-Editorial (Yamuna, January, 1928. Vol. I)
Yamuna a monthly periodical devoted to commerce, politics & literature under the auspices of the Delhi Commercial College, was first published in January, 1928 with Prof. J. P. Mitra as its editor. From January 1928 to 2008 it has been 80 interesting years. Through these 80 decades the Yamuna has served as a blank canvas which the students and the faculty have filled with their vibrant colours. The passage of years has seen the magazine undergoing many changes. The original format had two sections- English and Hindi. Subsequently it also incorporated within itself Bengali, Urdu and Punjabi sections representing the growing vernacular and diverse character of our college.
Above everything the Yamuna is an institution in itself. For the last 80 years its pages have served as a record of events that are of prime importance to our hallowed college. The 1939 issue of the Yamuna records the visit of Sir Maurice Gwyer, the new Vice Chancellor of the Delhi University, who was responsible for allocation of land to the college in the University Enclave. Few of us know that Lal Bahadur Shastri was the Chief Guest at a ‘Hindi Divas’ programme in 1963, barely a year before he would take over as India
’s second Prime Minister. Indira Gandhi too visited the college in her capacity as Minister for Information and Broadcasting, this again just a year before she became Prime Minister.
’s second Prime Minister. Indira Gandhi too visited the college in her capacity as Minister for Information and Broadcasting, this again just a year before she became Prime Minister.In the decade of the thirties, the college did its bid for the freedom struggle. The 1937 issue of the Yamuna records the visit of C. Rajagopalachari to unveil a photograph of Gandhi ji. There have been issues dedicated to both Gandhi and Tagore. The Principal in the decade of the 30s, Mr. S. Sen even echoed the nation’s demand for self rule in his Annual Reports published in the Yamuna. Eminent freedom fighters have also visited our college, including Jagjivan Ram(1965), Krishna Menon(1962), MA Ansari, Vijaylakshmi Pandit(1965) and Zakhir Hussain(1941).
The 1941 issue of the Yamuna, recordes the setting up of a Cooperative Bank in the college to provide the students of the college opportunities for practical training in Banking and Accountancy. Few would realize that the HSS is 73 years old this year according to the issue of 1935. The old Yamuna’s are a treasure house of photographs. They offer some rare sights of the college and its constituents which the present student body has never seen before. The 1953 issue contains photographs of the present premises under construction. There are also photographs of the old building in Daryaganj and the old hostel which later became the Lady Shri Ram College for a short while, in the issue of 1936. Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, then the Vice President of India, inaugurated the present premises in 1954. This too is chronicled in our pages. There are pictures showing the students doing Shramdan, in response to Nehru’s clarion call, to build the present Sports Complex (1959) and the college contingent at the Republ
ic Day Parade (1963). Other rare photographs include those of Ganhiji’s funeral, unveiling of the Founder’s Bust and one of Lala Shri Ram’s last photographs.
ic Day Parade (1963). Other rare photographs include those of Ganhiji’s funeral, unveiling of the Founder’s Bust and one of Lala Shri Ram’s last photographs.‘Yamuna’ is a highly poetic name. Commerce may seem too prosaic to be linked with the theme of poets, but the romances of Commerce have been the romances of Yamuna. These have been eighty rich years for the Yamuna. The history of India’s premier college for commerce, Shri Ram College of Commerce, can’t be complete without the history of our very own college magazine, the Yamuna.
-Sumedh Sen
