Salaries not paid to contract employees of 9 universities since four months
Despite having been established five years ago, these universities have only managed to appoint vice-chancellors, while all other necessary processes remain incomplete.
Bengaluru: The government has taken note that nine universities operating without any prior preparation, funding, or minimal facilities are universities in name sake only. This is due to the fact that, apart from the appointment of vice-chancellors, no other processes have been adequately completed in these institutions. The universities in Mandya, Hassan, Chamarajanagar, Kodagu, Bagalkote, Koppal, and Haveri, along with the Nrupathunga and Maharani cluster universities in Bengaluru, are now facing the looming threat of closure.
Despite having been established five years ago, these universities have only managed to appoint vice-chancellors, while all other necessary processes remain incomplete. For instance, essential colleges that were supposed to be transferred from Mysore University to Kodagu University have not yet been handed over, creating difficulties for the students there. Furthermore, even after five years, the Maharani Cluster University in Bengaluru hasn’t commenced any research activities. Similarly, there has been no transfer of colleges allocated to other new universities from their parent universities, nor has there been a redistribution of teaching and non-teaching staff in accordance with student needs. The transfer of related land and equipment has not occurred either. This is a publicly acknowledged truth by the vice-chancellors and officials of the respective universities. As a result, all nine universities find themselves in a precarious situation. On the other hand, despite being a new university with 250 affiliated colleges, Bidar University has managed to avoid closure, claiming it does not face internal revenue shortages.
Regarding the financial condition of these nine universities, with a few exceptions, most are in such dire straits that they cannot even afford to buy vehicles for their vice-chancellors. The previous government had announced a grant of 2 crores for these universities.
However, apart from Mandya and Bagalkote universities, which require 1 crore and 50 lakh respectively, no other universities have received any funding. Only a few universities have appointed permanent staff along with several guest lecturers and contractual workers, some of whom have not been paid for four months. Regardless, these institutions are being run on the basis of tuition fees, admission fees, and examination fees collected from students.
The government, which had been contemplating the collective closure of these nine universities due to opposition from student organizations, opposition parties, and even local ruling party representatives, is now exploring alternative options. A report from the Higher Education Council indicated that it would take 342 crores to merely sustain these new universities (excluding expenses like land and building) for the next five years. The government appears unwilling to invest this amount. Consequently, the cabinet has constituted a sub-committee to study the operational efficiency and financial condition of the universities.
This committee has considered the idea that “the new universities were not established scientifically and that the entire burden falls on the government, placing the parent universities in financial distress as well. A potential solution is to merge these new universities with the parent institutions.”
In this regard, the Higher Education Department has already submitted a report to the cabinet sub-committee led by Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar. Based on this report, the sub-committee is expected to present its recommendations to the Chief Minister. Senior sources in the department have confirmed that there will be a final decision in the cabinet regarding the sub-committee’s recommendations.
