In response to the on-going agitation of a section of teachers against the four-year undergraduate course, Delhi University Vice-Chancellor Dinesh Singh on Friday addressed the concerns of the teachers and students at large through an open letter. He has clarified on certain issues regarding the four-year programme and said that the rumour mills are rife with all sorts of baseless propaganda.
“The current academic year is drawing to a close. We are about to commence the examinations in full swing. I am conscious that there are several issues that have been on your mind regarding the changes we have made for the new academic session. We, in the administration, have been working in close coordination with our heads of departments, principals and teachers,” the letter read.
Addressing the issue of ad hocs and infrastructure for teaching the new course, it said that the university will undertake the problems faced by the colleges and appoint permanent faculty members from June this year.
“We expect to initiate the process for regular appointments of permanent faculty through selection committees by June. The university shall endeavour to convert ad hoc positions into regular positions through the selection committees by the end of June. There shall not be any contractual appointments at all. From the reports being submitted to the university it seems clear that in every college there is likely to be a significant increase in the teaching workload. For instance, Dyal Singh College has identified 11 new positions and Bhagat Singh College (Evening) 13 new positions in addition to regular and ad hoc and they shall be seeking our permission to create these new teaching positions. The university shall sanction additional new positions where ever required,” he said.
He also said that the professors of post-graduate departments will incorporate with the colleges for providing assistance in research projects in the seventh and eighth semesters respectively.
“The university is proposing to create professor’s positions in the colleges on this basis. It has been decided to write to the UGC once the four-year programme gets underway from July,” he said.
Meanwhile, a section of teachers opposing the four-year courses have said that the claims made by the Vice-Chancellor through this letter were not clear. “The Vice-Chancellor continues to stifle rational voices of concern and browbeat faculties into accepting his haste. He indulges in sentimental and misleading PR exercises to garner support for his hollow agenda of the so called reform,” said Abha Dev Habib, a lecturer at the Miranda House.
Miranda House MIl Dept closed
New Delhi: The Delhi University has decided to close down its 49-year-old department of Modern Indian languages (MIl) at the Miranda House. This decision was formally announced at the recent meeting of the Academic Council this week.
There are 22 MIl languages and students opting for them as it is mandatory in the foundation course of the new four-year undergraduate programme will have to take classes in the university campus. The reason for this is primarily to gather the students under in order to accommodate them according to the availability of the teaching staff.
“Following the instructions at the Academic Council’s meeting our principal formally annouced the closure of the department. I have served for decades in the college and now I am heading for retirement. It is sad to know that no one would be filling my post,” said Vijayalaxshmi Rajaram, a Tamil teacher. She said that her concern was for the Tamil students who were only increasing in numbers at the university and sending them all the way out to take classes would be an extreme option.
A day after the news spread and teachers showed expressed their woes over it. The principal of the college in another meeting on Friday underlined that she would further look into the decision and only students in less numbers would be sent to join others for studying a particular language.
“The principal clarified that only a regional language that will not have enough enrolled students will be sent to the university. She assured that she will take up the matter in such case as there is Dicipline Course-I also which is an honours course. My personal concern is the department, we will not tolerate any such thing,” said Srimati Chakravarti, who teaches Bengali at Miranda House.