A bizarre episode unfolded at Delhi University’s Lakshmibai College, where a viral video showed the college principal applying cow dung on classroom walls, claiming it as a sustainable cooling solution. In retaliation, DUSU president Ronak Khatri plastered her office walls with cow dung, sarcastically stating that he was only extending her “eco-friendly” initiative to her personal workspace.
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The principal, Pratyush Vatsala, defended her actions as part of a research project on indigenous cooling techniques. However, the justification falls flat when the method is forcefully implemented in student spaces without their consent. Students were neither informed nor consulted, which is indeed a serious breach of agency and respect in an academic institution.
Khatri rightly pointed out that if such experiments are to be conducted, they should begin at home, not in classrooms where students are expected to study, not inhale cow dung fumes. His statement mocking the principal’s air-conditioned office being inconsistent with her “natural cooling” beliefs further exposes the hypocrisy.
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While Vatsala insists the project is being misunderstood, it is hard to ignore the optics. Cow dung smeared in a government college in the national capital, with no consent or scientific protocol openly shared. The image of students confronting faculty over an absurd and unsanitary decision is deeply troubling.
That the university has remained silent speaks volumes. At a time when educational institutions should be promoting real, scalable solutions to climate challenges, this incident veers dangerously close to regressive theatrics masquerading as science. It undermines both student dignity and academic credibility.
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