Heritage walk around North Campus reveals proud, interesting moments of colleges’ past

* In 1942, the students of Indraprastha (IP) College sent the Muslim soldiers fighting in World War II rakhis as part of a campaign they called Rakhi Expedition. In response, the then district administration decided to cut wheat rations to the college hostel because they thought communal harmony was not a good idea.
* In 1935, IP students were asked to record their race and caste. A certain Asma Said on June 4, 1935, simply signed ‘Mughal’.
* The Non-Cooperation Movement of 1922 was drawn up in the office of the then principal of St Stephen’s College, S K Rudra, who also was the first Indian principal of the college.

On Saturday, a group of 10 people came together to uncover trivia, anecdotes and moments about the North Campus of Delhi University, which usually remain hidden in college archives or in people’s memory.

As part of the special heritage walk orgainsed by Surekha Narain, the group explored IP College, St Stephen’s College, Hindu College, among others.

Meena Bhargava, reader in History at IP College, led the group around the campus. Talking about the ration cut imposed on the college in 1942, she highlighted an article by the newspaper National Call, which chose to discuss the positive side of the ban in its September 3, 1942 edition.

“In these days when slimming is becoming a craze, especially among girls, the Indraprastha College might take virtue of an indiscretion and open its premises to a slimming sanatorium,” said the newspaper, suggesting that the college could consider compulsory slimming courses. “That, by itself, should attract more students,” the article read.

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