The Academic Council of University of Mysore on Wednesday resolved to accord the ‘Department of Studies’ status to the Postgraduate Department of Sugar Technology at Sir M. Visvesvaraya PG Centre in Mandya.
The council also resolved to constitute a committee to consider similar status to the Departments of Polymer Science in the same campus in Mandya and the Department of Electronics in Hemagangotri PG Centre in Hassan. The university will accordingly take a call based on the committee’s report.
Vice-Chancellor G. Hemantha Kumar, who presided over the meeting, placed the proposals from the Director of Mandya PG Centre and the Course Coordinator before the Council that gave unanimous approval. “If other departments in the PG centres want similar status, it can also be considered. We will set up a committee to examine their proposals,” he added.
The UoM has three PG centres and the Mandya centre is one of the oldest. The other two are Hassan PG Centre and Chamarajnagar PG Centre, which are relatively recent. The university was the first in the country to introduce the course in sugar technology at the Mandya PG centre. The students were being admitted to the course through an entrance test since 1993-94.
The meeting resolved to discuss other issues, including administrative matters and the PG Centre director’s jurisdiction in case of other courses also getting ‘Department of Studies’ status.
One of the members urged the VC to ensure that the department had adequate number of teaching staff while according the status which paves away for establishing the Board of Studies.
The sugar technology course (M Sc in Sugar Technology) was first started at Kommerahalli and later shifted to the independent PG campus at Tubinakere Industrial Area in Mandya. The total intake of seats is 25.
In a letter to the university registrar, the PG centre director had stated that Sugar Technology was a unique and distinctive course and teaching in this subject in India started only after the university launched the course. “If it gets the Department of Studies status, it would be helpful to expand infrastructure and improve facilities for students pursuing the course. This will also help the department to avail funds under the Centre with Potential for Excellence in Particular Area (CPEPA) and other Central funds for expanding the infrastructure since the subject was very unique in nature,” the letter argued.
Opportunity to write exam
The meeting resolved to give another opportunity to students who had failed to clear PG and other courses double their tenure, to write the examination and clear the course. As many as 150 such students had approached the university and sought special permission to appear for the exam. Not just the students, even the parents had urged the university to consider the request.
B.Ed course at RIMSE discontinued
Ramakrishna Institute of Moral and Spiritual Education (RIMSE) at Yadavagiri in Mysuru, a unit of Sri Ramakrishna Ashram, Mysuru, which has trained over 3,000 teachers in values education, is shutting down its two-year residential B.Ed course owing to lack of admissions.
The Union Ministry of HRD had recognised the 30-year-old RIMSE as a regional resource centre for education in human values. The institute had permanent recognition and affiliation from the University of Mysore. But lack of admissions since 2015 forced the institute to take this decision.
“RIMSE had taken a voluntary decision to discontinue the course because of lack of admissions. It also cited financial constraints in running the course without adequate students. The principal and others had submitted a letter in August this year seeking the closure of the B.Ed course from 2019-20,” said VC G. Hemantha Kumar.
He said the Academic Council on Wednesday accordingly agreed to give its consent for the closure.
