The university came into existence on paper a little over two years back with its first Vice Chancellor Dr Pankaj Chande as the lone crusader for its cause. This hasn't changed much even now. Chande is still primarily the lone chaperon of the young university.

In fact, all that people ever get to hear about the K K Sanskrit University is its vice chancellor attending gatherings and public functions as the chief guest.

``Getting invited to public functions is an advantage. I'm using this advantage of my position to create awareness about the concept with which the university was born,'' explained Chande talking to The Indian Express.

With a staff of just about a dozen and working out of two hired floors on the outskirts of the sleepy pilgrim town of Ramtek, Chande can do little else. His first admissionnotice in July 1998 for the elementary `Agama' course evoked just six applications.

``It is practically very difficult to make students come to Ramtek even from Nagpur which is just over 50 km away,'' said Chande.

Later, with special permission from the Government, the university set up four teaching centres in Nagpur and received over 800 applications by November.

The university has made an arrangement with the Bharatiya Sanskriti Peetham of Somaiya College, Mumbai, where it has started conducting a diploma course in Indian Culture and Values. In the coming two years, Chande hopes to add one-year diploma courses in Vastushashtra, Astronomy, Ecology, Music, and Yog Vidya. The structure and curriculum for courses in Computers, Ayurveda, Beauty Culture, Pali, Prakrit and Ardhamagadi are also ready, but they will not be immediately introduced for different reasons. But before this, some local politicians raised a hue and cry about alleged moves to shift the university to Nagpur. It was clear that theSanskrit university was nothing more than an election promise to them.

It is believed that these politicians somehow `motivated' youngsters from Ramtek as well to apply for admission and about 200 more forms were received. The course got under way around December, 1998, and examinations are scheduled in June, 1999.

``While designing this course, we took care not to use the usual grammar translation method of teaching a language. Instead we adopted the `mother tongue' technique,'' Chande explained.

Teachers would speak only in Sanskrit in the classroom rather than offer translations in another language. The university did not use the services of regular Sanskrit teachers. About 15 local youths who had undergone training using the C M Krishnashastri system at `Akshar' in Delhi were engaged to teach the `Agama' course participants.

Chande believes it was a good learning experience for the beginners. ``The aim is to teach them the language like they learn their mother tongue at home.''