Six universities in Karnataka waiting for V-Cs

The inordinate delay by the University Grants Commission (UGC) in nominating its representative to the search committees, has rendered six universities in Karnataka headless. The posts of vice-chancellors in these varsities have remained vacant due to retirement, suspension or completion of the term of the incumbent.

The post of the vice-chancellor in Karnataka Samskrit University, Bengaluru, Kuvempu University, Shivamogga, Shri Krishnadevaraya University, Ballari, Rani Channamma University, Belagavi and Gulbarga University, Kalaburagi have been lying vacant for the last six months. The post in Karnatak University, Dharwad fell vacant on October 23 after the chancellor suspended H B Walikar who was arrested by the lokayukta police under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The acting vice-chancellors are managing the show at all these centres of higher learning and the absence of a regular vice-chancellor has hit the smooth functioning of the universities.

The acting vice-chancellors are not in a position to take major decisions like fee concession, recruitment of staff to fill vacancies and introduction of new courses, among others.

In some varsities the decisions taken during the tenure of the outgoing vice-chancellor are not implemented. In Karnatak University, Dharwad, work was paralysed as around 500 workers on contract went on strike for three weeks demanding implementation of the syndicate’s resolution to raise their salaries. The strike resulted in the postponement of the semester examinations.

The syndicate had passed a resolution in August this year to increase the salaries of contract workers by Rs 2,000-8,000 depending on the number of years of service they have put in. However, there were allegations of irregularities and misuse of power against the then vice-chancellor H B Walikar. Governor Vajubhai Valla, also the chancellor of all the universities in the state, directed the registrar (administration) to send details of all the resolutions passed during August/September 2014 for examination and said they should not be implemented till further orders.

This direction prevented the varsity authorities from implementing the decision to pay higher salary to the contract workers. The strike has been called off temporarily after much persuasion.

The delay by the University Grants Commission (UGC) in naming its representative for the search committee has caused the delays in beginning the process of appointing the V-Cs to these universities, according to officials in higher education. The state government has written to the UGC to name the nominees, but there has been no response from the UGC so far.

The process of selection of the vice-chancellor according to the Karnatak State Universities Act, 2000 has several stages. The act says: “The state government shall constitute a search committee consisting of four persons of whom one shall be nominated by the chancellor, one by the University Grants Commission, one by the state government and one by the Syndicate.

The state government shall appoint one of the members as the chairman of the committee. The secretary to the government in charge of higher education or his nominee not below the  rank of the deputy secretary to government shall be the convener of the search committee. The search committee shall submit to the state government a panel of three persons who are eminent academicians, in the alphabetical order.

The state government shall forward the panel to the chancellor who shall keeping in view merit, equity and social justice and with the concurrence of the state government, appoint one  person from the panel as the vice-chancellor: Provided that the Chancellor may with the concurrence of the state government call for a second panel if he considers necessary and the search committee shall  submit a second panel which shall be final.”

While the nominees of the state government, governor (chancellor) and syndicate have already been selected, the UGC has to name its representative to the search committee. When will it happen is a million dollar question.