New Delhi: Rajya Sabha has given its approval to the bill to re-establish the historic Nalanda University in Bihar as an international institute of learning. As per sources, the bill, which was introduced in the house last week, was passed in a special sitting on Saturday (i.e. on August 25, 2010).
The Nalanda University Bill, 2010, will establish a central university in Nalanda district of Bihar, on the lines of the ancient university, which was founded there in 5th century AD and became a centre of learning for students from across South Asia.
Preneet Kaur, Minister of State for External Affairs, said the bill was being introduced by the ministry as 16 other countries are partnering in the re-establishment of the university. He also mentioned that the name and motto of the university will be decided by the group of mentors, an international architecture competition will be held for finalizing the design of the university.
Furthermore, participating in the debate, senior Congress member Karan Singh requested the government to pay special attention to the architecture of the university and not build it with PWD (public works department) architecture, a demand which was backed by many other members.
The minister approved the proposal made by members in the course of debate and said the present bill was only a skeleton and the suggestions made by the members will be accommodated in it. He also minister informed the house that a joint secretary-level officer will be appointed to monitor the work of the university.
As per sources, the Nalanda University is proposed to be re-established under the aegis of the East Asia Summit (EAS), as a regional initiative. The central government constituted a Nalanda Mentor Group (NMG) in 2007, under the chairmanship of Sen, to examine the framework of international cooperation and proposed structure of partnership, which would govern the re-establishment of this University. The NMG also comprise of representatives from Singapore, China, Japan and Thailand.
The re-built university will focus on Buddhist studies, philosophy and comparative religions, historical studies, international relations and peace studies, business Management in relation to public policy and development studies, languages and literature and ecology and environmental studies.
