Punjabi University divided over VC office charge

Tribune News Service

Patiala, November 24

While the state government is yet to take a decision over allocating the charge of the Punjabi University’s VC office, employees and students are already creating demands regarding the same.

While some teachers’ groups are against the allocation of the additional charge to a bureaucrat, students’ groups demand otherwise. Some students have threatened to launch protests over the matter.

Faculty members on the campus said the government should handover the charge to an academician only. Professors said: “As per the UGC rules, the university’s charge should be given to an academician. It should not be given to a bureaucrat.”

The university teachers’ association has also raised the same demand in a letter written to the office of the Chief Minister.

Meanwhile, the Secular Youth Federation of India (SYFI), a student group, said the university’s charge should be given to a retired IAS officer. Harvinder Singh, former president of the student party, said: “Teachers fear that if a bureaucrat gets the charge, he/she may take action against wrongful recruitments and other matters of the university.”

Sources said the authorities were considering some people for the charge, including the current secretary, Higher Education and former university Registrar Dr Yograj.

Resounding demands of grants for the university, the ‘Sanjha Vidyarthi Morcha’, comprising student groups AISF, PSU, PSU (Lalkar) and SFI, has also decided to launch protests stating that the university had been at the receiving end due to lack of grants from the state government.

A professor said: “Whoever gets the charge should be competetnt enough to pull the university out of the financial mess.”