MU to start postgraduate course in geography

Retired teachers will be recruited, says VC Byrappa

The Mangalore University will start a postgraduation course in Geography at University College, Mangaluru, from next academic year, Mangalore University Vice Chancellor K Byrappa said. 

Speaking at the UGC-sponsored fourth international conference of Union of Geographic Information Technologists (UGIT) on remote sensing and GIS applications on coastal management, organised by the Department of Geography of University College, Mangaluru, here on Tuesday, he said the University College has been offering undergraduate course in Geography since 1960s. The university has taken up an initiative to introduce PG course shortly to help the students to pursue their masters degree. The university will recruit retired teachers in geography as the faculty for the time being, till the post of permanent faculty are created for the department, he added.

Stating that the UGC has accorded ‘special heritage status’ to the University College, Prof Byrappa said that a sum of Rs 2 crore has been released to restore Ravindra Kala Bhavana. Poet Rabindranath Tagore visited the college in 1922 and addressed students. The hall has been named after the great poet. At present, a portion of the hall has been converted into classrooms. When the restoration work takes place, all the classrooms will be shifted, he added. 

The vice chancellor said remote sensing goes parallel to Geographical Information System (GIS) which is an excellent application in every field from science to social science. 

In his inaugural address, ISRO Senior Advisor (Space Application Centre) Dr Ranganath Navalgund said satellite imagery and aerial photographs had made earth surveys more foolproof. 

Remote sensing and GIS for geological studies have enormous potential and the applications have become popular. The satellite images are used to identify crops, estimate area of cultivation, prepare an yield map. The images and the data deciphered there will help the State government to formulate policies and farmers get precise inputs. By studying the progress in cultivation from the satellite images, the government will be in a better position to decide whether the food production was sufficient for the year. Remote sensing data helps to identify the possibility of ground water. There are over 32,00 glaciers in Himalayas. Looking at the satellite images, one comes to know whether the galieiers are retreating or have remained stable. The Gangotri glacier is retreating like other glaciers in the Himalayas and its volume and size are shrinking as well, he said. 

He said space technology applications are used for the development of the country. 

On the occasion, the UGIT Excellence Awards were conferred on Prof P Ishwarappa, Prof Ranganath, Prof K Kumaraswamy, Dr S I Biradar, Dr Jagannathan, Dr S M Kulkarni, Sulochana Shekar, Dr Ghanashyam Pathankar and Dr Dasharatha.