Prof. T K Oommen was the founder chairman of Schumacher society Delhi. He chaired the society from 2001 to 2025. In January 2025, Prof. D.K Giri succeeded him as the chairman of the Society. Prof Giri’s association with Prof. T.K Omen spanned over 40 Years. The following poem was written by Prof. Giri 5 years ago and was published in Prof. Oommen’s “Workography” called Trials, Tribulations and Triumphs: Life and Times of a Sociologist. An edited version is reproduced here in the memory of Prof Oommen who passed away in the morning of 26th February 2026.
I was inspired by a professor whom,
I was, on record, not taught by;
He was a model to emulate
But it was not easy to try;
His commitment to the profession
Was hard to compare
The competence in his subject
Was the best by far;
His oratory and articulation
Were music to the ears
His repartee, wit and humour
Cooled any intellectual thunder;
He was a wizard of concepts
Loved to use them afresh,
Invented ideas and expressions
In existing literature not easy to trace;
He always put the principle before the person
In academic or public life
He argued for societal cohesion and harmony
Explained and advocated the exclusion of strife;
Mapping the context of an issue
Was his tool so effective
He found no phenomenon universal
It was all specific and relative;
To him, monolithism, homogenisation, majoritairianism
Were anathemas to any society,
A confirmed pluralist in his approach
Spice of life is the variety;
He carried his intellectual conviction
And an audacity of expression,
Crafted, spoke with equal sincerity
No matter the occasion.
Self-hood, integrity and credibility
Were parts of his personality,
He was meticulous and a word-keeper
Never compromising liberty or honesty;
A commitment of his presence in an event
Would not change by any high and mighty,
He treated all his hosts equal
Recognised no ranks but parity;
He was unique in
Combining pragmatism and principle
He was not to trade off either
nor ever sacrificed a scruple
His scholarship was nationally unchallenged
Internationally fairly prized
As his studied-views were unheeded by powers that be
Despair he did hardly disguise
A good human being with compassion and concern
Be them his students, colleagues or people in general
He would stretch out and reach them
With sympathy and support moral and material
I salute you professor
An author, thinker, orator, critic and commentator
Your observations and advice to us
Are invaluable problem-solvers
You were a gift of God
To the academic community, evolving polity and wider society
We will remember you ever
An ideal professor, as good as an intellectual deity.
Courtesy: The AIDEM