Instead of being temples of higher education, Kerala’s varsities have become dens of corruption, as coveted positions in academia go up for sale and university management posts are filled with political appointees in violation of UGC guidelines, writes AJITH KUMAR
Pseudo-intellectuals running from pillar to post to secure for themselves the post of Vice Chancellor in one of Kerala’s many universities, are once again in the news. As is well known, it is politics, and not an individual’s educational and professional qualifications, that determine appointments to academic chairs in the State’s varsities. This is a murky phenomenon that has been rampant for many years.
It has recently been reported that the University Grants Commission may withhold funding to institutions that do not follow its rules and recommendations — in this case, regarding the appointment of the varsity chiefs. Now, Kerala legislature’s Chief Whip PC George may have pooh-poohed allegations that there is horse-trading of coveted academic positions, but that does not take away from the gravity of the situation.
The fact of the matter is that up until now, the UGC has not seriously looked into the many ‘political’ appointments that have degraded the academic dignity that Kerala’s universities. Complaints came up many a times but there were either trashed or put away in bureaucratic deep-freezers. No wonder then that such anomalous appointments continued in Kerala without any one making any noise.
The University Grants Commission Act, as amended in 1985, categorically states that if any educational institution deviates from or violates the UGC's rules, the top regulatory body has the right to withdraw financial aid and even recognition to that college or university. But the question here is: Who will ensure compliance when all stakeholders — the Union and State Governments, the UGC as well as the universities — are mostly manned by those people who have no qualms in violating the law themselves. These people may different political affiliations but they are all equally power hungry.
There have even been cases of university syndicates, the governing body consisting of both elected and nominated members, violating UGC regulations. For instance, in 2012, a Kerala University Syndicate’s sub-committee diluted UGC norms for the appointment of principals and professors. It decided that those who entered the teaching service before March 13, 1990, need not possess a PhD to be professors and principals even though the UGC prescribes a PhD as an essential qualification for these posts.
Removing the Phd requirement was an easy way to promote the inadequately qualified individuals who shared the political affiliations of the syndicate members and were professors- and principals-in-waiting. Thus, even at the level of teaching staff, the universities played foul with he appointment process as a result of which almost all positions are now held by political appointees.
In Kerala, varsity syndicates are known for their political nature on the one hand and academic pauperism on the other hand. While the syndicate’s elected members belong to politically-oriented service organisations, the nominated members are appointed by political bigwigs. In neither case is merit a consideration. Mostly, if the appointees have the minimum qualifications, that’s good enough.
The UGC has to fix a standard level of academic performance for teachers, so that even when the Board of Studies’ members happen to be their nominees, they should be able to identify qualified candidates with their own academic acumen. A scholar alone can assess the scholarship and make the right choice in this regard.
Think of a ill-qualified person selecting varsity chairs — this is a task that should be done by the most qualified people. Yet, this is what happens in Kerala’s universities, as a result of which academic standards have dropped dramatically. Varsities have become dens of corruption and nepotism.
A former Kerala university Vice Chancellor had once said that he’d readily vacate his chair on the condition that the eight lakh rupees he spent to get the position in the first place was returned to him. Similarly, another individual who has twice held the post of Vice Chancellor and is currently under the scanner for a Rs 300 crore scam, is knocking at the doors of power to get rid of the charges levelled against him and clear his way to national-level academic posts.
And then there is the case of would-be-Vice Chancellors who think that the post is their birthright. For example, a colleague recently asked this author about the possibility of getting a more lucrative ‘post’ than the professor’s position that he currently holds. Such people typically sneak on to an academic chair, and once there, cling to post for as long as possible. Horse-trading has become an essential stage of probation before one can walk to the academic high posts of Kerala.
(The writer is Associate Professor of History, Sanatana Dharma College, Alappuzha, and Kerala State vice president of College Adhyapak Sangh)