PU gets Rs 44 cr from UGC

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 27

Panjab University received a pending grant of Rs 44 crore from the UGC today. The amount was transferred to the bank account of the university by the UGC, said the PU Vice-Chancellor, Prof Arun Kumar Grover.

During a media interaction, Professor Grover said the PU was facing a financial crisis and the authorities were working to resolve it so that his successor did not face a similar problem. The VC said the university “belongs to the city, but the UT Administration is not providing any grant for its maintenance”.

He said he had sought an appointment with Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal to discuss the financial issue with him. He said a report on the issue had been prepared by the authorities and sent to the Punjab Government. However, he had sought the appointment to discuss the problem personally with the Deputy Chief Minister.

He said the university had asked the Punjab Government to release funds matching the rate of increase in the expenditure. The university demanded an increase of 12 per cent on the Rs 20 crore grant per year from 2014 to 2017.

During a meeting with the UGC Chairman, Prof Ved Parkash, on December 15, the VC shared the progress report of the university on what it was doing to improve the financial condition. He said the university was complying with the instructions issued by the UGC and would soon submit a compliance report.

He said the UGC Chairman, who was in the city, had called all vice-chancellors to discuss e-content tomorrow.