State Government-envisaged plan to start evening classes for the session 2014-15 in various Government degree colleges and government-aided degree colleges in the state might get into rough weather because of the infrastructural bottlenecks plaguing such colleges.
The challenges staring the Government are formidable. It would have to make rooms for recruitment of teachers on contractual basis, non-teaching staff and peons in the existing colleges. Besides, the salaries for the contractual teachers, retired teachers and college teachers would have to be fixed and restructured. Things would not prove easy, given the fact that the government degree colleges and government-aided degree colleges keep grappling with acute teaching and non-teaching staff crunch. The number of peons is also dismally low. Besides, the lighting arrangements in most of these colleges are not good enough for the evening classes.
College administration will face difficulties to complete the admission process and conducting examination for the students of both the universities on time, it was said. However, Dr Archana Pal, Onima Sharma, Urmila Rawat and RB Pandey of Sociology Department, DAV (PG) College said that the evening classes would not pose much problems if the teaching staff members willing to take evening classes are assigned duty and the retired teachers and contractual teachers are involved for the evening classes in DAV (PG) College and other colleges in the state. "Salaries are not an issue for them because they are being paid handsomely, but the government should develop basic infrastructure to ensure the right educational ambience in the colleges," Pandey said, adding that in DAV (PG) College, 5000 students can be accommodated in the evening classes.
Dr Anju Bali Pandey, associate professor, History Department, also said that Government should improve basic infrastructure in the college. Some DBS (PG) College teaching staff members opined that government should have started its preparation for conducting evening classes a year ago in the degree colleges. "Due to shortage of time, government may face difficulties to start evening classes from this academic session in the colleges. Colleges would also face difficulties to manage students from two universities in terms of completing admission process, conducting examinations, among others. In Humanities, however, the colleges would not face much of problems. The Science laboratories in the colleges are well-equipped with instruments worth lakhs of rupees. The question is- who for the science students would conduct the science practical during the evening classes-contractual teachers or regular college teachersIJ" one of the teachers asked.
Many said a professor would hardly agree to take evening classes if the government pays him Rs 250 per class. "As per the University Grants Commission guidelines, a professor or a senior associate professor should be paid at least Rs 1, 000 per class. Why would one take the pains to take evening classes after working in the mornings in the college if they are not paid as per UGC normsIJ" said another teacher. "No one knows why most of the students are strongly inclined to run after admission in DAV (PG) College. It would be interesting how the state government will deal it," the teacher added.
There is another aspect involved in the problem. If government starts evening classes in 25 government and government- aided colleges the students who get admissions up to the sanctioned seats will study in HNB Garhwal University while the remaining ones would get admission in Sri Dev Suman Uttarakhand University if seats are approved.
DAV (PG) College Principal Devendra Bhasin said as per HNB Gahrwal University's annual calendar, admissions in the college should be completed by August 30 and the list of admissions should be submitted to the University by August 30.