Positive feel in Universities

There was a time when universities were administered by students rather than administrators. During that time most activities including the planning of academic courses, opening and closure of universities and punishments depended on the whims and fancies of the students themselves. At that time certain Professors and lecturers gave up their jobs and went for lucrative jobs abroad.

Now this situation is changing for this better and I request all intellectuals who have gone abroad to return home and serve their country to the best of their ability, said Higher Education Minister S B Dissanayake. The Minister said so delivering a lecture at the launching of the book “Earth and Environment” published by the Sri Lanka Geological Society at the Institute of Fundamental Studies, Hantana, Kandy on Saturday.

The Minister said “for the past century man had been causing immense damage to the environment.

Today man is trying to rebuild the world by restoring the damage caused to environment and the release of the book “Earth and Environment” is most timely.

The Geological Society and the Co-authors Prof C B Dissanayake and Prof Rohana Chandrajith should be thanked for their valuable endeavour. The Minister said according to Buddha’s teachings the world and all beings had been created by the mixture of materials known as ‘Patavi’, ‘Aapo’, ‘Thejo’ and ‘Vayo’. ‘Patavi’ meant the soil or earth and it is this segment which is being studied by geologists.

The Minister who said that natural calamities such as floods, fires, earthquakes and volcanic activity had engaged people’s attention.

Those calamities reminder the people about the colossal damage caused to the environment over the years. The Minister said the Government’s objective was to develop universities as Education centres introducing new inventions to the world. This could not be done in the past due to the sorry situation which existed in the universities.

He said certain sections were against the advent of International universities to this country. Their argument was that existing State universities should be widened in scope. The Government too accepted that this needs to be done systematically. But today an institution like the Peradeniya University could not be set up even with foreign-funding due to the colossal sum involved. That is why international universities should be allowed to set up branches while developing the existing State universities.