UGC calls off MoU with Health Ministry and BHU

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September 24, 2014

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) between with the Health Ministry and the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) to set up a Regional Geriatric Centre in the Institute of Medical Sciences at BHU, Banaras under the National Programme for Health Care of Elderly (NPHCE) has now been called off. The decision was taken by the University Grants Commission after the Health ministry refused to make financial commitments for the set up any further than 2017.

The decision was arrived at a meeting of the full Commission on September 22. Among other decisions, the Commission approved the were a series of proposals suggested by the Smriti Irani led dispensation at the HRD ministry’s guidelines for Knowledge Upgradation centres for Skilled Human Action and Learning (KUSHAL) and Guidelines of Swami Vivekananda Single Girl Child Scholarship for Research in Social Sciences besides Guidelines of schemes like ‘Development of Women Studies in Indian Universities and Colleges’ & ‘Capacity Building of Women Managers in Higher Education’. Guidelines for the Modi government’s flagship Swachch Bharat mission were also approved.

Other proposals approved in the Commission meeting include the setting up of a ‘Centre for Policy Research in Higher Education’ to be established by National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA) New Delhi; revised remuneration provided to Chair Professors to also attract serving Professors; establishment of Diaspora Chair in Goa University and the inclusion of “transgender” as “third gender” under various scholarship/fellowships schemes of UGC.

UGC says no to Symbiosis off-campus

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September 24, 2014

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has rejected an application by Pune-based Symbiosis University to set up an off-campus centre. In the Commission meeting held on September 22, the UGC reconsidered the Expert report on the Symbiosis University and decided “not to recommend the proposal of Symbiosis International (Deemed to be University) to set up an off-campus Centre at Mamidpally, District Mahabubnagar, Telengana”.

The university had earlier approached the Supreme Court challenging the UGC’s decision after being denied permission in July this year. The UGC had then denied permission to Symbiosis citing the union HRD ministry’s policy that restricts expansion of deemed varsities.

Only last week, the apex court had asked the UGC to re-look at Symbiosis University’s request. The court had also pulled up the HRD ministry for interfering with the functioning of the UGC. The UGC counsel had informed the court then that the final decision to deny permission for an off-campus to Symbiosis was taken after taking into account the views of the HRD ministry.

The UGC, however, stayed firm on its refusal to grant permission to Symbiosis for its off-campus. The minutes of the UGC meeting record that “the Commission reconsidered the matter in the light of the directions issued by the Hon’ble Supreme Court, and keeping in view the deficiencies pointed out in the UGC’s Expert Committee Report and the accreditation based on temporary injunction of the Hon’ble Court and not on the basis of re-accreditation by NAAC, as mandated in UGC (Institutions Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2010 resolved not to recommend the proposal of Symbiosis International University”.

In a related move, the Commission has, however, allowed Delhi based Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan – a Deemed to be University – to set up an off-campus centre at Agartala (Tripura) citing its high academic standing.

CBSE asks schools to ensure screening of Mars landing

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September 24, 2014

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has issued a circular to all affiliated schools asking them to make all “necessary arrangements for students to view the programme collectively”. Doordarshan’s live telecast of the event starts at 6.45 am. With the success of the mission, India has become the only country to send a probe to Mars in its first attempt.

“It is a proud and rare event that has utmost importance… the programme will provide important scientific knowledge to students, whet their curiosity and enable them to cherish this rare scientific event,” a CBSE circular said.

The HRD ministry had earlier instructed authorities at the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) to ensure live telecast of the Mars move on September 24 between 6.45 and 8.45 am.

Justifying its instructions, the CBSE said it will inculcate scientific temper in the children. The schools, however, have found it tough to follow through. Several schools, where examinations are underway for senior students, have either made separate arrangements to watch a recorded version later or have had to forfeit the idea altogether.

In some states, the circular with instructions reached concerned authorities only by the end of day on Tuesday making it extremely difficult for them to make arrangements.

On its part, the HRD ministry circular had only “suggested” that schools make appropriate arrangements for the live screening of the Mars manoeuvre of the Indian Mars Orbiter Mission. It may be recalled that the HRD ministry had sent a similar circular to all states to ensure that students were in schools to catch PM Modi’s speech on September 5. Though the ministry circular had maintained it was not mandatory, it did seek feedback on attendance.

No end in sight to IIT-UGC turf war

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September 24, 2014

The row between the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and the University Grants Commission (UGC) over degrees does not seem to be reaching an end anytime soon. In the latest development, the IIT Council has decided to set up a three-member committee to look into the matter. This committee will consist of Ashok Thakur, Secretary, Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD), UGC chairperson Ved Prakash and scientist Anil Kakodkar.

The IITs maintain that the UGC had no business writing to them to give degrees only approved by the Commission. They claim that IITs are governed by an act of Parliament not the UGC.

UGC, on the other hand, says that the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961, stipulates that IITs can institute courses of study, hold examinations and grant degrees/diplomas and other academic distinctions or titles. ‘Courses of study’, according to the UGC, does not mean ‘degrees’ since the two phrases are used at different places in the IT Act, 1961 and that provisions of the UGC Act 1956 and IT Act should be understood in a harmonious manner rather than to the exclusion of the other. “It would be more appropriate if IITs list the various degrees which they feel are not in conformity with the list of UGC-specified degrees. The exact mismatch between IIT Kharagpur degrees and the UGC-specified degrees may have to be reviewed jointly and an appropriate solution worked out considering the students’ interests at stake,” the UGC has said.

The IITs, however, insist that they are entitled to “institute courses of study” without UGC’s approval.

Private players to improve education in South Delhi Government schools

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September 23, 2014

In order to improve the quality of education at the government run schools and raise their standards to that of private English-medium schools in the city, the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) is planning to outsource the management of several of its primary schools to non-profit private organisations on the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

The development comes in the backdrop of an increasing demand among parents from the low-income parents for quality education. To begin with, 35 of 588 primary schools managed by SDMC, which have extremely low enrolment with less than 40 students attending them, will be handed over to private players on a 15-year contract. No fees will be charged from students and the curriculum will be solely decided by the civic body. The private organisation will hold the responsibility of running and managing the schools, improving the quality of education, and bringing in new teaching and learning methods. For the first year, the private organisation will work without any pay and their work will be assessed by SDMC before continuing contract.

Ashish Sood, chairman of the education committee, SDMC said: “We have categorised the schools. There are around 35 schools which have low attendance. There are around 189 schools where infrastructure is sufficient but lack quality education. There are another 130 schools that require infrastructure and better quality education. Before drafting the proposal we examined the policy being adapted by Gujarat and Mumbai.”

Annamalai University introduces biometric attendance

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September 23, 2014

Utilising Information Communication Technology for efficiency, Annamalai University is introducing the smart photo identity card and biometric attendance systems in all its departments in a phased manner.

The database on all the teaching and non teaching staff will be feed into a centralised server for easy access. The smart photo identity cards of the staff will have an embedded chip containing the details such as name, department and service details of the staff. The bio-reader installed at every department will be activated by the production of the smart photo identity card and putting the thumb impression on its screen, helping the staff to punch the incoming and outgoing timings. This technology will put into place a strict discipline system and punctuality as far as attendance is concerned.

The state government-appointed administrator Shiv Das Meena, under whose governance these steps have been taken at Annamalai University, said that that the new system had many advantages, as under the new system the attendance details of any staff could be obtained in a trice. This development will enable the university to do away with the manually-handled registers, helping minimize wastage of time and energy.

IITs to create job-givers with entrepreneurship courses

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September 23, 2014

In a move that is likely to help create a large number of job-givers in the country, the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) will now be teaching entrepreneurship in the classroom. Come 2015 and IITs at Delhi, Kharagpur and Hyderabad will launch minor as well as elective courses on entrepreneurship.

Moreover, the IITs at Madras, Mumbai, Gandhinagar, Kanpur, Patna and Mandi are also working towards including entrepreneurship in their curriculum. IIT-Madras is even raising a startup fund.

According to information compiled by PitchBook Data, a US-based private equity and venture capital research firm, IITs are ranked fourth on a list of 50 best entrepreneurial undergraduate institutes in the world. In fact, IITs have always produced successful entrepreneurs, which include well known companies like Flipkart and Snapdeal.

Ajai Chowdhry, a founder member of HCL, who also teaches the subject at IIT-Hyderabad and is the chairman at IIT-Patna, said, “With a subject like entrepreneurship being taught by actual entrepreneurs, it will help, support and guide young entrepreneurial ventures in the right direction. It could play a crucial role in reducing the number of failed start-ups.”

Pune institutes to educate students on space science

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September 23, 2014

With the Mars orbiter launched under the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) or Mangalyaan about to reach its destination on September 24, educational institutes across Pune are taking this opportunity to build interest among city students about astronomy. In a collaboration, Vijnana Bharati and Jyotirvidya Parisanstha along with Fergusson College, recently organised a three-day seminar to discuss astronomy, MOM and career opportunities for students at the college.

In this context, Professor Suresh Naik, former General Director ISRO said, “The seminar is open to students as well, wherein they can get insights about the Mangalyaan mission, which will soon reach its defining moment, as the orbiter soon enters Mars orbit.”

He further added that this is India’s first mission to Mars. Russia has failed numerous times trying to send a satellite to the planet. Even China and Japan have failed. The scientists at ISRO studied the reasons for their failures and designed the orbiter accordingly. Hence students will be educated about the significance of this mission in the seminar. The seminar will begin on September 24.

Rescheduling of exams on cards for Maharashtra schools and colleges

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September 23, 2014

Examinations scheduled by schools, colleges and the state board in Maharashtra may see a rescheduling in view of the elections in the state. With the Election Commission of India (EC) having declaring October 15 as the election date for Maharashtra, authorities said that if schools, colleges and state board have scheduled any examination on the dates mentioned by EC, then they would have to reschedule it.

The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Education (MSBSHSE) have their September/ October board examination for HSC repeater students on October 15, while the SSC exams will be over by 11 October. Thus, the schools will now have to finish their semester exams before the polls begin. Meanwhile, the Mumbai University is expected to release their exam time-table soon.

“There are two papers of HSC scheduled on 15th October and we are working on the schedule and will declare it soon,” said MSBSHSE Chairperson G K Mhamane. Dinesh Bhonde, Controller of Examination of Mumbai University, said, “Though we were ready with the examination dates for the students of degree college, but we withheld it since the date of elections were not declared. There were 12 examinations that were to commence from October 14 and 16. We did not kept any paper on October 15. But since the election work will take place on Oct 14 and 16, the exams will have to be rescheduled.”

No affiliation to new colleges in 2015-16: Mumbai University

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September 23, 2014

Mumbai University has announced in its perspective plans that it will not grant affiliation to any new college in the 2015-16 academic year. According to a senior university official, “Since, handling huge number of colleges is becoming difficult for the university; thus, the perspective plan says there will be no new colleges in the coming academic session.”

According to the plan document, there are over 700 colleges that are affiliated to Mumbai University and are in need for skill-based programmes in the existing institutes to make students employable. However, this will need the approval of the academic council and the university senate.

The state government had appointed three committees of higher education in 2010, of which one was meant to look at the sub-division of universities. Thus, identifying the need for sub-division of big universities, the committee has recommended that Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur universities should immediately have a main campus or campuses in the suburbs and districts.

The plan document clearly states: “A large number of students and affiliated colleges have a huge administrative workload and evaluation functions, as a result of which there is a lowering of standard in terms of level of curriculum, their relevance of higher education, quality and standards. Thus, the basis for sub-division is for the need of quality and relevance of higher education, both for PG and UG courses.”

MU academicians further asserted that the National Knowledge Commission had suggested having one university for every 150 affiliated colleges and that the state government needed to seriously consider such recommendations.

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