St Stephen's College Autonomy: Delhi University Teachers Write To UGC
New Delhi:
The Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA) today expressed shock at reports that the University Grants Commission (UGC) was working to grant autonomous status to St Stephen's College. In a letter sent the UGC Chairperson, teachers from Delhi University said that no decision to grant it autonomous status can be taken without the deliberations of the statutory bodies of Delhi University, and necessary amendments in its Act, Statues and Ordinances.
It also said that the proposal has to first be sent to Delhi University for consideration.
The letter said that, as many as 44 out of a total of 56 permanent teachers of St. Stephen's College who are in Delhi wrote to Prof D P Singh, Chairperson, UGC, in April 2018 articulating their strong opposition to the grant of autonomous status to the college, that would threaten the financial stability, academic viability, service and working conditions, affordable fee structure and accessibility to students coming from diverse backgrounds.
"They pointed out that such a decision would jeopardise the future of a 138-year-old premier public-funded educational institution that has made a significant contribution to nation-building," said the letter.
According to the letter, the College Governing Body took the decision to apply for autonomous status College Governing Body in an emergency meeting held on February 25, 2017, without providing any kind of blueprint or justification, and bypassing the primary stake-holders namely the faculty, students and non-teaching staff.
"In the representation mentioned above, teachers had attached as annexures several petitions by more than 80% of the faculty and students, as well as the link to a CD prepared by students. All these protests and representations were ignored," the teachers wrote the UGC.
Rajib Ray, President, DUTA said in the statement that the Scheme of Autonomous Colleges and Graded Autonomy is a push towards self-financing schemes and online courses, will have far reaching consequences for higher education, changing its objectives and purpose especially in a country like ours.
“While the academic autonomy of universities has been snatched away allowing a non-academic body such as the UGC to impose examination system, course curricula in the garb of a CBCS, the so-called autonomy is being thrust upon the university and college administration to expand self-financed courses and self-financed research and to determine fees for the purpose of gradual greater reliance on internal revenue generation,” he added.
Mr. Ray said privatisation of public funded institutions will hit badly the educational prospects of students coming from marginalised sections and women students. “Even the middle-class families will find it difficult to send their children for higher education”, he said.
St. Stephen's To Begin Admission Process From May 21
DUTA has already launched an Evaluation Boycott in protest against the move.
In the light of the above, we urge you not to take any such decision at the forthcoming meeting of the Commission.
In March this year, the UGC had granted autonomy to sixty Higher Educational Institutions which have maintained high academic standards. After calling the decision as 'historic', HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the Government is striving to introduce a liberalized regime in the education sector and emphasis is on linking autonomy with quality.
The central universities which are given autonomy included Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Aligarh Muslim University , Aligarh and The English and Foreign Languages University, Telengana.
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It also said that the proposal has to first be sent to Delhi University for consideration.
The letter said that, as many as 44 out of a total of 56 permanent teachers of St. Stephen's College who are in Delhi wrote to Prof D P Singh, Chairperson, UGC, in April 2018 articulating their strong opposition to the grant of autonomous status to the college, that would threaten the financial stability, academic viability, service and working conditions, affordable fee structure and accessibility to students coming from diverse backgrounds.
"They pointed out that such a decision would jeopardise the future of a 138-year-old premier public-funded educational institution that has made a significant contribution to nation-building," said the letter.
According to the letter, the College Governing Body took the decision to apply for autonomous status College Governing Body in an emergency meeting held on February 25, 2017, without providing any kind of blueprint or justification, and bypassing the primary stake-holders namely the faculty, students and non-teaching staff.
"In the representation mentioned above, teachers had attached as annexures several petitions by more than 80% of the faculty and students, as well as the link to a CD prepared by students. All these protests and representations were ignored," the teachers wrote the UGC.
Rajib Ray, President, DUTA said in the statement that the Scheme of Autonomous Colleges and Graded Autonomy is a push towards self-financing schemes and online courses, will have far reaching consequences for higher education, changing its objectives and purpose especially in a country like ours.
“While the academic autonomy of universities has been snatched away allowing a non-academic body such as the UGC to impose examination system, course curricula in the garb of a CBCS, the so-called autonomy is being thrust upon the university and college administration to expand self-financed courses and self-financed research and to determine fees for the purpose of gradual greater reliance on internal revenue generation,” he added.
Mr. Ray said privatisation of public funded institutions will hit badly the educational prospects of students coming from marginalised sections and women students. “Even the middle-class families will find it difficult to send their children for higher education”, he said.
St. Stephen's To Begin Admission Process From May 21
DUTA has already launched an Evaluation Boycott in protest against the move.
In the light of the above, we urge you not to take any such decision at the forthcoming meeting of the Commission.
In March this year, the UGC had granted autonomy to sixty Higher Educational Institutions which have maintained high academic standards. After calling the decision as 'historic', HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the Government is striving to introduce a liberalized regime in the education sector and emphasis is on linking autonomy with quality.
The central universities which are given autonomy included Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Aligarh Muslim University , Aligarh and The English and Foreign Languages University, Telengana.
Click here for more Education News
