within the time period of ten days, then there will be more resolute protests against the administration.

DUSU President Shakti Singh also highlighted the issue of fee hike by saying, “There has been an arbitrary unaccounted fee increase in many DU colleges.” The issue Ramjas College’s fee hike has been previously reported on by DU Beat.

A memorandum to the Dean of Students Welfare had been submitted after the protest ended by the the ABVP delegation.

Attempts have been made by the student organisations so that the DU admission process does not become tedious and burdensome for the students. The true effects of the protests remain to be seen.

Feature Image Credits: Prateek Pankaj for DU Beat

Amrashree Mishra

[email protected]

 

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Admissions

A Complete Guide to the Withdrawal Process

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We help you debunk one of the most important yet fussy process of withdrawal during the University of Delhi (DU) admissions. 

  • It is extremely important to hold a seat in any one of the colleges: With the cut-off trends on a rise, we can never rely on the previous year’s lists, our marks, or any other factors. It becomes important to have a water-tight plan and a back-up. Students must always have a plan-B ready for their course or college. The first two cut-off lists will always be cruel but remember to apply with each list wherever you see your course or college of choice or back-up and secure a seat. With each list, as the cut-offs fall, you can move up on your priority list by withdrawing from the previous college and applying to the new one. Securing a seat also gives us a sense of relief and security.
  • Keep an eye on the cut-off lists and tally your best of four: If the college you took admission in after the first cut-off list is not near to what desired, keep a close eye on the successive lists that are released. As soon as the next list is out, analyse the next best option you have as per your preferences based on the course or college. Ensure your Best of Four (BoF) is properly calculated and the correct subjects from the subject list have been included. Make sure that you cross check the cut-off and other pre-requisites for your course by visiting the college or the DU website.
  • Be clear and swift with the cancellation procedure and refund:  Once certain of fulfilling the criteria, go to the web portal and cancel the admission from the dashboard. With this you will now have access to take admission, in accordance with the new cut-off list. Print the new form along with its copies to take admission in the new college. The refund will be updated in the ‘wallet’ section. A cancellation fee of INR 1000 will be deducted and this will be reflected in the ‘wallet’ section. It is important to note that only one cancellation is allowed per cut-off list. Ensure that you qualify for the cut-off in the college you wish to shift to by checking in person before you cancel your admission. Once cancelled, you cannot be re-admitted in the eventuality that you do not secure admission in the next college.
  • Collect original documents and head to the new college for admission: First, go to the college you are already admitted in and collect your original documents by showing the cancellation form and the new admission form. After this, head towards the new college and repeat the admission procedure with your application, original documents, photocopies, and three recent passport sized photographs. The admission fee will be automatically adjusted from the ‘wallet’ and you will only be required to pay the balance. If some amount is left, it will be refunded to the applicant’s account.

A step by step summary of the process:

1.Take admission in a college of preference from the cut off list. Eg. B.A. (Honours) Psychology, College C

2.When new cut-off list is released, choose a course and college and ensure you fulfill the criteria (calculation and subjects in BoF) before going to take admission. Eg. Visit College B to check cut-off and eligibility.

3.At home, cancel the previous admission and fill new form. Eg. For B.A. (Honours) Psychology at College B.

4.The fee will be adjusted on the Wallet and INR 1000 will be deducted.

5.Collect original documents from College C and head over to College B and repeat the admission procedure. The total number of cancellations allowed will be (n-1) where ‘n’ is the number of cut-off lists.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat archives

Shivani Dadhwal

[email protected]

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Admissions 2019

The Nomenclature Crises: Students from Other Boards Suffer

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With basic difference in subject names like Accounts versus Accountancy and Political Science versus Civics, the students from other boards like ISC and State Board are at a disadvantage.

While getting admission in B.Com. (Honours) at Kirori Mal College (KMC), Siddharth, a student from Indian School Certificate (ISC) Board faced a gigantic issue. He received a call after submitting his documents that his Best of Four (BFS) will be cut by 2.5% because his mark sheet says ‘Accounts’ and not ‘Accountancy’ as prescribed by the University of Delhi (DU).

The student told Times of India (TOI) that on June 28th, he had gone to get admission in KMC. He shared “They took my form and documents, but I got a call on Sunday saying that a 2.5% will be deducted from my aggregate marks as DU does not accept Accounts, in which i have scored a 100”. He also claimed that many from ISC Board have taken admission in DU with accounts as a subject.

According to the report, this student from Kolkata had secured 97.5% in his class 12th ISC Board Examination. Sukanto Dutta, OSD Admissions at DU said “We will look into this on July 1st. We will match the course syllabus of ISC accounts to see if it matches with CBSE accountancy.”

Ravleen Malhotra, a student from St. Xavier’s, Chandigarh, also an ISC student who took admission in B.Com. (Honours) at Lady Shri Ram College last year shared that she did not face any such difficulty while taking admission.

To delve deeper into the issue we spoke to Ms Nidhi, who was the teacher-in-charge for Commerce Section. She told us that this did not happen in the B.Com. (Honors) course at Kirori Mal College and might have happened in some other course.

Nevertheless, she said that according to the University guidelines, if the name of a paper is different in a Board from that as prescribed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), the students are to bring an ‘Equivalence certificate’ from their Board to show it at the time of admissions which stands as the proof that irrespective of their names, the papers were similar in nature and syllabus. In this case no marks are deducted and no student suffers any disadvantage. The percentage is only cut when the student does not have proof, and authorities cannot assume that these two subjects will have the same syllabi.

Although, Ravleen had also revealed that she did not present any ‘equivalence certificate’ at the time of her admission, and got admitted easily, without any hassle.

The Chief Executive and Secretary of Council of ISC Examination, Gerry Arathoon told TOI that “DU has always accepted Accounts for admission; I don’t know why this issue has cropped up now.”

Similarly, the Telangana State Board of Intermediate Education clarified that its students who study ‘Civics’ can take admission in the group containing ‘Political Science’ and that its second language is treated as elective. However, DU is still considering both languages as core subjects and not allowing aspirants to include it in the best-of-four calculation.

Interestingly, the matter of giving equal weightage to “civics” offered by Telangana board and “political science” offered by other boards had been resolved in 2017. But it has cropped up again in 2019. Around 10 students from Telangana Tribal Welfare Residential schools, which sponsor students from underprivileged backgrounds, had to change their choice of subjects as the university said that civics was not equivalent to political science, as reported by TOI.

The other problem is over the second language. As per the University’s rule, in the calculation of the BFS subjects, only one language can be included. Inclusion of two languages is allowed when one is an “elective” and the other “core”. Several boards have clarified to DU that the second language is being offered as an elective subject. Pawan, a student who passed from Telangana board told TOI, “There are already letters from the board but still the University is not listening to us. We are facing this problem with Sanskrit, which we studied as an elective subject.” There was a guideline sent to the colleges on Monday, which states that “language subjects which contain a significant amount of literature in its contents may qualify as elective”. Many colleges said the guideline was vague.

With inputs from Times of India

Feature Image Credits: Indian Express

Sakshi Arora

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Admissions 2019

Live: DU Announces First Cut-Off List

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Owing to the structural changes and multiple delays in the admission procedure for the new academic session has not been a smooth transition for aspirants.
After months of anticipation, aspirants’ wait is finally over.

As thousands of students anxiously check the college websites to check whether they meet the qualifying scores for their desired course, and excitedly look forward to joining the University of Delhi, we present to you the first official cut-off lists of the University.

 

 

Click here to view the complete cut-off list for Arts and Commerce Courses at DU.

Click here to view the complete cut-off list for Science Courses at DU.

 

 

Click here to view Shri Ram College of Commerce’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Hindu College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Lady Shri Ram College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Miranda House’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Hansraj College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Kirorimal College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Ramjas College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Gargi College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Jesus and Mary College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Shaheed Bhagat Singh College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Vivekananda College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Kalindi College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Shivaji College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Deshbandhu College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Ramanujan College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Bhagini Nivedita College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Satyawati College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view P.G.D.A.V. (M) College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Ram Lal Anand College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Acharya Narayan Dev College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Mata Sundri College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Zakir Husain Delhi (M) College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Aryabhatta College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Sri Aurobindo (E) College’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Keshav Mahavidyalaya’s first cut-off list.

Click here to view Dyal Singh (E) College’s first cut-off list.

Feature Image Credits: Aakarsh Mathur for DU Beat

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Admissions 2019

DU Extends Relaxation for Outstation ECA Aspirants

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University of Delhi (DU) extended a day’s relaxation in case of any delay incurred while arriving at the venue in time for the extra-curricular activities (ECA) trials for outstation students who have their trials scheduled on 25th and 26th June.

Outstation students witnessed a sigh of relief as University of Delhi (DU) declared relaxation in case of delay incurred while reaching the venue in time for the extra-curricular activities (ECA) trials. A day’s relaxation shall be extended by the varsity to the outstation students.

The ECA trials- a two level process– have commenced today,  kick-starting with Indian Classical Music (Vocal),  Dance, and Debate. The trials will be continuing till 5th  July, the results of which will be announced on 6th July on the official website of the University. This would be followed by the final round of selection, thereby giving the selected students a gateway to Univerity of Delhi.

The spatio-temporal glitches which are evident during the admission season turn out to be the major cause of stress for many outstation applicants. Hence, the flexibility in such a case emerges as a bliss. However, the relaxation is only extended for students having their trial slots on 25th and 26th June 2019.

“The relaxation is a welcoming step, as the schedule put forth by the University of Delhi has undergone frequent changes and delays. These delays and changes have posed as problems, given that the arrangements for transportation are difficult to be settled on a short notice,” says Shreya M., an outstation applicant from Odisha.

As reported by the Asian Age, an official of the University said, “The applicants who are unable to reach on given dates are instructed to reach venue at the earliest date, which is preferably on June 27 and contact the registration desk of the relevant category. The relaxation option is not available for those candidates whose trials are scheduled for any other dates for a category or for those categories for which trials are scheduled for a single day”.

The official site of the University of Delhi has also laid emphasis on the fact that the condition is selectively applicable for those who reside outside the National Capital Region (NCR), having their respective trials scheduled on 25th and 26th June.

 

Feature Image Credits: DUB Archives

 

Priyanshi Banerjee

[email protected]

 

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Admissions 2019

Only One Transgender Applicant in 3.6 Lakh Applications to DU

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With only one transgender applicant this year and no enrollments for regular courses since 2015, the University has had enough reminders to realise the plight of transgender students. DU Beat explores this decline.

University of Delhi (DU) receives the highest number of applications for various courses in the country, and this year was no different. The University received more than three lakh applications, though there was a decline from last year. 3,67,895 number of applications is no less a number, even as only 2,58,388 proceeded ahead and made payments.  In all these applications, women yet again seemed to have become a majority, 84,021 female candidates and 68,457 male candidates applied to the University. Shockingly, only one transgender person has submitted an application this year as compared to last year, or 2017 when the university had 36 applications.

According to the data, the scheduled tribe category saw 4,044 male applicants and 3,056 female applicants. Over 17,000 male candidates and 16,000 female candidates had applied in the SC quota and about 32,926 male candidates and approximately 22,531 female candidates applied for the Other Backward Classes (OBC) non-creamy layer quota.

The newly introduced EWS (Economically Weaker Sections) that has a ten percent quota in the university admissions also had  5,528 male candidates and 3,562 female candidates. This year the varsity has increased its capacity to 62,000 number of seats. It has been stated that there would be a separate cut-off for the EWS category.

The fact that only one transgender student has applied is a huge warning to the varsity. There seems to be very liitle that the university has been able to do to make the college spaces safe for the transgender community. It seems that the stigma attached to the community has not yet gone away and a singular application speaks volumes in this regard. There have been cases of harassments faced by transgenders from other students and staff and that may have been the reason for this decline in approaching the university for admissions.

With incidents of transgender persons being asked, “Since when have you been a transgender person?” by the admission staff. Being subjected to derogatory remarks during the admissions, they tend to take up vocational courses and steer away from the University space.

Even though the TRC (Transgender Resource Centre), established in 2018 had come up with various outreach programs to bring more students to the University fold, they seem to have not yielded substantial results. These outreach programs had begun during the month of April this year.

Equal rights activist Harish Iyer said that he would be writing to the Chief Minister of Delhi about this issue. “If that one candidate seeks admission to a college of DU, the whole college and especially the teaching and the non-teaching staff have to ensure that the student feels at ease and accepted. The civil society has to come together to address the issue.” he stated.

According to officials, last year there were applications from transgender aspirants but no one enrolled for regular courses. The varsity had introduced the Other category in 2015, but there have been no admissions to the regular course under this category so far.

Rajesh from the Department of Adult Continuing Education and Extension said, “Around 15 transgender students had come to us with queries but they all had queries about School Of Open Learning and Indira Gandhi National Open University. They usually prefer to enrol as male or female in regular courses or for distance learning education.”

The University needs to gear up to make sure that more and more transgender students feel welcome in the college space.  This year needs single registration needs to be a stern reminder for the same. It is all of us together who decide for us and others around us. Let us all try to accept each other and build a better future. Marks build your CV, not your character.

Feature Image Credits: The Indian Express

Stephen Mathew

joice.mathew [email protected]

 

 

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DUB Speak

A Brief Study in College Vacations

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Comparing my first college vacations to my summer vacations back in school, I realise that one word that I associate with these holidays is ‘voluntary’. Read to find out why.

Summer vacations in colleges are certainly ‘voluntary’. For two months students are left without subordination, projects or stress about studying. Unlike school vacations, one does not have to worry about constant supervision by parents or heavy load of holiday homework. These two months college vacations are your own to enjoy, work, read, study, play, travel or catch up on your favourite shows.

Despite being unsupervised, these vacations do not remain as carefree as one expects them to be. Himanika Agarwal, from Gargi College said, “College vacations bring a load of insecurity along with them, I am always curious to know what my friends and classmates are doing. Some are doing internships, some are completing language courses, everyone around me is doing something productive and that pushes me to also take part in something which enhances my CV.” Along with her, many others also feel that there is an intense pressure of not letting your vacations go to waste.

On the other hand, Praachi Ratra, from Jesus and Mary College said that she is grateful for this time of peace because she was able to utilise it to go on a trip with her group of girlfriends. She added “My school friends and I have been planning this trip since our boards ended, but that time is too hectic and we didn’t get enough time throughout the year., Tthis summer vacation gave us the opportunity to actually go on that trip and fulfill our dream.”

Comparing them to schools’ summer vacations, Gaurvi Rustagi from Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies added that these vacations are far more relieving and relaxing. According to her, she has been successfully able to utilise this time for her artistic tendencies and complete her volunteering at an NGO.

Many students also feel ecstatic when they get a chance to go back to their hometown for a longer and unrestricted period of time. Students who come to the University from far away cities believe that the summer vacations bring with them a remedy to their long established homesickness and make them ready for another year in Delhi.

For many, this year’s summer vacation might be the last vacation they have in (or outside) the University. Post this, they might end up navigating through the boulders of life; getting a routine job or prepping for a competitive examination. So, utilise this vacation to the fullest. Do not hold back from exploring new interests or polishing your old ones. Go intern for a new experience or travel to create new memories. Breathe in the positivity of doing nothing, or stay busy with load of projects. Wake up every morning with a purpose, because this time never comes back.

Feature Image Credits: Sakshi Arora for DU Beat

Sakshi Arora

[email protected]

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