Contrary to expectations, the report of Academic Quality Improvement Committee (AQIC) – constituted by the Vice-Chancellor of Gulbarga University, Kalaburagi (GUK), to study the quality of all colleges offering professional courses in Education streams (B.Ed, B.P.Ed and M.Ed) under the university – was not tabled in the meeting of the university’s Academic Council held on Monday. Instead, a brief one-page copy of the guidelines for considering professional colleges for affiliation to the university, prepared by head of AQIC Hoovinabhavi Babanna L., was presented at the meeting.
When Venkatesh Patel, a member of Academic Council, demanded that the comprehensive report be presented at the meeting, Vice-Chancellor S. R. Niranjana said that the detailed report was meant for the reference of university authorities and not for open discussion in the Academic Council or the Syndicate.
The Academic Council, however, resolved that all the professional colleges that did not meet minimum requirements as listed in the guidelines would not be affiliated to the university from the academic year 2017-18.
Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Patel said that the detailed report was not tabled in the meeting only to protect all the professional colleges that did not meet minimum requirements for getting university affiliations.
“The comprehensive report of AQIC had listed a number of colleges that do not meet minimum requirements for University affiliations. In order to protect them, the report was not tabled in the Academic Council meeting,” he said.
Mr. Patel, however, was hopeful that the guidelines presented in the meeting would, if considered in their actual spirit, prevent many professional colleges from getting affiliated to the university.
“As per the norms, a college offering professional courses in Education streams [B.Ed, B.P.Ed, and M.Ed] will have to meet minimum requirements such as having a certificate from NAAC [National Assessment and Accreditation Council]and QCI [Quality Council of India] as well as having an independent building and library for obtaining affiliation to university. Many colleges that are affiliated with Gulbarga University don’t meet these minimum requirements. LIC [Local Inspection Committees] should strictly follow the guidelines while recommending the colleges for affiliation,” Mr. Patel said.
