426 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
the matter of their staff. The outlook of the Colleges is on this account largely communal. This communal outlook has its effect on granting admissions. The result is students belonging to special communities or higher communities get preference in the matter of admissions and students belonging to the Scheduled Castes are either refused admissions on the ground that the numbers are full or are considered last when only a few vacancies are left. The situation has been considerably worsened by the influx of population in large towns where most of the Colleges are concertrated. The enormously increased number of students wanting to enter Colleges has made admission a matter of greater difficulty than it was before.
- Such a situation cannot be allowed to continue. It must be remedied immediately. The only effective remedy seems to be to establish Colleges in Selected Centres which have the education of the Scheduled Castes as its primary aim. The other Communities do not mind this competition for the simple reason that most have got their own Colleges. This is true of other Minority communities such as Sikhs, Muslims, Indian Christians and Anglo-Indians, each of which” maintain under their control various Schools and Colleges in which the education of their communities receives first consideration. But the Untouchables having no such institution at their command suffer most from this competition for admission. 1 propose to make a beginning by starting a College in Bombay which will have such an aim and will endeavour to carry it through. According to my calculations it will require a sum of about Rupees Six Lakhs to set up such a College. In prewar time it could have been done with a lesser amount. But having regard to the rise in the cost of material I do not think that the College could be stalled on anything less than this amount. As to the rasing of this amount it is impossible to expect the Scheduled Castes who are the poorest community in India to be able to raise this amount. I am therefore obliged to request the Government of India for a loan of the amount without interest to be repaid by suitable instalments. The properties of the proposed College will be mortgaged to Government as a security for the loan.