Honorary Degrees
I don't deserve this award, but I have arthritis and I don't deserve that either. - Jack Benny
Delhi University awarded honorary degrees (Doctorate of Letters) to R K Laxman and CNR Rao for their exemplary contributions to their respective fields. 'honouris causa' was also conferred to Ratan Tata and Mahashweta Devi. I don't understand how Amitabh Bacchan became eligible for such an award. Well, I am no judge. Here is a deal, will Filmfare Award Committee ever consider APJ Kalam for honorary awards for his scientific achievements (if not for his hair style) ? First of all, Big B does not need any award. Secondly, a person who does not pay taxes (or at least does not pay in time) after earning money in crores should be the last person to be considered for any 'honorary awards'. Third, award committees should have some respect for Doctorate Degrees. There are numerous other actors in the world who are better than Big B (for example Keifer Sutherland--yes, Jack Bauer of 24 or how about Sanjay Dutta). Awards should be given to people who really matter and who fight for real cause such as chairman of ISRO or Infosys/Wipro Chairman who create jobs for people. I don't remember how many times Amitabh Bacchan performed for say Army and Soldiers on the border ? Why not confer it to Amartya Sen who was a faculty member at Delhi School of Economics or Kiran Desai -- these people do make India more visible to others ? I would have rather conferred it to Lalu ji who turned Railways to a profitable business, moreover, he is a natural born humorist and entertainer. Why not give it to Sonia Gandhi, that way at least European countries will know that DU confers Doctorate Degree. Why does award thingy look more like a self-service process -- you take care of me, I will take care of you ?
