KU Department of English celebrating golden Jubilee

​Hanamkonda: Kakatiya University department of English, which won accolades from two Padma Bhushan award winning writers, late Mulk Raj Anand and UR Ananthamurthy, is celebrating its golden jubilee celebrations.

The department is one of the first four departments started in 1967 by Osmania University at its PG Centre in Warangal and it became a part of Kakatiya University established in 1976. The founder-head of the department was Late Prof Satyanarayan Singh and in his memory the department’s seminar hall was named after him.

Since its inception, the department has made significant strides as a centre of academic excellence. As many as 113 candidates have obtained Ph D degrees and 146 candidates have got M Phil degrees from the department so far.

In recognition of their valuable services, the teachers of the department, professors S Laxamana Murthy, P Mallikarjuna Rao, M Rajagopalachary and G Damodar have won Best Teacher Award in 1987, 2000, 2009 and 2010 respectively.

K Damodar Rao won a prize from Central Sahitya Akademi for his literary translation of N Gopi’s poems on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee of the Akademi’s bi-monthly, Indian Literature.

Noted creative writers Mahasweta Devi, Shiv K Kumar, Nissim Ezekiel, Ngugi wa Thiong’O, Sivagami, Ambai, Volga, Vishwajyothi, Varala Anand, Naveen, Darbasayanam Srinivasacharya and others have visited the department.

Kakatiya Journal of English Studies, a feather in the departments’ cap was first brought out in March 1976, a special number on Rabindranath Tagore. A special number on Mulk Raj Anand was published in 1977 and the event was attended by the novelist himself, leaving a cherishing memory for all at the department.

The journal is being sustained by pooling the individual research grant of teachers of the department.

“The department has contributed immensely in developing textbooks and study material at degree and PG levels for School of Distance Learning and Continuing Education of KU, BR Ambedkar Open University, Acharya Nagarjuna University, and SV University,” informed the department head K Damodar Rao.

The department has also been contributing to sharpening spoken English and soft skills of UG and PG students, employees and housewives through Centre for English Language Training (CELT) set up in December 2005. So far 42 short term programmes with duration of one-and-a-half month each have been conducted.

‘The Centre has plans to start remedial courses for the disadvantaged sections of the society with the funds from the UGC and Social Welfare Department’. There is a well furnished ‘Language Lab’ with the department to serve needs of the students of Telangana, Damodar Rao told The Hans India.

The department’s thrust areas under SAP I of UGC are ‘Multiculturalism in Indian Literatures in English translation’ with sub-areas, Women’s writing and feminist movement, Dalit writing and movements and Bhakti movements and literature, he explained.

Apart from regular teaching and research, the faculty is active in translation and editing journals and anthologies. Prof A Jaganmohana Chary captured the soul of vernacular masterpiece Sri Sri’s Maha Prasthanam into English.

Prof M Rajagopalachary translated Prof KR Srinivasa Iyengar’s book on Mother into Telugu and translated Ravoori Bharadwaja’s story, ‘Naakoo Devuni Choodalani undi’ into English. Similarly Prof S Laxmana Murthy G Damodar, E Renuka, M Rajeshwar, V Srinivas, K Damodar Rao, K Purushotham, and K Kumar have published several poetical and fictional Telugu works in English translation, boosting the department’s prestige among academic circles.

Prof V Gopal Reddy, faculty at the department has served as Vice-Chancellor of KU. “It is really a matter of great pride to be associated with KU English department which has got a reputation of its own. Golden Jubilee Celebrations commenced this January offers us an occasion to cherish such reputation,” the faculty members felt.