ASIA/INDIA - Closure of the professorship named after Mother Teresa

New Delhi (Agenzia Fides) - The academic authorities in India have announced the closure of the chair of teaching in "Health, education and social work", named after Mother Teresa of Calcutta, in the "Indira Gandhi National Open University" in New Delhi. As Fides learns, the decision was motivated by the lack of funds. According to M. Aslam, Vice Chancellor of the University, "some members of the academic staff have criticized the decision".
In a note sent to Fides, the Catholic activist John Dayal, Secretary General of the "All India Christian Council, condemns the step as "reprehensible" and calls on the university to find private sponsors to keep the course going.
"The cessation of the chair named after Mother Teresa - notes Dayal to Fides - comes at a time when there is a global campaign for the canonization of Mother Teresa. The founder of the Missionaries of Charity is an icon of mercy and human compassion for the poorest of the poor, towards the children and the terminally ill. The blue-trimmed white sari she wore is a universal symbol of these values, which India strongly needs".
The professorship was established in February 2000 thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding between the Bishops' Conference of India and the University of Delhi and over the years has promoted the launch of several programs in sociological studies. The course intended to give a contribution to the Indian society through educational programs, research activities and studies of social nature. Among other topics, the course also analyzed the phenomena such as AIDS, education for family life, drug addiction in Indian society. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 01/10/2014)