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HRD MINISTRY OFFICIALS MEET DU VICE CHANCELLOR

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On 15th January, officials of Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry met Delhi University (DU) Vice Chancellor (VC), Yogesh Tyagi, to discuss in detail the issue of recruitment of staff at the university and also, appeal to teachers to call off their month-long strike that began on 4th December 2019.

HRD Ministry met Yogesh Tyagi, Vice Chancellor of Delhi University, on Wednesday over the vehement issue of recruitment of teachers. The HRD officials also aimed to appeal to agitating teachers to call off their strike. DU teachers have raised several demands and one of these demands is the absorption of ad hoc teachers permanently and their tenure should be considered as part of their total service.

Amit Khare, the Higher Education Secretary of HRD Ministry met DU VC and some other University Officials and further appealed the teachers to withdraw their strike for the smooth functioning of the University as it would be in the best interests of all students.

All colleges and institutions have been asked to appoint contract, ad hoc, guest and temporary faculty before commencing the procedure of appointing permanent faculty. Another issue that has been taken up by the university is the additional requirement of faculty as per the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) scheme. The Ministry also offered an option to ad-hoc to appear for interviews for becoming permanent faculty. Earlier, DU was instructed to let ad-hoc faculty continue their service until the positions of permanent faculty are filled.

Last week, several officials associated with Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA) had met officials of the HRD Ministry to discuss the demands raised by the teachers’ association. DU teachers went on an indefinite strike and collectively decided to boycott evaluation as a means to bring their demands forward. In the month of December, several protest marches were organized by DUTA to HRD Ministry and UGC.

Image Credits: The Financial Express

Suhani Malhotra

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DUB Speak

As An Institute of Eminence, Will This Be DU’s Institutional Decadence?

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The status of Eminence raises apprehensions towards the future and functioning of Delhi University (DU) under the threats of disintegration, privatization and excessive surveillance.

Just a month after the University of Delhi (DU) along with four other institutes, IIT Madras, IIT Kharagpur, Banaras Hindi University and Hyderabad University, was granted the status of Institute of Eminence (IoE) with the objective of achieving the stature of world class institute. The next step in ensuring this initiative was the signing of the trilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the University of Delhi, the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the Ministry of Human Resource & Development (MHRD), which was duly completed the previous day.

But this further aggravates the skepticism regarding the University getting under the purview of an irrevocable authorization which substantially raises concerns of disintegration, excessive surveillance and privatization of the University, in the name of ‘Autonomy’, ‘Eminence’ and ‘Increased Government Amenities’ in this status provided.

Further the implementation of the Draft New Education Policy (DNEP) timeline of 2020 in October 2019 itself by the University is concerning in itself, the timeline which has to do with the abolition of statutory bodies like Executive Council, Academic Council and Departmental Council / College Staff Council by the constitution of all powerful Board of Governors (BOGs).

This BOGs will also be unaccountable to the Academic Council or Executive Council and hence, will come directly under the Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog (RSA). To add on to this, the elected component will be terminated and will be replaced by nominated members from stakeholders, abroad the University with the provision of weeding out inconvenient element periodically.

The One Thousand Crore Rupees grant, which is to be sanctioned over a  period of ten years from the Central government comes at an expense of new jurisdictions under the BOGs and their matters which will also  be devoid of any critical scrutiny of Executive Council (EC), Academic Council (AC) and Finance Committee (FC). Interestingly, the IITs which are receiving grants under this scheme have till now received only Rs 48 crores in the last two years out of the total Rs 1000 crores sanctioned.

The crisis does not ends here, the creation of such a system under the status of Eminence, has severe repercussions for academia and academics as well. Apart from the BOG and RSA surveillance which will be left on its own terms of grants and maintenance very soon, this status will confine the parallel structure for DU when it is ought to receive the entire limelight and government patronage and expected reverse adulation.

The system will even make the institution appear as a worthless vestigial organ from which the government can turn its face anytime for its inevitable signing up MoUs with backed up private institutions to sustain itself. This autonomous parallel structure of Eminence will also legitimize the infiltration of faculties from outside the DU, by relegating the existing academics and professoriate to back benches or a second and third class citizenship in terms of employment and salary structure, as this all falls under the power of BOGs.

The BOGs will also have the power to decide differential salaries and individual compensation for its faculty within the same rank and scale, thereby cultivating an atmosphere of hegemony and prejudice. The variable pay structure and the non-accountability of the Board of Governors to Academic Council and Executive Council will turn this institution into a tyranny, with the Centre laden with the power.

Undoubtedly, the status of eminence can act as an instrument of decadence for the country’s prime public university, erasing the gap between the corporate funded educational institutions and government institutions that bear the charge of promotion of the marginalized communities.

It is even more disheartening to see that after hundred years of hard work, efforts and the ever growing prominence round the world, the status of Eminence rather than a helping tool of promotion & growth, is used to hinder the University’s growth, when the upliftment of young minds should be the government’s priority. It becomes really essential for the present authorities to stress on this matter and look for the most judicious alternative that suits the university, its students and faculty and administration themselves.

 

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Faizan Salik

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DU Granted Status of Institution of Eminence

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University of Delhi (DU), along with IIT Madras, IIT Kharagpur, Hyderabad University and Banaras Hindu University, has been granted the status of Institution of Eminence by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD).

On Thursday, 5th September 2018, the HRD Ministry granted the status of Institution of Eminence (IoE) to DU, along with four other public institutions- IIT-Madras, IIT-Kharagpur, Hyderabad University, and Banaras Hindu University.

The decision to grant IoEs to these institutions was preceded by a recommendation by the University Grant Commission (UGC) last month.

This decision is a part of a scheme promulgated by the HRD Ministry last year, wherein it would select 10 public, and 10 private institutions to be granted the status of IoE, and enjoy complete administrative and academic autonomy.

HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank told The Hindu, “Till date, we have 16 institutions as IoEs, apart from which another 4 institutions where state government’s confirmation and commitment is awaited.”

Mr. Nishak also added, “A Letter of Intent for granting the IoE status has also been issued to five private universities — Amrita Vidyapeetham and Vellore Institute of Technology in Tamil Nadu, Odhisha’s Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Jamia Hamdard University in Delhi and Satya Bharti Foundation’s Bharti Institute in Mohali. Shiv Nadar University in Noida and O. P. Jindal University in Sonipat have also been recommended by the selection panel. “These institutions will be required to submit their readiness for commencing academic operations as IoEs,”.

The government will be providing funding for up to INR 1,000 crore for public institutions with the IoE tag; however, no financial support will be provided for private institutions that have been granted the IoE status. They will, however, be applicable for more autonomy under the category of Deemed University. The IoEs also get to forgo inspections by the UGC.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat Archives

Shreya Juyal

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Campus Central

UGC Recommends Institute of Eminence Status to DU

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The University of Delhi (DU) has been named among 19 other institutes for Institutions of Eminence (IoE) status in a list released by the University Grants Commission(UGC) on Friday, 2nd August 2019.  The University is ranked 474 in the world rankings (QS 2020) which is one of the highest rankings among central universities. The UGC has recommended 10 public and 10 private institutes for the Institutions of Eminence  status.

The Institutions of Eminence scheme is aimed at developing 20 world class institutions which would put India on the global education map. The move allows greater academic, administrative and financial autonomy to the university. DU has consistently been among top rankings with. The University was ranked eighth this year.

The UGC, in its 542nd meeting held on 2nd August 2019 has considered the reports of the Empowered Expert Committee (EEC) appointed by the Government under the Chairmanship of Shri N Gopalaswami has recommended 15 public institutions and 15 private institutions to be considered for Institutions of Eminence. Since the scheme has only provided for 10 public and 10 private institutions, the UGC has examined the list of 15 public and 15 private institutions using ‘transparent and verifiable criteria’, according to the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).

Image Source: PIB
Image Source: PIB

Institutes which are given IoE status from public category includes IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IISC Bangalore, IIT Madras, IIT Kharagpur, University of Hyderabad, and BHU and private institutes which are recommended for IoE status include BITS Pilani, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Jio Institute (Reliance Foundation, Maharashtra) ,O.P JINDAL University and Shiv Nadar University.

Last year, the Ministry had granted Institution of Eminence status to six educational institutions. It included three public and three private institutes including Reliance Foundation’s yet-to-be-built Jio Institute, which had created a wide debate in the country. Gopalaswami, former Chief Election Commissioner who headed the expert panel which initially identified the list of IoEs commented, “We considered two types [of institutions], those who are already ranked well and those which are potential institutions. We might have felt something has potential, but government may feel something else, they may have felt that if an institution is not ranked at all, it cannot be considered. It is entirely justified.”

  • Benefits of the IoE Tag for the University

According to the Institutions of Eminence scheme, “These selected institutions are proposed to have greater autonomy compared to other higher education institutions. They will be exempted from approvals of government or UGC for academic collaborations with foreign institutions, except institutions in MEA and MHA list of negative countries. Once identified, the target for Institutions of Eminence will be to break into top 100 bracket in one internationally reputed ranking framework in 10 years.” Due to this prestigious status DU will get INR 1,000 crore from MHRD to achieve world- class status.

The decisions brought cheers among the students and academicians in the University. Welcoming this move, Stephen Mathew, a second-year student of St. Stephens College said, “I feel proud to be a student of the University. Personally, I feel safe in the university space per. It has also allowed me to grow academically and otherwise.”

Chhavi Bahmba, a fresher from Daulat Ram College commented, “I believe the University deserves it for the level of diversity and exposure offered. It offers a great undergraduate courses, however this status can help to work upon on few things like placement, infrastructure, etc.”

However, the UGC has denied the tag to some prominent institutions like Azim Premji University, Ashoka University, Indian Institute of Human Settlements etc. since they have not been placed in any global or national rankings. These recommendations are to be submitted to the MHRD for conferring the final status.

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat Archives

Sriya Rane

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Campus Central

University Teachers Bodies Court Arrest on the Teachers’ Day

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The All India Federation of University & College Teachers’ Organisations (AIFUCTO) and Federation of Central Universities’ Teachers’ Associations (FEDCUTA) held a protest and courted arrest at Jantar Mantar, Delhi, on 5th September against the nondisclosure of the Chouhan Committee Report for 7th Pay Review Committee (PRC) and raised other demands regarding public higher education institutions in the country.
As per the Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA)’s press release of the protest, “Pay Review Committee Report was submitted to MHRD more than six months ago. The PRC, that deals not only with pay revision but with all aspects of teachers’ service conditions, including permanent recruitment, promotions and pension, is expected to have made positive recommendations to address the grievances of teachers regarding contractualisation and adhocism of services.” AIFUCTO also sent a letter to the Prime Minister to intervene and implement the PRC recommendations, saying “We have repeatedly written to MHRD and UGC to share the content of the 7th Pay Review Committee Recommendations, a practice that has been followed by all previous governments because AIFUCTO is the apex organization representing the university and college teachers in the country”. Despite meeting with Human Resources Development Minister Mr Prakash Javadekar in May this year and being assured of the report’s release in a month, there are no signs of action regarding the same. Along with the PRC report declaration, the protesting teachers also raised demands of increasing the education allocation to 10% of the GDP, 100% funding of Government State and Central Universities and resisting the privatisation of Universities via granting autonomous status.
Rajya Sabha MP, D. Raja(CPI) also led a delegation of AIFUCTO and FEDCUTA Office Bearers to meet the HRD Minister on the day of the protest. The delegation also included the newly elected President of DUTA and FEDCUTA, Dr Rajib Ray, who said that the Minister assured of the disclosure of the PRC recommendations soon, but could not explain the delay. Mr Ray also said that such a move has been unprecedented because the PRC recommendations are to be made public every time. He also stressed the importance of a written document rather than verbal assurances, and that equal assistance must be provided to Central and State Universities.

 

Image Credits: National Herald

Rishika Singh

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News

Reliance Jio proposes free Wi-Fi across University campuses

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After the announcement of bookings of the most awaited Jio Phones, Reliance Jio has now proposed another ambitious plan to roll out free Wi-Fi service across colleges of the country. According to a latest Hindustan Times report, the company has sent the proposal to the Ministry of Human Resource Development and talks are underway to realise the feasibility of the plan.

Under this plan, more than 38,000 colleges (technical as well as non-technical) will be provided with free Wi-Fi connectivity via hotspot devices. The statistics reveal that more than 3 crore college students will be benefitted across the country. The universities under pipeline for the proposal are – University of Delhi, Banaras Hindu University, Aligarh Muslim University, Jamia Milia Islamia University, Central Universities of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Bihar. This is the first proposal of its magnitude which the Ministry has received and in order to provide transparency and fair chance to other telecom giants, the Ministry will hold a tender bidding and the best proposal will be selected.

Meanwhile, teachers and students seem to be welcoming of the idea. Manvi Singh, a student of Daulat Ram College said,” The initiative will be quite helpful to students and allow them to access e-learning resources.” A faculty member from Shri Ram College of Commerce took a dig at the current wifi facilities provided by the University and said,” The Wi-Fi connectivity provided by the college and the internet services provided by the University of Delhi hardly works and if a private telecom giant can enter the competition and provide us with better services, it will be beneficial for us as well as the students.”

Image Credits: makeuseof.com

 

Prachi Mehra

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Admissions 2017

Kerala CM writes to the Prime Minister against the Language Bias in DU admissions

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If you are a student seeking admissions in Delhi University who has studied one of the Indian languages like Malayalam, Odia, Marathi or any other language then you would face a deduction of 2.5%. This provision in the admission process of the central university has made its way into the national politics with the Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan writing to the Prime Minister and the HRD minister about this language bias being imposed upon students on Tuesday.

Vijayan wrote, “It has been reported that several languages included in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution, including Malayalam, are not a part of the Modern Indian Languages list considered by the university. It means they cannot be included in the calculation of the “best of four” marks, which determines the aggregate score for admission into DU.” He added that DU’s admission procedures was thus in violation of the Constitution. “It is a matter of great concern that a Central University is penalising their prospective students on the basis of their language, when it ought to lead by example in ensuring national integration,” the letter further said.

While several languages like Hindi, English, Persian, Sanskrit, Urdu, Bengali and Arabic can be included in the best of four. Other languages are excluded from the list because these are not included in the list of modern Indian languages recognised by DU, and the university does not have departments teaching these subjects.

Meanwhile speaking to Indian Express Prof. Devesh Sinha, dean of colleges said “I am afraid the university is not aware of any such letter. If it comes to us, we will look into it”.

Students and teachers of the University who come from different parts of the country have been demanding the University to pay equal attention to Indian Languages for a long time now. Now with the issue stirring up in national politics and political leaders taking cognizance, they hope that the situation will improve.

Image Credits: www.ndtv.com

 

Srivedant Kar

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