Hills set to have ‘Darjeeling’ varsity

West Bengal Polity and Governance

The Bengal government has in principle decided to rename Greenfield University as Darjeeling University, a move which is expected to be welcomed by a large section of the hill community.
The Assembly had passed a bill on July 31 to set up Greenfield University at Jogighat in MungpoofSources said the government had taken note of the demand and decided to rename the varsity as Darjeeling University.
The Assembly had passed a bill on July 31 to set up Greenfield University at Jogighat in Mungpoo.
The demand for a university in the hills was first raised in 1955 with Darjeeling municipality adopting a resolution and placing it before the state government. The North Bengal University was set up in 1962 and even though it came up in Darjeeling district, it was located near Siliguri.
However, the demand for a university in the Darjeeling hills has always been there because of the fact that hills have an academic calendar different from the plains.
When the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration memorandum of agreement was signed in 2011, there was a mention of taking up the issue of setting up a central university in the hills. The Centre hasn't, however acted on this issue.