UP Governor directs state universities to develop Miyawaki forests, improve hostels and campus facilities

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Governor and Chancellor of State Universities Anandiben Patel on Thursday directed all state universities to develop Miyawaki forests on one to five acres of land, depending on the availability of space on their campuses, and undertake large-scale plantation drives to promote environmental conservation. According to a statement issued by Jan Bhavan on Thursday, Patel issued the directions while reviewing issues related to state universities and sharing her observations from inspections of various campuses.

Referring to hostel facilities, the governor said she had found during inspections that students in some university hostels were ordering food from outside instead of having meals prepared in hostel kitchens. "This arrangement should be discontinued immediately and quality food should be provided in hostels," she said. Patel cautioned that dependence on outside food could also increase the possibility of undesirable activities, including drug abuse, and asked universities to work seriously to eliminate such risks by ensuring better supervision and facilities on campuses.

She also directed universities to immediately replace expired fire safety equipment and improve Wi-Fi connectivity wherever internet services were either unavailable or inadequate. The governor asked universities to review the increasing number of awards being conferred during academic functions, saying equal emphasis should be placed on the quality and significance of the honours rather than merely increasing their number.

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Highlighting interactions with children from villages adopted by universities, Patel said many of them had impressed audiences during convocation ceremonies by delivering speeches, narrating stories, playing the harmonium and participating in cultural programmes. She cited the example of a child who could converse in eight languages and said such talent should be identified and nurtured through sustained encouragement.

Patel directed universities to record speeches, plays, stories, music and other cultural presentations by these children and display them at Jan Bhavan. She also asked universities to compile the material into books and distribute them in adopted villages so that other children could draw inspiration from them. The governor said universities should continue making efforts to identify and promote exceptional talent at the grassroots level, according to the statement.