VCs of other varsities, profs vie for top PU post

Bhartesh Singh Thakur

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Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 28

As more than 100 applications have been received for the post of the Panjab University (PU) Vice Chancellors, it will be a tough fight between VCs from universities in neighbouring states and senior professors of the PU.

Prominent among the candidates is Prof Tankeshwar Kumar, VC of the Guru Jambeshwar University of Science and Technology, Hisar.

Prof Kumar has an expertise in Condensed Matter Physics. He remained Director, Computer Centre, PU, from 2005-2014 and Associate Dean at Panjab Technical University (PTU), Jalandhar, in 2003. He had joined the PU in 1995 as a lecturer in the Physics Department. Before which, he was a lecturer in Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) for two years.

He has been the Hisar university VC since 2015. He confirmed that he had applied for the post. If he becomes the VC, then he will be the third professor from the Physics Department to hold the top position. 

Prof SP Bansal, VC, Indira Gandhi Haryana State Government University, Meerpur, Rewari, who is also holding the additional charge of BPS Mahila University, Sonepat, is also one of the contenders. He has remained the VC of Maharaja Agrasen University, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, from 2012-2016. He had been the Director of the Institute of Vocational (Tourism) Studies, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, from July 1999 to March 2012. However, he said he did not apply for the post, but someone might have nominated his name. 

Prof ADN Bajpai, former VC of Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), is also one of the prominent contenders for the post. He had remained the VC of Awadhesh Pratap Singh University, Rewa, Madhya Pradesh, from 2003-07 and had officiated as the VC of MG Chitrakoot Gramodaya Vishwavidhyalaya, Chitrakoot, as an additional charge from October 2003- November 2004. He was appointed the VC of the HPU in May 2011 and served there for 6 years. He has an expertise in economics.

Meanwhile, Prof RK Kohli, Vice-Chancellor, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, Prof Kuldip Chand Agnihotri, Vice-Chancellor of the Central University of Himachal Pradesh, Dharamshala, and Prof Jagat Bhushan Nadda, Director, Consortium for Educational Communication, have refused that they had applied for the job.

PU professors in the fray 

• Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), United Kingdom (UK), Prof SK Mehta is a recipient of renowned DAAD (German Academy Exchange Services) and Japanese Society for Promotion of Science (JSPS) fellowships, bronze medal from the Chemical Research Society of India (CRSI), authors award by the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK), Haryana Vigyan Ratna award and Prof WU Malik Memorial Award of Indian Council of Chemists (ICC) for the year 2015 for his outstanding contribution to research. He has been a visiting scientist to several countries, including the UK, Germany, Japan, USA and France.
• Fellow Dean of University Instruction (DUI) Meenakshi Malhotra has also applied for the VC’s post. She has an expertise in the management of change, organisational development, and organisational behaviour. She was the first Dean (women), Students Welfare, of the PU, first woman chairperson of the University Business School, first Chief Vigilance Officer of the PU and has been serving as the DUI since 2017. 
• Prof Rupinder Tewari has an expertise in Microbiology and Microbial Biotechnology. He remained as a senator at the PU for two consecutive terms — from 2008-16. He has been the Founder, Department of Microbial Biotechnology at the PU. He has been the chief mentor, Centre for Innovation Cluster in Biotechnology. He has been the coordinator, DST-Policy Research Centre on Promotion of Industry-Academia interactions from 2014 onwards and also the Founder Coordinator, Chandigarh Innovation and Knowledge Cluster (CRIKC), from 2013 onwards.