Expressing dissatisfaction over the poor performance of various study chairs established in universities across the State, Minister for Higher Education Basavaraj Rayaraddy said on Thursday that he had constituted a five-member committee to evaluate their performances He was speaking at Basaveshwara and Hemareddy Mallamma Jayanthi celebration at Gulbarga University, Kalaburagi.
“There are number of study chairs established in various universities in the State. Their purpose is to take up extensive research on particular subject and disseminate the positive ideas for creating a better society. We have little knowledge whether they are serving their purpose. A five-member committee consisting of retired vice-chancellors of different universities would evaluate their performance shortly,” he said.
The Minister also expressed concern over the study chairs being turned into “caste and community chairs” by stating that social reformers on whom study chairs were established were being confined to a particular caste or community. “Basavanna is an icon not just for Lingayats. He is a teacher for the whole world. Ambedkar isa leader not just for dalits, but for the whole nation. Unfortunately, the study chairs established for taking up in-depth study of these reformers have become centres of particular castes,” he said.
New Act
Clarifying at length on the criticism that the government was making attempts to centralise the governance of State universities, Mr. Rayaraddy denied the allegations and said that his government was for more-decentralisation. “We want to make the university system more decentralised and autonomous. The purpose of the proposed new University Act is to ensure transparency in university governance and not its centralisation. The Act would also help curb corruption in the universities,” he said.
Gulbarga University Vice-Chancellor S.R. Niranjana, Registrars Dayanand Asagar and C.S. Patil, Basava Samithi president Aravind Jatti, scholar B.V. Shirur, MLC B.G. Patil and others were present.
