Orissa government needs to help out Utkal University
May 20th, 2008
Following is an excerpt from a news report in Pioneer.
For the first time, the State Government created 30 posts of Commissioner-cum-Secretary.
A single-page proposal got through and no body raised any question over the justification of creating so many posts of Commissioners. With these new posts, the State will have 54 Commissioners-cum-Secretaries.
But then see the contrast. The other day, the new Vice-Chancellor of the Utkal University, Binayak Rath, approached the Government for filling up of the vacancies in the State’s leading educational institution. He was, however, asked to explain the justification of filling up the vacancies.
Presently, there are 166 teachers in the university against 340 in the 1990s. The number will further come down to 142 by 2010 when many more teachers will retire. As many as 73 posts have been abolished over the years.
The Vice-Chancellor sought filling up of all vacancies within three to four months for the benefit of the students. He also lobbied for permanent appointment of teaching staff along with adequate support staff rather than contractual recruitment. But, on the contrary, he was asked to justify the need for filling up all posts and why those posts should not be abolished.
The question asked in several quarters is why a double standard for creating posts is being followed. There should be clear-cut guidelines to create posts in the Government departments, but there is no policy direction for creating posts. It is whims and fancies that rule the State," lament educationists. Everybody in the Higher Education Department knows that the State’s universities are in a sorry state. Vacancies are galore in all these institutions and the educational standard is falling very fast, they point out.
Entry Filed under: Bhubaneswar-Cuttack-Puri- Khurda area (1),Utkal University, Bhubaneswar
1 Writeup
1. R. K. Ghosh | May 23rd, 2008 at 1:55 pm
The news is quite depressing to say the least. I had a feeling that the present govt is not sincere about spread of education in the state. In the past also I heard that the govt is more keen to appoint police constables, babus, etc., than teachers. I had pointed out in one of the earlier blogs that had Orissa Govt been sincere about technical education it could start a really high class institute than doing lip service about IIT or IISER to the public at large. The govt has appointed retired IAS officers as VCs which in itself is a retrograde step. Ravenshaw University offered a unique opportunity to state govt to show its willingness. But the goofed it up. I don’t thing Ravenshaw has changed much by migrating to became only unitary university of the state. It will be interesting to see how many teachers of Govt cadre will opt to change over to Ravenshaw cadre.