Haryana Govt colleges roped in for data tagging, teachers resent move

Ravinder Saini

Rohtak, December 25

The Department of Higher Education (DHE) has roped in government colleges across the state to update/tag the data of citizens aged between 18-24 years on their occupational status and date of birth on the CRID portal.

The colleges have been allotted a number of villages in their area concerned for the purposes and their principals have also been directed to nominate nodal officers to initiate the data tagging process on the portal on priority.

Dept’s job to manage quality higher edu

It seems the DHE has forgotten that its job is to manage quality higher education and not to train teachers for non-academic tasks. The DHE has even overlooked the fact that it’s time for semester exams and teachers and students are engaged in that. Amit Chaudhary, President, HGCTA

Postpone this exercise

It is not possible at this stage as the semester exams are already underway. …We have written to the DHE requesting to postpone this exercise for the time being. …A majority of the exams will conclude on January 15 so the process can be initiated after that. Dinesh Shaharan, Principal, NRS government college, Rohtak

Interestingly, they have also been advised to involve NSS volunteers/Youth Red Cross Club and students or any other student society/club for carrying out door-to-door surveys to collect required information from the citizens stating that the data is to be tagged on the Parivar Pahchan Patra (PPP) portal.

The development has irked the college teachers who have demanded withdrawal of the directives pleading that assigning duties to the teachers and the students for non-academic tasks would adversely affect education.

Amit Chaudhary, president, Haryana Government College Teachers Association (HGCTA), said it seemed the DHE had completely forgotten that its job was to manage quality higher education and not to train teachers for non-academic tasks. “Even, the DHE has overlooked the fact that it’s time for semester exams and teachers and students are engaged in it,” he added.

Dr Pratibha Chauhan, general secretary, HGCTA, questioned, “Can students be directed to conduct door-to-door survey just because they have taken admission in colleges to study? Has the DHE taken no objection in this regard from parents of students? Will the DHE take responsibility for any unpleasant situation or will it be free by putting it on the teachers in charge?” Dr Ravi Shankar, spokesman, HGCTA, said they had written to the DHE to take back these directives immediately. Meanwhile, Dinesh Shaharan, Principal, NRS Government College, Rohtak, said his college had been allotted 46 villages for the data tagging/verification work hence besides number of students, more than 20 teachers were also required to be deputed for monitoring the process and guiding the students for verification of the data. It is not possible at this stage as the semester exams are already underway, he added.

“Hence, we have written to the DHE requesting to postpone this exercise for the time being stating that both — teachers and students — are busy with examinations that started on December 15. A majority of the exams will conclude on January 15 so the process can be initiated after thata,” the principal added.