A Centre for Secular Studies and inter-university centres in areas including languages, Humanities and Social Sciences are the key projects included in the Budget of the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit for the 2024-25 fiscal.
A Syndicate meeting of the university held in the main campus at Kalady in Kerala on March 12 (Tuesday) approved the Budget presented by Professor D. Salimkumar, convener of the institution’s finance committee.
The Budget has earmarked ₹5 lakh for setting up the Centre for Secular Studies which will be a platform for research on the “secular credentials as enshrined in the Indian Constitution.” It will undertake programmes to “spread the idea of humanity through social campaigns.”
An allocation of ₹5 lakh has been made for setting up inter-university centres in languages, Humanities and Social Sciences. The decision to establish the centres was taken based on the inference that majority of such centres in other universities had been focussing on areas related to science.
An amount of ₹1 crore has been set apart for constructing an academic block in view of the Syndicate decision to start four-year undergraduate programmes from the new academic year. A multi-sports-cum-gymnasium will be set up on the main campus at a cost of ₹1.5 crore. The Budget has earmarked ₹30 lakh towards the preliminary works. It has also allocated ₹1 crore towards enhancing student exchange programmes involving foreign universities.
The Budget has earmarked ₹90 lakh for the Centre for Online Studies.
Other proposals and funds allocation are as follows: distribution of research fellowship (₹3 crore); enhancing online learning systems and IT infra in regional centres (₹50 lakh); purchase of books and journals for the main campus and regional centres (₹1 crore); organising various seminars (₹50 lakh); strengthening Sanskrit popularisation programmes (₹50 lakh); assistance for research and development cell (₹25 lakh); allocation for centres of research and studies in various disciplines (₹30 lakh).
