When an institution walks into its 93rd year of standing tall, you know it is a place that is special. The University of Dhaka, proudly called the “Oxford of the East” was established in 1921 and has played a big role in the history of this land. It has been a title tagged at the end of many famous names that have shined bright for Bangladesh all around the globe. It has been the bridge to enlightenment for generation after generation, and is the largest public university in our nation. Many of our parents, and their parents before them, got their degrees here, and those of us who have followed in their footsteps have been given the important duty of carrying on the legacy of leadership, knowledge, and success.
For anyone who has studied here, the Dhaka University campus is a place we all carry around in our hearts wherever we go. It’s easy to fall in love with the greenery that shades the paths and the familiar faces of the bhelpuri/photocopy mamas who are a big part of our four/five years of studying. It is where we all yearn to return again and again, where we celebrate all our colourful occasions like Boishakh and Falgun, and where we come to reminisce of the days that fly past us so fast.
Ninety-three years. Countless successes, and countless stories, have been etched into each classroom, corridor, and corner. Yes, Dhaka University has played a vital part in taking this country forward, and it has given each of us enough to help us spread our wings into bright futures.
But we must remember that we have to give something back to it. We owe both Dhaka University and our country the commitment of upholding the respect they deserve, and we uphold all that they stand for by being good human beings and good citizens – the kind of people we were groomed to be through our education.
DU has, over the last 43 years of the history of our country, been the centre of inspiration, spirit, and passion in all landmark events and movements, and it is up to us, the next generation, to make sure that this spirit and passion continues to be channeled for the betterment of our motherland, and also that this spirit is spread all around, to every corner of our country.
For school and college-going students, Dhaka University is a synonym for both hope and fear. It is one of the institutions we all dream of being admitted into after our HSC/A level exams. But whether we get into the public universities we desire to get into or not, what our society sadly fails to realise is that education is education, wherever it is found. There might be differences in faculty, in curriculum, but a student who has the fire inside to learn, will learn regardless of wherever he/she is studying. Therefore, although we can be proud of studying in Dhaka University, we must not get arrogant. There is a fine line between the two, and crossing that line is bringing disgrace to the name of our university – a disgrace it does not deserve.
It is a shame that over the last couple of years, we have been driving our buses on the wrong sides of roads. A common sight for the people of our city – sitting in relentless traffic jams as our red double-decker buses are being hauled through in the wrong side of the road. As a Dhaka University student, that is an utterly despicable and embarrassing thing for us to be engaged in, and it should be ceased immediately. If we are looked to as the most promising future leaders of this country, what sort of promises are we making if we ourselves are committing such wrongs?
This matters, and it has become an issue quite highlighted in the media. Every wrong action matters just as much as the right ones, and as Dhaka University students, we should be more careful of how we are being portrayed in society.
Most importantly, we should be careful of the examples we are setting for the children who are to become the generation that follows us. For good examples are the best thing we can give them now, and the most hope we can have for the future of our country is that these children will one day follow the good examples and not the bad ones.
Let’s be the good examples. We owe that to this 93-year old institution that has become a home away from home for us. It deserves nothing but praise and it will surely continue to deserve that for many more years to come.
Happy Birthday, University of Dhaka! May your spirit live on forever.