Even as the IIT-B has been in the news for its placements, what has remained conspicuously quiet is the seven-day workshop on ‘vedic science’ titled ‘Ancient Indian Knowledge Systems’ that was scheduled between December 3-9, but was surreptitiously canned when students raised objections
Even as the IIT-B has been in the news for its placements, what has remained conspicuously quiet is the seven-day workshop on ‘vedic science’ titled ‘Ancient Indian Knowledge Systems’ that was scheduled between December 3-9, but was surreptitiously canned when students raised objections. The event was cancelled at the last minute after a letter on November 30, signed by around 50 students was sent to the institute’s director, questioning objectives for granting permission to the event and the secrecy surrounding its organisation.
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Issue with the workshop
“We are in the 21st century in a technology institute. A workshop talking about vedic science and other myths on such a campus is a sham. We wanted to know if the institute was even aware of such an event. Hence, a letter was sent to the director,” said one of the students who wrote the letter, requesting anonymity.
“There is no clarity as to who the organisers of the event are. There were just flyers distributed among students. Why is it that the IITB community has not been informed through official channels to ensure broader participation?” the letter stated, adding, “In addition to the lack of transparency, there is also no information on the speakers. This becomes pertinent in case of propagation of willful falsehoods.”
Institute says
Denying connect between the letter and cancellation, director, Dr Devang Khakhar said, “As there was no permission taken for the activity, they couldn’t be allowed to use institute facilities to conduct the workshop.”