Flouting UGC norms: Issuance of compliance certificates by Punjabi University under lens

Tribune News Service

Patiala, September 15

Compliance certificates issued by Punjabi University to PhD/ MPhil research scholars registered before July 11, 2009, for recruitment as assistant professors are now under scanner for violation of UGC norms.

The certificates are supposed to be issued only to those candidates who were registered for the course before July 11, 2009, but the university has allegedly been providing the same to others (enrolled candidates). The university has formed a committee to look into the matter and will declare such wrongly issued compliance certificates null and void. The issue came to light in the university’s notification of revised charges for issuing compliance certificates. It said, “The fees for issuance of compliance certificates to research scholars enrolled/ registered before July 11, 2009, is Rs 5,000.” This is while according to the University Grants Commission (UGC), compliance certificates can be issued only to PhD and MPhil ‘registered’ candidates who are also exempted from the requirement of minimum eligibility condition of NET/SLET/SET...”

In fact, the university for the first time included PhD/ MPhil candidates ‘enrolled’ before the set date for the certificates in 2016. It issued two notifications within a gap of one month wherein the norms for issuance of compliance certificates were altered in the second notification and candidates only ‘enrolled’ for the PhD/ MPhil programme were offered the certificates. Insiders said, “Such issuance of compliance certificates is directly linked to alleged faulty appointment of 62 assistant professors who were exempted from UGC NET/SLET/SET qualifications in 2016. The probe carried out by the university is now awaiting the conclusion of a Vigilance investigation. Meanwhile, the university is carrying forward the error six years after as well.”

Punjabi University Vice-Chancellor Professor Arvind said, “We had received a complaint on university’s issued compliance certificates. Therefore, we have formed a committee to probe it. The compliance certificates issued in violation of UGC rules will be identified and declared null and void.” He said the university would follow UGC rules in issuing compliance certificates. “Those who were not registered before the set date will not be issued compliance certificates”, he said.

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