7/5/09

Why is MSU in hurry to fill up permanent teaching posts? - Vadodara - Cities - The Times of India

VADODARA: Why is MS University in a hurry to fill up permanent teaching posts of lecturers, readers and professors in the varsity with old norms
even as both the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) have issued fresh norms regarding such appointments?

The UGC has notified the revised scheme for appointments under its notification on revision of pay scales, minimum qualifications for appointment of teachers in universities and colleges and other measures for the maintenance of standards, 2009, which the MHRD has not only approved but circulated to all state governments for implementation. But inspite of receiving the notification in June last year, MSU has invited applications for the posts in various faculties without incorporating minimum qualifications laid down by UGC raising doubts on the hasty exercise.

MSU authorities argue that they are filling up the posts with old norms as the state government is yet to approve UGC's revised norms. But, one does not understand the need to issue fresh notification in March this year when the university had not fully completed the selection process of candidates who had applied for the posts in 2004 when the university had issued notification. It is another matter that the university had to withdraw its notification published in March because the election code of conduct had came into place due to Lok Sabha polls.

Although university officials issued the notification in June, which was withdrawn in March, it was on Friday that the university's syndicate approved appointments of candidates in various faculties based on the 2004 notification and selections that were held after February this year.

Interestingly, between 2004 and 2009 MSU seems to have internally liberalised the selection process, raising further doubts on whether the university is trying to favour certain candidates.

The 2004 notification, for instance, mentions that for applying to the post of lecturer at Faculty of Fine Arts the candidate should have master's degree in a relevant subject or equivalent recognised by the university with at least 55 % of marks of its equivalent grade and good academic record. In contrast, the 2009 notification for the same post states master's degree or PG Diploma.

It is important to mention here that the revised qualifications issued by UGC are more stringent. For instance, the old norms simply state that an applicant for the post of professor should have 'ten years of experience in post-graduate teaching'. But, the revised UGC norms require that apart from 12 years of minimum teaching experience, the scholar should have minimum of 10 publications in indexed journals.

MSU vice-chancellor Ramesh Goyal admitted that UGC revised norms have not been incorporated in the notification but defended the university's decision saying the university is yet to receive details of revised norms.

"We don't want to stop the process but we will certainly adopt the revised norms once they are adopted by the state government," he said. Goyal also assured that he will probe into the matter if certain qualifications have been wrongly issued in the notification.

Source

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