DU readies for confrontation with UGC, As row over FYUP escalates, HRD Minister Irani is firm that DU ought to ‘do the right thing with students’. Delhi University on Saturday refused to buckle under pressure from the HRD ministry-inspired UGC directive asking it to scrap its four-year undergraduate programme (FYUP). Instead, the Academic Council (highest decision-making body on academic matters in DU) on Saturday passed a resolution asking the UGC to reconsider its directive citing that there was nothing illegal about the course. DU, in its resolution, has stated that the course is consistent with the National Education Policy (NEP) since it also awards BA/BSc degrees on completion of its first three years. However, ten members of the AC recorded their note of dissent when the resolution was adopted by a majority vote. The issue is likely to snowball into a confrontation between the DU and the UGC-MHRD, leading to a situation where a new debate on the autonomy of the university may begin. The passing of the resolution is just another tactic of the administration to delay the ongoing process of scrapping the course. This means more uncertainly is in store for students, said a dissenting AC member on the condition of anonymity. Earlier, the UGC on directions given by the Ministry of HRD late Friday night issued a directive to DU to reverse the course with immediate effect. The MHRD used Clause Section 20 (1) of the UGC Act 1956, compelling the reluctant body to issue a directive on the suggested lines. While in the crossfire between the ministry and the university thousands of students seem to have been caught. The order issued stated: The admissions for the academic year 2014-15 and the subsequent academic years in the University of Delhi (including its constituent and other colleges under it) for the general undergraduate programmes shall be made in the three year structure which was prevalent in the University of Delhi prior to introduction of FYUP... It also said: Appropriate arrangement shall be made by the University of Delhi for students, already admitted in the academic year 2013-14 in the FYUP, to migrate to the three year undergraduate programme structure so that they do not lose an academic year....Take all other steps as may be necessary to adhere to the 3-year undergraduate programme as envisaged under the l0+2+3 structure under the NPE 1986.. However, the move has raised questions on the autonomy of the university since the UGC does not have such powers to issue directives to it. According to former DUTA president Aditya Narayan Mishra, The UGC has no powers vested in it to issue directives to the university. It is a blatant mark on the autonomous character of the institution. The UGC has attacked the autonomy of the university by writing various kinds of letters to it at the instance of the MHRD. Meanwhile, HRD Minister Smriti Irani is firm that DU ought to do the right thing with students, according to a senior official. This clearly means a rollback of the controversial decision by the VC to push through the FYUP at DU. Smriti Irani has been holding meetings with the bureaucrats of higher education to find a way out of the problem even while ensuring that the autonomy of the university is maintained. The ministry is under pressure to take the final call on the matter before admissions to the next academic session begin on 24 June. The new ministers move comes amidst warnings that serious lapses on part of the ministry have appeared after the UGC in its recent report declared the course illegal. However, DU in its response to the UGC query on the issue has claimed that it had followed due procedure to implement the course and even sent the ministry the amended ordinance to seek approval of the Visitor (President of India). Sources in the ministry claim that the higher education secretary had told the minister that DU had not sought the MHRDs permission before amending the concerned ordinance to implement the course. Highly-placed sources in the university, however, said that the Visitors approval was not mandatory if all the procedures have been adhered to. If the MHRD or the UGC had reservations about the course, the two entities should have acted before the curriculum was introduced. Any attempt to now undo the course may lead to a controversy regarding the autonomous status of DU, which is the countrys premier central university. The continuing confusion has raised questions like why the ministry, in case it did not receive due communication from the DU, kept silent on the matter for one entire year. The present circumstances have brought the role of the bureaucracy under scrutiny. When asked, a senior MHRD official said, We have been following the matter up. The UGC, in a sudden U-turn after a year of the course being implemented has asked the university only now to review the said programme. Apparently, after being nudged by the HRD, the commission has changed its stance on the issue. The UGC, during initial protests on FYUP, had maintained that according to the Kothari Commission report the duration of a course can vary from university to university. It also had said that since DU was an autonomous body, the commission cannot intervene in its functioning. Ministry sources revealed that when the HRD had raised certain doubts over the course last year, DU vice-chancellor Dinesh Singh got upset and offered to step down. However, he was persuaded not to take this controversial step and the ministry gave its nod to go ahead with the course even though DU rushed through the processes by getting the approval of the statutory bodies of this autonomous institution. There was criticism that the minimum time required to hold the meetings was waived off. According to Nandita Narain, president, DUTA, the vice-chancellor Dinesh Singh in not taking due approval of the academic and executive councils six months ahead of introducing the course had breached Sections 31 (5)&(6) of the University Act. Also, as per the Acts Sections 32 (4) & (5), an ordinance before being amended has to be placed before both Houses of the Parliament and has to be published in the gazette. None of these procedures were adhered to. The ministry and the Central government have to take a serious note of this, she said. Despite repeated attempts both Singh and UGC chairman Ved Prakash remained unavailable for comment. However, in a statement late Saturday night, the DU administration stated that in view of the changed circumstances, the university has deferred the introduction of the new skilled based Applied Courses. These courses were to be introduced under the FYUP as per the MOU signed between the University of Delhi and National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC). Similarly, the proposal for approval of the B.Tech course in Forensic Science, for which a record number of 46381 students have applied this year, has also been deferred, it further said.
Posted on: Tue, 24 Jun 2014 14:30:00 +0000
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