Visvodaya has done pioneering work in providing education with enlightenment and has lit the lamp of education — Tamasoma Jyothirgamaya. It has always tried to impart true values — Asato Ma Satgamaya — and to make education a means of molding the student into a complete person: idealistic, artistic, and philanthropic.
True education must liberate one from false ideologies and narrow outlook. In this noble effort Visvodaya has been aided by great people who associated themselves with it and enriched its student fraternity — leading them toward eternal wisdom: Mrutyorma Amrutam Gamaya.
Cultural life
Visvodaya Cultural Festivals were conceived to carry the message of Visvodaya to the people while offering healthy recreation. Musicians, poets, and artists of high repute were invited to present their art forms. These festivals aimed to bring out the dormant potential of talented students and to correct deficiencies in the education system.
In 1956 and 1957, student-artists represented the University in the Inter-University Youth Festivals held in Delhi and Mysore. S. V. Bhujangaraya Sarma was the guiding spirit of campus cultural life for three decades.
Kuchipudi exponent Vempati Chinna Satyam trained students and presented early dance-ballets such as Sri Krishna Parijatham and Chandalika on campus — works that were later appreciated across India and in cities of the United States.
Poets & artists
- S. V. Bhujangaraya Sarma — Principal, Jawahar Bharati
- Vedula Satyanarayana Sastry & Indraganti Hanumath Sastry — Telugu faculty
- Devulapalli Krishna Sastry — eminent Telugu poet
- Vempati Chinna Satyam, Yamini Krishnamurthy, Manju Bhargavi, Sobhanaidu
- Dwaram Bhavanarayana Rao — Bejawada Gopala Reddy School of Fine Arts
Publications by Visvodaya
- Bahukaala Darsanam — Devulapalli Krishna Sastry
- Appudu Puttivunte — Devulapalli Krishna Sastry
- Pushpa Laavikalu — Devulapalli Krishna Sastry
- Syama Parni — Mrs. T. Anasuya Devi
- The Problem of Good — A. McG. C. Tampoe
Mahatma Gandhi Festival, Vivekananda Festival, Tagore Festival, and Shakespeare Quarter-Centenary were celebrated. One-act play festivals remain a proud tradition of the Jawahar Bharati Students’ Union.
Conferences & seminars
A seminar on “Excellence as I see it” brought together M. R. Appa Rao (Vice-Chancellor, Andhra University), M. V. Raja Gopal, IAS, K. V. Gopala Swamy, and others. Another seminar on “College and Community,” part of the Silver Jubilee Celebrations (1975–76), was addressed by ministers, IAS officers, and social workers including Vennelakanti Raghavaiah.
- Collegiate Educational Conference at Hyderabad
- Seminar on the Mahabharata
- Conference on the Welfare of SCs, STs and BCs in A.P.
- Foundation Session of the A.P. History Congress
- Seminar on History of Nellore District
- Seminar on agrarian relations and peasant movements in A.P.
Extension services
The object of extension services is to mold students into instruments of national reconstruction by exposing them to the hard realities of social life and by inculcating an appreciation of the dignity of labour. Students participate in NSS, NCC, and the numerous activities of Dr. Ram’s Centre for Social Work and Culture.
Visvodaya Seva Samiti
Sprang into life in 1953, it conducted Children’s Festivals every 14 November (Nehru’s birthday), laid campus roads, distributed milk powder to needy children, and ran adult education centres. In 1954, when Godavari floods caused large-scale destruction, students and teachers raised donations for victims. Two American Peace Corps volunteers, Daniel Moulton and Statia Kapa, participated in extension programmes. Later, many of these functions were taken over by the NSS.
National Service Scheme
Introduced in 1974, NSS enabled volunteers to imbibe the spirit of national integration and reconstruction — including exemplary service when a devastating tidal wave hit Divi Taluka of Krishna District, and the dedication of a supply channel to Sri Arthur Cotton at Tallapalem.
Dr. Ram’s Centre
Dr. P. V. Ramachandra Reddy (1915–67) inspired the founding of Visvodaya and remained a source of its hopes. The Centre, inaugurated on 21 January 1998, perpetuates his memory. Serving as the hub of extension for Jawahar Bharati, it works through two wings: the Centre for Social Work and the Centre for Cultural Activities.
J.B. Teachers’ Welfare Trust
Started in 1965 with monthly contributions from teachers of Jawahar Bharati, the Trust pays a monthly pension to a widow in the event of a working teacher’s demise — a unique institution managed entirely by teachers. A similar trust serves administrative staff. Visvodaya also secured 75 house sites for teachers and staff, now known as Vengalarao Nagar.