Thereupon, the ambitious attempts of the Universities to instill knowledge in the midst of a global disaster would actually bring counterproductive results in Indian society.

Amidst a pandemic is pushing the world towards one of the worst quagmires it has ever been, some of the institutions in India are completely blunt on handling the situation. Interestingly, the top notch Universities in the country such as the Central University of Tamil Nadu, Delhi University etc. have planned to take online tutelage and emplaced online platforms for necessary submissions like projects and dissertations. Utilizing the idle lock-down time for education, research and academic activities are indeed applaudable in the first look but unfortunately on a closer look they seem to be too ignorant or too heedless about the digital divide, one of the stark inequality issues existing in India. According to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the internet density of the country is 48.4%, which means for more than half of the population internet is still a deluxe product. In rural areas, the count fell to a meagre 25.3%. There are immense differences in the internet penetration and the usage of the digital services between different states in India. Unsurprisingly, the economically and socially backward states in India keep that record intact in the digital arena as well. Hence, if a student is hailing from one of these internet ridden spaces of India, he/she is forced to hold back in the academic race. Moreover, the gender factor in the digital divide is wide enough to not to be neglected. The female students who are sent back to their homes after the closure of the hostels and other accommodations in the Universities could also face the difficulties to use the internet and other digital devices at home as free as their male counterparts. On a comparative scale women use 56% less mobile according to the quantifications from the 2019 report of GSMA. Even with the access to the internet, the quantity and quality of data is still a matter of concern for a large mass. Utilizing the possibilities of online streaming classes is music to the ears but an unaffordable luxury to a majority of Indian population. After all the pomp and gaiety while launching multifarious digital and e- schemes, the arrow still seems to miss the target.

Thereupon, the ambitious attempts of the Universities to instill knowledge in the midst of a global disaster would actually bring counterproductive results in Indian society. It would elevate the inequality between rural and urban, the rich and poor, the traditional learner and tech savvy section of students, male and female and also between multitude other spheres. Notably, one of the mainsprings of education is to narrow down the disparities and unevenness existing in the society. However, the shortsighted attempt of the top-echelons of academia could bring a disruption in the attempts to bring equality. According to the claims of student unions in JNU, almost 40% of the students come from economically weak backgrounds. The JNU student community is an epitome of almost all the central universities in the country. The deprived students would be jostled back to the racetrack and their under development, inequalities and oppressions would remain perpetual. Interestingly, in the United States the educational department and school administrations are conducting discussions on the digital divide and trying to take necessary actions to make the wedge thinner. As per the report of the Wired, in Berkeley, California, schools closed in mid March didn’t reopen until Monday. Public schools superintendent Brent Stephens says officials had to work out how to accommodate special-needs students, and the students with difficulty to access the classes via online. If the most technically advanced country in the globe is concerned about the ramifications of digital divide and the equity of education then it is certain that the Indian Universities, where a plethora of students come from economically and socially challenging backgrounds imminently need a better plan. The question of the hour is what is the use of all such research, and annual rituals of seminars, symposiums and discussion forums on inequality, class-conflicts and multitude other issues in India, if the Universities, the abode of thoughts and ideas, doesn’t even bat an eye towards such a stark issue?

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