The All India Save Education Committee (AISEC) on Friday urged the University Grants Commission (UGC) for removal of provisions detrimental to the autonomy of universities from the Odisha Universities (Amendment) Ordinance 2020.
The Ordinance promulgated on September 3 and notified on September 4 is meant to amend The Odisha Universities Act, 1989. “What is disturbing is that it ensures more Government control and restricts the powers of the Chancellor, the Vice-Chancellor and the Syndicate and abolishes the Senate from the Universities Act 1989. It also repeals the Ravenshaw Universities Act 2005,” read the memorandum sent to the UGC Chairman.It again mentioned that the Ordinance deprives the universities to select their teachers and non-teachers by prescribing such selections to be made by the Odisha Public Service Commission and State Selection Board, respectively.“The Chancellor, who had power to create posts, has lost this power. The Chancellor, who was previously not constrained whom to appoint as the Registrar has been constrained to choose one from the State Government Officers under the Ordinance,” said the memorandum.The Vice-Chancellor who presides over the Selection Committees to recruit teachers has lost this privilege as the selection of teachers has been outsourced to the OPSC. Senate, as an authority, provided in Act 1989 is erased from the Act 1989 by this Ordinance.
Syndicate has lost its preeminence as the appointing authority of the teachers. Syndicate has also lost his privilege of proposing its nominee to the Search Committee for selection of Vice Chancellor.
This privilege by virtue of this Ordinance has gone to the State government. Abolition of the Senate is against the views that University Grants Commission (UGC) holds. Thus abolition of Senate is against the democratization of the University administration and social participation in the University management.
The Ordinance replacing the Syndicate nominee by the State Government nominee is nothing but the Government usurping the role of the Syndicate in the selection of the VC.According to the RUSA, the universities must have the autonomy to recruit the most competent faculty as per the laid down procedures and purely on the basis of merit.
The Ordinance does not clarify as to how the PSC can select the University teachers following the UGC regulations for selection of University teachers.“In view of UGC and RUSA guidelines, we urge upon you to kindly take cognizance of the distortions that the Ordinance has tried to bring into the Odisha Universities Act 1989 and take steps, as you deem fit, to cause removal of such distortions that are detrimental to the autonomy of the universities,” urged the memorandum. AISEC president Prof Birendra Nayak, Prof LP Singh, AISEC secretary Dr Ramesh Nayak and Demoratic Teachers’ Organisatin vice-president Khirod Chandra Kara and secretary Nrushingha Charan Panda undersigned the letter.