Ahead of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) visit next month, the Delhi University (DU) has sent questionnaire to its departments. Questions like, does the DU department celebrate national festivals or observe birth and death anniversaries of great Indian personalities? Is there a policy in place to check plagiarism? forms part of the questionnaire sent by the Delhi University to its departments, said an official.
The NAAC will be visiting various departments of the varsity from October 29 to 31. The grading provided by the Council is crucial for the funds and grants allotted to the varsity by the University Grants Commission (UGC), he said. In the lead up to the visit, the varsity’s mock teams are conducting visits to various departments and checking about their preparedness regarding NAAC team visit, said an official.
The student-related issues include complaints of sexual harassment, gender sensitisation, safety of northeast students, and steps to check ragging and hooliganism. The questionnaire also sought to know whether there was student participation in committees.
There are also questions on alumni associations in the department and whether they are constituted through fair and transparent periodic elections and their functions, said a professor.
“Apart from these, there are also questions whether the department undertake any activities related to gender sensitivity (safety/counseling), and if it is equipped with mechanisms to check plagiarism,” he said.
Questions like whether a department follow any procedure for waste management and has any green practices in place, including paperless offices, have also been mentioned in the questionnaire.
Apart from education-related queries, the varsity administration also wanted to know whether the departments hold recreational activities, fresher parties and farewells for students, he added.