Karnataka Govt to set up Sanskrit Directorate

Bangalore, June 25 (UNI) A separate directorate to propagate Sanskrit will be set up in the city soon, Karnataka Higher Education Minister D H Shankaramurthy said today.

Speaking to newspersons here, he said a proposal, as announced by Deputy Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa in the State budget, had been sent to the Finance Department for approval.

Mr Shankaramurthy stressed the need to establish such a directorate immediately and said the Government would ensure that it got deemed university status at a later stage.

The Minister announced that a world class Academy at the Kuvempu University in Shimoga, aimed at innovative research and education in social sciences and humanities, would be established in the region soon.

Kuvempu University Vice-Chancellor Prof B S Sherigara said a Memorandum of Understanding had been signed with Ghent University of Belgium, in this regard.

Accordingly, the Karnataka Academy for Social Sciences and Humanities (KASSH) would be set up with a link of a feedback loop between the academy, the local society in the State, different universities and colleges in the region and NGOs. A Research and Academic Culture would be established at KASSH and the different State universities through major research projects, Mr Shankaramurthy said.

KASSH would develop a social science curricula and produce teachers for training students of technical sciences in the state, he added.

The Minister said an action plan had been drawn to constitute a task force for coordination and expanding contacts with Indian and international academics. It would be dedicated to curriculum reform and research in the social sciences and humanities area in the State.

UNI