A SINKING SHIP
   Date :08-Aug-2019

 
THE pointless and illogical opposition to abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution in Jammu and Kashmir has sounded a virtual death knell for the Congress party. If the incoherent responses to the Bill to bifurcate Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories presented the grand old party in poor light, the monumental blunder by the party’s leader in Lok Sabha, Mr. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, summed up the predicament of the Congress leaders who are as clueless with their strategy as a deer caught in the middle of a highway. By terming Kashmir as a bilateral issue, Mr. Chowdhury has all but put the final nail in Congress coffin. Already in tatters after the thundering drubbing in Lok Sabha elections and with no leadership at the top, the Congress ship is sinking fast. Voices of dissent over Congress stand on the Kashmir issue are manifestation of the growing disillusionment among the senior cadre who are desperately seeking a replacement for Mr. Rahul Gandhi. Whether the party can look beyond the Gandhi family will only decide the future of Congress.
 
BOOSTING RESEARCH
 
THE committee appointed by the University Grants Commission (UGC) has made a valuable suggestions to boost research by teachers. If implemented, the move could bring out the latent talent among teaching community and would enrich India’s basic research activity, which is the need of the hour for a country like India. The UGC-appointed panel has recommended that a two-year sabbatical leave be granted to university and college teachers to pursue basic research in their respective fields. This will not only do a world of good to the knowledge base of the teaching community at higher education level but will also help the student community as they will be benefitted from the experience of their teachers. That in turn will enthuse students to undertake research in the early stages of their educational careers. Research of course requires hard and basic work and also commitment on the part of the pursuer of knowledge. And that is the basic idea behind suggesting a sabbatical leave for college teachers.