The University Grants Commission has urged universities to study the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the rural population.
In a circular, UGC secretary, Rajnish Jain, has suggested that universities and their affiliated colleges take up research to understand how communities are coping with the pandemic. The aim of the study is to understand how people in rural areas have been affected, and the impact on their economy.
The universities could each adopt a few nearby villages and study the awareness levels of the villagers about the pandemic; how the villages withstood the onslaught of the infection; and what were the best practices they adopted to prevent the spread of the infection.
The institutions may adopt five or six villages near them and ensure adherence to the guidelines issued by the State and the Central governments. The institutions could also study the impact of the 1918 H1N1 (influlenza) pandemic and what measures were taken by the country then, the circular said.
The higher educational institutions have been advised to constitute a research committee to study the issues and submit their report on the university activity monitoring portal (https://www.ugc.ac.in/uamp) by June 30.
