M A I N   N E W S

Haryana, HP crack whip on ‘teaching shops’
Pradeep Sharma/Rakesh Lohumi
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh/Shimla, Nov 22
Coming down heavily on the mushrooming of “teaching shops” operating in the form of study centres and off-campus centres, run through franchise centres of outside universities, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh have issued directions to end the practice.

Haryana’s directive * Asks all centres run by private and outside varsities to shut or face action * Says delivery of education through distant study centres is questionable * Says it is complying with SC judgment and UGC guidelines Himachal’s initiative * Forms grievance redressal mechanism to ensure action on students’ complaints * Issues public notice to raise awareness about initiative to rein in private and outside varsities * Asks private institutions of higher education to display notice on campus The implications * Check commercialisation of higher education * Provide relief to students being fleeced by private operators * Put an end to franchisee system, which faces allegations of charging high fee and offering low-quality education

Haryana has asked all centres to close shop or face action. At the same time, the Himachal Pradesh State Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Commission has put in place a grievance redressal mechanism to ensure prompt action on the complaints of students.

The move is aimed at reining in private universities, colleges and other institutions and off-campus centres.

Haryana has said it is implementing the recent decision of the Distance Education Council (DEC), apex regulator for Open and Distance Learning in India, which has said “the delivery of education through distantly based study centres is questionable”.

“Besides, the running of such centres was unauthorised and illegal in view of a 1984 Supreme Court judgement in Prof Yashpal versus State of Chhattisgarh case,” official sources told The Tribune here today.

The Himachal commission has issued a public notice to raise awareness about its initiative and also directed all private institutions of higher education to prominently display the same on their respective campuses so that students can approach the commission in case of a grievance.

It has been made mandatory for institutions, particularly private universities, to offer only approved courses and follow the norms of the central regulatory bodies in respect of faculty and infrastructure, besides adopting a fair examination and evaluation system, states the notice.

Besides any shortcomings in faculty and infrastructure, overcharging of fee, contravention of norms, malpractices in teaching, examination system and other related matters can also be brought to notice of the secretary or public grievances officer of the commission through e-mail.

The Himachal commission has even specified the size (3’x2’) of the notice board and the colour scheme for digital vinyl printing of the matter to be displayed.

The board will be preferably displayed at the administrative block or the common area frequented by students so that it immediately catches the eye.

On the other hand, with a view to checking the commercialisation of higher education, the Haryana Vidhan Sabha in its monsoon session recently passed four Bills amending the State University Acts to ban off-campus centres and study centres inside and outside the state by the state universities.

The Haryana Private Universities Act, 2006, had already been amended to ban the setting up of off-campus study centres by private universities.

The decision on study centres and off-campus centres being operated by outside universities has been taken to provide a level playing field to state and private universities of the state and outside universities and comply with the decision of the DEC and various guidelines issued by the University Grants Commission (UGC) from time to time, the sources asserted.

Earlier, the UGC had asked the state government to make statutory provisions to ensure that private and state universities did not operate beyond their territorial jurisdiction in the form of off-campus centres, study centres, affiliate colleges and centres operating through franchisees.

With the grievance redressal mechanism in place in Himachal Pradesh, the commission will be able to get feedback regarding malpractices in the examination system, teaching and lack of faculty during the academic session.

The general complaint against a majority of universities is that they present the faculty only during inspections and once the approval is granted, temporarily hired staff vanishes.

With direct feedback from students, the management of the universities will not be able to indulge in such malpractices.