Willingdon College

Motto in English	DES:Union is strength
Type	Education
Established	1919
Principal	Dr. Bhaskar Vinayak Tamhankar
Available Courses	BA ; B.Sc ; BCS; M.A. ; M.Sc. in Physics ; M.Sc.(Maths) ; M.Sc. in Chemistry
Location	Sangli, Maharashtra, Maharashtra, India
Affiliations	Shivaji University
Website	[1]

Willingdon College Sangli

Willingdon College is a college named after the former Governor of Bombay, Baron Willingdon The First (later Marquess of Willingdon), who served as Viceroy of India, from 1931 until 1936. The college opened in 1919 in Sangli in the Vishrambag area of Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad Municipal Corporation, between the twin cities of Miraj and Sangli. Students in Southern Maharashtra and the districts of Belgaum, Dharwad, Karwar and Bijapur also gained access to the school.[citation needed]

Establishment

1919

National leaders and patriots including Vishnushastri Chiplunkar, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Gopal Ganesh Agarkar and Madhavrao Namjoshi laid the foundations of the New English School in 1880 and the Deccan Education Society in 1884 in Pune. The Fergusson College was founded in 1885. In response to demands for a college in Southern Maharashtra and to the desire of the Ruler of the Sangli State, the Society founded the Willingdon College in Sangli in 1919. The President of the Society, Shrimant Chh.Shahu Maharaj, along with the Vice-Presidents, Rulers of the Sangli and Miraj States and other citizens contributed to the cause. The College was founded on the morning of 22 June 1919 in Sangli City in the building where Rani Saraswati Kanya Shala stands today.[1]

The college was named after Major The 1st Baron Willingdon, then the Governor of Bombay. Lord Willingdon later served, when he was Earl of Willingdon, as Viceroy of India. He was later, in 1936, further advanced in the peerage as The 1st Marquess of Willingdon. Initially, only the Arts wing stood with an enrolment of 220 students. Later on Wrangler R.P.Paranjapye and the founder Principal of the College Shri.C.G.Bhatye secured an area of 125 acres (0.51 km2) at Vishrambag for the college and construction began.[citation needed]

Silver jubilee

1944

During this period, Centers of higher education and colleges were rare. Students in Southern Maharashtra and from the Districts of Belgaum, Dharwad, Karwar and Vijapur in Karnataka benefited from the establishment of the college. The college moved into its current buildings on 8 August 1924. At the time only the L-shaped wing to the east and the south had been completed. The square block building of the Boys Hostel was completed in 1925 and the two-storied Shahu Block in 1927. In 1932–33 the Science wing was started. By then the college was known for its high standards of education, attracting students from faraway places. During the period of 1935–44 the buildings of the Gymkhana, quarters for professors on either side of the approaching road, the Girls Hostel, the Guest House (Karve Sadan) and the laboratory were set up. In 1944, the college celebrated its silver jubilee.[citation needed]

Golden jubilee

1969

After the celebrations of the silver jubilee, the image of the college shone with greater brightness. During the period 1945–1957 more buildings came up, one more Hostel for the Girls, two more Hostel buildings for the Boys, Velankar Assembly Hall, Recreation Hall and an addition to the main building at the West. Today the hostel accommodates 110 Boys and 85 Girls. In the next 15 years, the Biology Laboratory, the three-storied building of the Library, Post Office, building, one more Hostel for the girls, Canteen and NCC buildings and the Open Air Theatre were completed. On the Science side subjects like Biology, Physics, Mathematics and Statistics were started. In 1969, Golden Jubilee of the College was celebrated in a splendid manner. Some past students from foreign countries attended the celebrations with deep reverence. Other past students and well-wishers of the college gave generous donations, considerably and swelling the funds of the college.[citation needed]

Diamond jubilee

1979

Out of the funds collected at the time of the Golden Jubilee, more constructive work was taken up. 11 new Classrooms, Teachers Hostel, (Out of the UGC funds to the extent of 2/3 of the entire expenditure), tube-well for water supply, an extension of the Gymkhana Building, Badminton Hall were completed. The College was recognized as a permanent Post Graduate Centre by the Shivaji University. On the Science side, Microbiology and Electronics and on the art side Psychology, Logic and Philosophy were added. Diamond Jubilee was celebrated with the same enthusiasm as the Golden Jubilee and received spontaneous support from all quarters.[citation needed]

Platinum jubilee

1994

Many projects were launched as part of the platinum jubilee celebrations, including pre-primary, primary, and secondary schools (English and Marathi medium) at the Willingdon Campus, a Health Club, and an overhead water tank.[citation needed]

2011

Infrastructure

Main building

A palatial, quadrangular stone structure attracts everyone’s attention. It includes an open-air theatre with a large open space.

Building comprises

Basement – There are four medium-sized rooms (one of which is used as a control room for university examinations) and a storeroom.

Ground floor – It houses Principal and Vice-Principal's offices, Administrative Office, Geography Department, Staff Common Room, Ladies Common Room, Library, Departments of Botany, Mathematics, N.C.C. Office with a separate entrance, 3 big classrooms, 1 small classroom and a Strong-room for University's Central Assessment Programme. Also, an open-air theatre is located on this floor, where the Annual Prize Distribution ceremony takes place.

First floor – This floor has seven large rooms and one medium-sized room, which accommodates the Departments of History, Statistics, Hindi, English, Marathi, Economics, Physics, and Zoology.

Terrace – There is a tower on the front side of the main building, on which the National Flag is hoisted every year on 15 August, 26 January, and 1 May. The Zoology storeroom and the Animal House are located on the north-west side of the terrace.

There are 24 classrooms in total.[citation needed]

Auditorium and departments

Applied Sciences Building (presently housing Microbiology, Biotechnology, Computer Science and BCS Departments)[citation needed]

Velankar Auditorium

Science Departments

Department of Microbiology

Department of Biotecnology

Department of Mathematics

Department of Physics

Department of Chemistry

Department of Statistics

Department of Zoology

Department of Botany

Department of Electronics

Arts Departments

Department of English

Department of Marathi

Department of Hindi

Department of History

Department of Economics

Department of Sanskrit

Gymkhana and a Pavilion Building

Chemistry Laboratory No.1, Chemistry Laboratory No.2, Chemistry Laboratory No.3

Other Buildings

N.C.C. Armoury

Bungalow No.1 (Principal's Residence), Bungalow No.2 (Life-member Teacher)

Bungalow No.3 (Life-member Teacher), Bungalow No.4 (Life-member Teacher)

Bungalow No.5 (Life-member Teacher), Bungalow No.6 (Life-member Teacher)

Bungalow No.7 (Life-member Teacher), U.G.C. Teachers' Hostel (4 flats)

Ladies Hostel

Boys Hostel (Shahu Block), Boys Hostel (Square Block)

Boys Hostel (Chavan Block), Boys Hostel (Kabbur Block)

Cycle stand, Hobby Workshop, Non-residential students centre

Willsoft

In 2010, the Computer Science department started conducting the competition event Willsoft. Willsoft includes Paper Presentation, Poster Presentation, Gaming,'C' Programming,(competition events) and many others. The event enjoyed a good response in the last three years.[citation needed]