Miranda House, University of Delhi

Miranda House

Miranda House seal
Hindi: स्वाध्याय प्रमदितव्यम्
Location
New Delhi, Delhi
India
Coordinates 28°41′33″N 77°12′36″E / 28.69250°N 77.21000°E / 28.69250; 77.21000Coordinates: 28°41′33″N 77°12′36″E / 28.69250°N 77.21000°E / 28.69250; 77.21000
Information
Type University College for Women
Established 1948
Founder Sir Maurice Gwyer
Principal Dr. Pratibha Jolly[1]
Staff 326
Faculty 238
Number of students More than 3000
Campus Urban
Colour(s)     Cocoa Brown
    Green
Nickname MH, Miranda, Mirandians
Calendar Semester
Affiliations DU
Website www.mirandahouse.ac.in

Miranda House (Hindi: मिरांडा हाउस, MH), a residential college for women, is one of the premier women's institutions of the University of Delhi, India.[2] It was established in 1948.[3][4] Miranda House offers degrees in the sciences and liberal arts.

Ranking

Miranda House
India Today & Nielsen rankings, 2013

History

Sir Maurice Gwyer (extreme right), founder of Miranda House, University of Delhi.
Lady Edwina Mountbatten

Miranda House was founded in 1948 by the university vice-chancellor, Sir Maurice Gwyer.[8] Its foundation stone was laid by Lady Edwina Mountbatten on 7 March in the same year. Miranda House is built of red bricks on the university campus. Its original design was planned by the architect Walter Sykes George and is architecturally similar to other educational institutions in India founded in the colonial era. As the college grew, several buildings were added.

Alumni and students of this college are known as Mirandians.

Miranda House started with 33 students in July 1948, which rose to 105 by September the same year. It was 2,090 in 1997–98. The academic staff increased from six in 1948 to 120 (permanent) in 1997–98 and that of non-academic staff from 11 in 1948 (five in the hostel and six in the college) to 120 in 1997–98. The college accommodation (hostel) housed 43 students in 1948, of whom seven were enrolled at other colleges of the University of Delhi. There are now 250 students in the hostel.

At the time of its founding, Miranda House had six departments; as of 2012 there were eighteen. Science teaching was conducted in the university and in 1963–64, B.Sc. General and in 1971, B.Sc. Honours teaching work started in the college. Many new subjects have been introduced in the humanities and social sciences since then.

Miranda House provides liberal education in social sciences, humanities and the basic sciences. The college's infrastructure includes teaching laboratories and general facilities.As of 2012 Miranda House has more than 3,000 students.

Academic courses and departments

Miranda House offers a wide array of undergraduate and graduate courses. All undergraduate courses commencing from the academic year 2014-15 are according to the three-year undergraduate honours degree system.

Undergraduate courses

Add-on courses

Miranda House offers a career-oriented add-on course in Tourism that can be opted for by students as a parallel sub-discipline while pursuing their degree-level education. This course is approved by the University Grants Commission and is self-financing.

Additionally, several other short-duration career-oriented courses are on offer including Operations Research, Computer Applications, Green Chemistry, Medicinal-Biotechnology, Media Studies. The college offers one-year certificate courses in French, German and Spanish in collaboration with the Department of Germanic and Romance Studies, University of Delhi. It offers a course in Russian in collaboration with the Department of Slavonic and Finno-Ugrian Studies, University of Delhi.

Postgraduate courses

Students enroll for M.A. and M.Sc. programmes in the college; classes are held at the respective departments at the university.

Four-year undergraduate program

The University of Delhi introduced the four-year undergraduate program scheme in the academic year 2013-14. All undergraduate programs offered by the University of Delhi would thenceforth be for the duration of four years, with multiple exit options and the inclusion of research components. This reform was intended to provide greater flexibility and wider range of choices to the students.[9]

In June 2014, after a lot of controversy, speculation and protests, the four-year undergraduate program was removed according to the directives of the University Grants Commission. All the constituent colleges of the University of Delhi were instructed to return to the previous three-year format for first degrees.[10]

Now a Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) is being followed in the University of Delhi.

Campus life

Architecture

Walter Sykes George

Located in the University of Delhi's north campus enclave, Miranda House was designed by architect Walter Sykes George in a similar style to other colonial educational institutions of the country. The college hostel is among the oldest residential buildings in the university. The hostel section is laid out in a quadrangle, with gardens placed out by bottle palms.

Since the beginning Miranda House has undergone numerous physical changes and has grown with additions to its original layout plan. The major features of its structure are the main college building, the library, and the hostel block. In the 1950s, the new building for lectures was constructed. The principal's office, college office, teachers' lounge, students' common room, and sheds for four college buses were built during this period. The college auditorium, equipped with microphones, and the cafeteria building came up during this time. New classrooms were added by partitioning the old library hall. The new administrative section was built in the centre of the teaching wing. Some classrooms on the ground floor were converted into the administrative block, which also houses the principal's new office.

In its Golden Jubilee Year, the college auditorium was renovated under the supervision of interior designer and old Mirandian Ketaki Sood. A rock garden was set up in the space behind the students' common room and in front of the cafeteria.

Miranda House Hostel

College Hostel.

Miranda House was a residence before it became a college. Miranda House Hostel was founded in 1948 by the vice-chancellor, Sir Maurice Gwyer; its foundation stone was laid by Lady Edwina Mountbatten on 7 March the same year. The building was designed by architect Walter George.

The dining hall has a high arched ceiling, monastic tables and benches. There is a common room and an open coffee lounge attached to it. Declared a Heritage Building, extensive restoration and refurbishment work was undertaken in the hostel. It has 120 twin and seven four-person rooms. The day-to-day functioning is taken care of by a full-time resident warden and a housekeeper. The hostel administrative team includes the principal, the vice-principal, the bursar, teacher representatives on the hostel committee, and the hostel warden.

Clubs

There are over 20 clubs and societies at Miranda House, including:

Many of Miranda House's alumni are actors, dancers, filmmakers and activists.

Women's Development Cell

There is a Women's Development Cell. A three-day certificate course on "Women and Law" in India has, over the past years, become an integral part of the college calendar. In addition, the cell organizes lectures, workshops, documentary and discussions on topical, pertinent issues.[14]

National Cadet Corps (NCC)

Miranda House NCC Company has 160 cadets, of whom 80 are enrolled in the Army wing. As per change in the NCC policy making training for two years, many second-year students can join NCC.

National Service Scheme (NSS)

NSS has two core activities: teaching the children of the support staff and the underprivileged children in the neighbouring areas; and reading and recording for the visually challenged students of the college. Volunteers also participate in seminars, social campaigns and related competitions.

Sports and games

Tennis Court.

The department organizes fresher competitions in cross-country race, basketball and table tennis. Cross-country races are always for a social cause like Run for Peace, Run for Our Kargil Heroes, Plant More Trees, etc. The school provides special coaching for basketball, chess, cross-country race, softball, tennis, table tennis, track and field, volleyball and other games like cricket as per student demand. College teams participate in inter-college and open tournaments. Many students are selected to represent Delhi in the All India Inter University competitions and national-level competitions.

The college organizes an inter-college table tennis tournament for men and women. The other important date in the sports calendar is the college's Annual Sports Day.

International collaborations and exchange programmes

A team of 17 students and three faculty members from the Utrecht Business School, Hogeschool Utrecht University of Applied Sciences visited the University of Delhi for an inter-cultural contact program from 19 to 23 October 2009. Miranda House and Sri Ram College of Commerce hosted this team through a week-long course on management and culture. Sixteen students from Miranda House and fifteen from Sri Ram College of Commerce participated in the program. The program was the second of a series initiated in 2008 with support from K. Sreenivas, dean of international relations at University of Delhi. It was initiated by presentations by students from each country showcasing their business and cultural environments. Students then attended a series of workshops and lectures on aspects of inter-cultural business interactions and marketing. These sessions were conducted by faculty from the Utrecht Business School as well as Delhi University.

King's College London

King's College London logo

In 2013 King's College London opened its first international summer school in Delhi at Miranda House.[15] This includes pre-university and undergraduate level modules. The programme makes available scholarships for the best students to study at King’s College London Summer School in July and August.[16]

Students' Union

The Students' Union consists of the president, vice president, general secretary and two central councillors. These office bearers are elected by the students. The Students' Union organizes TEMPEST, the annual cultural festival of Miranda House and addresses all student-related problems.

DS Kothari Centre for Research and Innovation in Science Education

DS Kothari Centre for Research and Innovation in Science Education[17]

D S Kothari Centre for Research and Innovation in Science Education and Amstel Institute (University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands) have instituted this project in collaboration.[18] The primary objective is to improve the quality of science education in schools by introducing Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) tools embedded in carefully designed learning environments.

The centre conducts baseline tests for undergraduate students and a prestigious 'Science Award' is given to a student from all the science departments and years on the basis of a test scores and a presentation on a contemporary and interdisciplinary topic.

Summer internships, lectures and camps have been successfully organized by the centre.

Library

The Miranda House Library acquired its first book on 22 July 1948. In the beginning it was confined to one room. The present building was constructed under the guidance of the founder librarian P. Tandon. The foundation stone was laid by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on 7 March 1973.

The new library block is a double-storeyed building consisting of deposit-counter, issue-of-books counter, stack hall, reserve section, reading hall, teachers' reading room, magazine section, and administrative section.[19]

Digital Resource Centre: In the academic session 2007-2008, the Digital Resource Centre (DRC) was started in the Library. The Digital Resource Centre with 30 networked computers provides access to internet, E-resources, and journals on the University of Delhi server.

Amba Dalmia Resource Centre for Visually Challenged Students

Miranda House is the first college to establish a computer-based resource centre to aid its visually challenged students. Work on the resource centre was initiated in 2006, with an endowment for Ms Manju Kapur Dalmia, author and member of teaching faculty at Miranda House.

Activism

In 1970 the Miss Miranda beauty contest was abolished by an overwhelming majority of students despite strong opposition by the principal and faculty members. Led by the president of the Student Union, feminist activist Madhu Kishwar, the students protested against beauty being the criterion for the contest.

During the Sikh riots in Delhi in 1984, students of Miranda House organized relief camps for the victims. Film-maker Shonali Bose, who was a student at Miranda, made the Sikh riots the subject of her film Amu.

Students protested "unreasonable curfew times" for women in 2015, in a campaign called "Break the Cage."[20]

Filmmaker and Miranda House alumnae Mira Nair shot scenes of her movie The Reluctant Fundamentalist, starring Riz Ahmed and Kate Hudson, at Miranda House. Shooting took place near the zoology department.

Miranda House also appears in Neeraj Pandey's Akshay Kumar starrer Special 26. Pandey needed to replicate CBI headquarters, for which the crew recommended the heritage hall at Miranda House. Scenes of Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s acclaimed movie Bhaag Milkha Bhaag with Farhan Akhtar in the lead were shot in MH. The introduction song "Fukrey" and most of the college sequences of the film were shot in Miranda House.[21][22]

Part of IPL season 8 advertisement was shot in the campus. Recently, a Munch ad was shot featuring Sushant Singh Rajput.

Former principals

Placement cell

The placement cell of the college consists of faculty members and student volunteers. The Placement Cell coordinates the activities of career counseling and campus recruitment. The reputation of the college and the credibility of its teaching programmes aids the process of placements. Every year, MH is visited by a very large number of companies and potential employers.

Some of the recruiters include Standard Chartered Bank, Indian Express, Google, Ernst&Young, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Deloitte, Essar Group, Max New York Life Insurance Company, Jaypee Group, Blackstone Group, Absolutdata Research and Analytics Pvt Ltd., Star India, Thomsondigital, Oxford University Press, AC Neilson ORG-MARG PVT. LTD., IBM Daksh Business Process Services Pvt.Ltd., Teamleaseservices Pvt. Ltd., Zee Telefilm Limited, Wipro BPO, HP Ltd., Star News, Pulse Media Pvt. Ltd., NP Solutions Pvt. Ltd., HDFC Standard Life Insurance Company, Triumph Institute of Management Education, Indigo Airlines, Dorling Kindersley (DK), Grail Research, Sahara Services Ltd., Agro Tech. Food Ltd, Virgin Mobile, DBS Bank Ltd., Barclays Shared Services Pvt Ltd., GENPACT, Wipro Technologies, Narang Medical Ltd., DHL Express(India) Pvt. Ltd., Indian Air Force, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces, Progeon, ITC Welcome Group, Keane Ltd., Max Healthcare, Mind Works Global Media Services Cadila Smart Analyst, Hewitt Associate, Capital IQ, Pipal Research, McKinsey, HCL Technologies Limited, Achievers Recruitment Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Quantum Market Research Pvt. Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank, E TV, M TV, Pantheon Advisory (India) Pvt. Ltd., Executive Access Moolchand Hospital, Evalueserve.com Pvt. Ltd., TRAC Skills, Vangelz Technologies Pvt. Ltd., Infosys, SAIPEM Triune Engineering Pvt. Ltd., Tata Consultancy Services.

Notable alumnae

Miranda House is the alma mater of a number of eminent women who have excelled themselves in diverse professions. A few are listed below.[23][23]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.mirandahouse.ac.in/MirandaHouse/ProgramFile/InfoGallery/HomePage/Click.asp?LinkName=21&strLinkName=Principal%20Desk
  2. ↑ http://www.indiafolder.com/indian-colleges/miranda-house.html
  3. ↑ "Miranda House College". highereducationinindia.com.
  4. ↑ http://www.mirandahouse.ac.in/MirandaHouse/ProgramFile/InfoGallery/HomePage/Click.asp?LinkName=1&strLinkName=About%20Miranda%20House&From=
  5. ↑ "2013: Arts Vs Science". intoday.in.
  6. ↑ "Arts: 2013 Vs 2011". intoday.in.
  7. ↑ "Best Colleges 2013 Rankings of Best Colleges India, Arts, Commerce, Science, Engineering, Medicine, Law, BBA, BCA, Fashion, Mass Com, Fine Arts". intoday.in.
  8. ↑ "The Telegraph - Calcutta : Careergraph". telegraphindia.com.
  9. ↑ "Home - University of Delhi". du.ac.in.
  10. ↑ "Old 3 year honours system is restored" (PDF). Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  11. ↑ https://www.facebook.com/ecellmh
  12. ↑ https://www.facebook.com/mathletics.miranda
  13. ↑ http://vidyut.mirandahouse.ac.in/home
  14. ↑ http://www.mirandahouse.ac.in/MirandaHouse/ProgramFile/InfoGallery/HomePage/Click.asp?LinkName=16&strLinkName=Womens%20Development
  15. ↑ "Heard about this summer school?". The Hindu.
  16. ↑ "King's College London launches first Summer School in Delhi". The Times of India.
  17. ↑ http://www.mirandahouse.ac.in/dskc/index.html
  18. ↑ "DECLARATIE ONKOSTEN". googleusercontent.com.
  19. ↑ http://www.mirandahouse.ac.in/MirandaHouse/ProgramFile/InfoGallery/HomePage/Click.asp?LinkName=11&strLinkName=Facilitiesth
  20. ↑ Lakshmi, Rama (2015-10-21). "Indian women push back against campus curfews". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2015-10-24.
  21. ↑ "WELCOME TO AOL". Home Page-AOL India.
  22. ↑ http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-06-18/news-interviews/40048024_1_delhi-boys-delhi-girls-ali-fazal
  23. 1 2 http://www.mirandahouse.ac.in/MirandaHouse/ProgramFile/InfoGallery/HomePage/Click.asp?LinkName=18&strLinkName=Alumnae
  24. ↑ "India in the 1940s: The way we were". Hindustan Times. 10 August 2013. Retrieved 2014-10-09.
  25. ↑ http://iitk.ac.in/new/swargajyoti-gohain
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