Panel says no to bifurcation of varsities

Updated on: Monday, March 14, 2011

The three large universities in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur are, in all likelihood, not going to be divided geographically. The expert committee, appointed by the government, has instead suggested that sub-campuses be formed to handle the administrative work. This should free universities from the role of a college overseer and help them focus their time and energy on higher callings—research and postgraduate studies.

The expert panel headed by Ram Takwale, founding vice-chancellor of the Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University, which looked into bifurcation of universities, recently submitted its report to the state government. A copy was forwarded to Anil Kakodkar who is heading the overall education reforms committee.

“We are awaiting the final recommendations from the Kakodkar Committee. The reforms will alter the manner in which our education institutes have been functioning for years,” minister for higher and technical education Rajesh Tope said.

While Takwale refused to divulge details from his report, he said, “Bifurcating universities into smaller units will increase their numbers, but what about quality? In an age of globalisation, which requires access to information, will so many smaller universities be able to rise? They need the strength of the already-established institutions.”

Sources said Takwale recommended that the final degree should be handed out by the existing universities, as it is being done currently. The sub-campuses, headed by province chancellors appointed by VCs, must handle the day-today running. Approving the idea of having sub-campuses, a vice-chancellor said, “At a time when quality is the key, distributed decentralisation will improve governance.”

To begin with, one sub-campus would be set up in a district and depending on how it functions, more such campuses could come up.

This idea is borrowed from the National Knowledge Commission (NKC) which recommended that large universities set up undergraduate boards which execute all responsibilities—academic and administrative—that a university fulfils for its flock of colleges, including curricula, exams, degrees and finances.

The NKC had long called for the division of duties. The commission’s document added: “This system of affiliated colleges for undergraduate education, which may have been appropriate 50 years ago, is neither adequate nor appropriate at this point of time. Quality and excellence are compromised in the effort to meet the needs of one and all. The result often is that everything is reduced to the lowest common denominator and fails to meet special needs or the aspirations of bright students.”

Dividing existing universities would have also been a tough political call to make, as well as a huge financial burden on the state. “Bifurcating a university and setting up a new one requires hundreds of crores. The state must be financially committed to funding the university,” said an expert.

Panel says no to bifurcation of varsities

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