VC says no to restoration of student body elections

Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 28

Prof ADN Bajpai, Vice-Chancellor, Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), today categorically ruled out the restoration of direct elections to the Students Central Association (SCA) and roll back of RUSA and fee hike and said the agitation by some students organisations was politically motivated.

Listing his five-year achievements, Bajpai, who completed five years in office on May 24, said HPU was the first university in the country to implement RUSA. He said the ban on direct elections to Students Central Association had helped in improving academic atmosphere in the university and computerising the examination cell.

The academic atmosphere had improved and students were more inclined towards studies. The process of the recruitment of teachers and non-teaching employees was underway and 110 non-teaching employees had been recruited while the selection process for the recruitment of 80 teachers had been completed, he said. Addressing mediapersons here, he said the golden jubilee document of the university, Vision 2020, had been released. The President of India, Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, the Vice-President and the Governor of the RBI had participated in university convocations. The evaluation of teachers by students had been started and construction of new hostels and many more new steps taken.

Thanking the state government for increasing the grant for university from Rs 63 crore to Rs 90 crore, he said Himachal Pradesh University had an endowment fund of Rs 150 crore and salaries, medical bills, pensions were being paid timely. However, the target set for endowment funds was Rs 200 crore, which is yet to be met.

Replying to a question on the areas where achievements of universities have been below the target, the VC said, “I am satisfied with the efforts, but not with the results.” He said though another campus of the university would come up near Ghana-Hatti, the construction had not yet started as forest clearance was awaited.

The VC admitted the university faced some problems related to examination results under the newly implemented RUSA system, which had been resolved, and results of exams were being declared on time.

Further, a high-powered committee had been constituted to look into the problems faced by students.

Referring to the agitating students, he said students bodies were not concerned about the issues of students and playing politics and the open support of CITU and the CPM to agitating students were pointers towards “political overtones” of the agitation.

“We are receptive towards the problems of students and keen to sort out the issues, but will not brook politics and indiscipline,” he said.

Asked why Himachal Pradesh University did nor figure among the top 100 universities in the country in the survey conducted by the UGC, the VC said Himachal Pradesh University should have been among the 25 top universities, but when the pro forma was sent for providing the details, the officers concerned of the university were busy preparing for NAAC accreditation and virtually did not participate in the ranking. “We have sent the entire data to the UGC and asked for proper ranking and hopefully some positive result will come,” he said.

New plans

The biometric system will be installed soon to address the problem of punctuality as from peon to VC everybody will have a register attendance. The campus will be completely Wi-Fi by the next two months. The university is also mulling to set up an institute of media studies and develop an indigenous knowledge bank, besides starting 15 new courses and encouraging yoga

In talks with BHU

HPU has initiated talks with Banaras Hindu University (BHU), which had about 15-20 acres near Boileauganj to start some academic activity on the land with equal sharing (50:50 per cent ). The ownership of the land will vest in BHU only