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| Minister wants universities to raise their own funds, refuses to raise allocations | | | Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, Oct 4: Proposed move of the state government to deny raise in budgetary allocations to the universities of the state and ask them to raise their own funds is likely to reduce the universities into corporate hubs which may adversely affect the students belonging to lower strata of the society. Recent statement of a senior Minister in the coalition government has given rise to the speculations.
The minister while pitching for the financial autonomy of the universities in the state had said the previous day that the state government will devise a financial model where Universities will be encouraged to raise their own resources whereas any deficit will be covered through the state budget.
Such a statement besides giving enough hint of corporatizing the universities is turning out to be worrisome news for the students hailing from poor backgrounds. "The fact is that during the meeting with the minister, Vice Chancellors raised concern that the annual hike in their budget from state government is limited to 10 percent which has a potential to arrest the growth of the universities due to inability to hire new faculty," sources privy to this development told Early Times, adding that the government should have raised the limit it is providing to the universities instead of flouting new ideas that would take years to implement.
However, the minister instead of assuring any positive development told the varsities of both Jammu as well as of Srinagar that the government will devise a financial model and under that the universities will have to raise their own resources. "It means a corporate model wherein fee hike will be a first step followed by such courses that will be more expensive. It also means the payment seats to those who could not get into the university thorough merit," says Fazil Wani, a research scholar here.
The university faculty, wishing not to be named, too expressed concern over the remarks made by the minister. They said that the state universities are meant to impart quality education to the students but converting these knowledge hubs into mere corporate houses would act as a major spoilsport in the entire process. "University is the only place where money must not matter. But making universities the money making machines would change the entire essence of the knowledge centre," says a varsity professor.
Reportedly, the Minister also asked the Universities to expedite the reforms in education by removing those faculty positions of subjects that are outdated and adding the new faculty positions that are in vogue in market. He said the need of the hour is to produce job creators and not job seekers besides producing human resource that will bring positive change to entire socio-economic scenario of the state.
Pertinently, the meeting was attended by Vice Chancellors of Kashmir and Jammu University, Commissioner Secretary Finance, Commissioner Secretary Higher Education and other officials. |
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