New Delhi, August 3
The University Grants Commission has asked Delhi University to reinstate ad hoc teachers who fulfil the minimum eligibility criteria in order to meet the shortage of teachers in colleges under the university.

In a letter written by UGC Secretary Jaspal Singh Sandhu, all DU colleges have been directed to engage such temporary teachers who fulfil the minimum eligibility criteria and were employed in the last financial year with the university. It has been brought to the notice of UGC that the colleges are facing a serious shortage of teachers, the letter said.

According to a report by the HRD ministry, out of 1706 teaching posts in various colleges of university, 902 are vacant. "In order to overcome this crisis, the colleges may re-engage those ad hoc teachers who fulfil the conditions of minimum eligibility as laid down by the UGC and were employed with the university during the last financial year," the letter said.

The crisis comes at a time when the new academic session has just started and the university is moving to the three-year undergraduate course from the FYUP, the UGC said.

The step to reinstate the ad hoc teachers has been taken so that the colleges can run smoothly in this new academic session, it said.

Against the sanctioned teaching posts of 16,692 in 39 central universities, 6,251 are lying vacant, which is close to 40 percent of total seats, HRD Minister Smriti Irani had informed Parliament this week.

In JNU, there are 286 teaching posts not being filled as of March 31 this year out of the total strength of 809.

Among all central varsities, out of 2316 posts for professors 1244 are vacant, of 4593 associate professor posts 2165 are vacant and of 9194 assistant professor posts 2769 are vacant besides 73 other vacancies, she said replying to a question. — PTI

New Delhi, August 3
It is the "poor" Hindi translation of English comprehension passages and other questions of Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT) that is bothering the aspirants, and not the English part of the paper, ABVP today said.

The Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which has been protesting against CSAT for the past fortnight, demanded the recently-introduced test be scrapped.

It also demanded that the exam's present format, which makes clearing the English part of the main exams compulsory, be either scrapped or changed.

The reason being that many students taking up this exam are from rural and non-English background which makes it difficult for them to qualify this exam. "A change in the present form of CSAT is what we are asking for," ABVP Delhi unit secretary Saket Bahuguna said.

National Students Union of India, the students' wing of Congress, which too held two major protests on the same issue, also demanded that CSAT be scrapped.

Both ABVP and NSUI have also demanded that the CSAT exam which is scheduled for August 24 should at the first place be postponed.

"At priority level, the exam should be postponed," Bahuguna said.

Clarifying its stand on other related issues, ABVP said question papers should be set originally in Hindi and regional languages also because the translations they provide are "mechanical and impractical".— PTI 

New Delhi, August 3
The Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) said that Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal, who has sidelined the issues of Janlokpal Bill and Swaraj at the Jantar Mantar rally today, has yet again proved that he has no interest in solving the problems of people.

Kejriwal's purpose to enter politics was just to capture power in Delhi for which he was prepared to "stoop to fourth-grade politics", said DPCC president Mukesh Sharma.

Condemning Kejriwal's tactics, Sharma said that AAP leader was once again making a futile effort to mislead people through his gimmicks.

He said it was a deliberate ploy of Kejriwal to hold the Jantar Mantar rally, demanding assembly election in Delhi. He said this rally was to divert people's attention from the rising prices of all goods, and the rising crime graph. Kejriwal's decision to contest the assembly election only in Delhi proved that he wanted to help the BJP in Lok Sabha election that was why his party had contested election on the majority of the seats throughout the country.

New Delhi, August 3
The Commissioner Excise, Delhi Government, J. B. Singh said that the Excise Intelligence Bureau has seized 5,724 bottles of illicit liquor of different brands like Besto Whisky, Rasila Santra, Party Special Whisky, Impact Whisky, etc.

He said that after a tip-off, the Excise Department constituted a number of teams and conducted raids to seize the illicit liquor from different areas in the Capital.

The Commissioner disclosed that the seized liqour was non-duty paid in the Capital and being carried unauthorisedly. All the liquor bottles were being smuggled to Haryana.

He said cases were registered in different police stations against the accused. Ten vehicles used to transport liquor were also impounded.

The Commissioner said that earlier, the Excise Department during its raids at various places had seized 25,956 bottles of illicit liquor of different brands and cases were registered against the accused in different police stations in the Capital under Delhi Excise Act 2009.

The vehicles used in the crime were also confiscated.

Raids will continue in the Capital to check discrepancies and find out whether the provisions are followed. Stringent action will be taken against the persons found violating the provisions, the Commissioner (Excise) said.