Fundamental Politicisation of India’s HE Poses Grave Danger
Philip G Altbach and Eldho Mathews | 02 April 2025 | University World News
In June 2024, shortly after securing his third term as prime minister, Narendra Modi inaugurated the new campus of Nalanda University in Bihar in the eastern part of India. During the function, Modi underscored the importance of creating and maintaining an academic environment where knowledge can be freely pursued by stating that “Nalanda is the proclamation of the truth that knowledge cannot be destroyed, even though books would burn in a fire”.
However, the post-2010 evolution of Nalanda University, an East Asian joint effort, contradicts this statement as it reflects the challenges of maintaining academic independence, as well as the complex relationship between universities and political forces in India…