VCs to be held accountable for not initiating NAAC grading: Governor Tandon
Universities directed to set high standard for quality education
The Governor Lalji Tandon said that the principle of development is change only. Those who do not walk with time will be out of the mainstream. He said that only those educational institutions that meet the changing educational standards in the world will be able to survive in future. The Governor said that the need of the day is to set high standards of academic quality. Strengthen the atmosphere of discipline. Use autonomy for academic innovations, research and to mobilize resources. Governor Tandon was addressing the workshop “Madhya Pradesh ke Uccha Shikshan Sansthano ki NAAC Grading ka Sutrpatra” held in a series of efforts to upgrade higher education at Raj Bhavan today.
Governor Tandon said it is the responsibility of the Vice-Chancellors to strive for the NAAC grading of universities. The Vice-Chancellors will have to do strong and innovative work with accountability to improve academic quality, conduct new experiments and research according to the time, for filling up vacancies, to implement academic calendars, to give students the employment oriented knowledge and to gather basic amenities. The Governor said that the arduous Vice-Chancellors will get full protection and cooperation. In the absence of self-motivation and results, the accountability of the Vice-Chancellors will also be fixed.
Governor Lalji Tandon said that forget what has passed and try for a brighter future with new vigour. He said that the budget of the government is limited. Under many schemes, the amount of grant is available with the UGC. The need is to prepare a standard proposal and submit it before the Commission. Governor Tandon said resources could also be mobilized through research work. He further mentioned that in this era of information revolution, the channeling of high level knowledge has also become a medium of income. Scholarly lecture ideas and research can be expanded in the world. Skill development and conducting entrepreneurship based courses are also important resources. A private university in the state has made efforts in this direction by setting up Atal Incubation Centre. Its associate institution of the private sector is also providing venture fund of Rs. One thousand crore.
Governor Tandon said India is poised to become a super power. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the universities to provide quality human resources. He said that with global competitiveness, we must also remember that we should not go away from our roots. It was on the basis of progress in education that ancient India was called Jagat Guru. Nearly half the world acknowledges India’s contribution to education for thousands of years. Make efforts to make the younger generation aware of such Indian scientists. This will generate national pride and develop an educational system according to the country. The Governor said that the NAAC by following the formula of generosity, improvement and eligibility in the state, will guide the universities for grading. He told the Vice-Chancellors that the academic environment and wide scale contemplation are necessary to get the NAAC’s grading.
The Chairman of NAAC B.S. Chauhan said that an action plan should be worked out by setting a time period for academic quality. There cannot be any change in higher education overnight. Efforts are needed for its solution by keeping in mind the challenges of education. He said, if the new education policy is implemented effectively, the pattern of higher education system will change in just few years. Availability of resources will increase. The number of Vice-Chancellors will be doubled. The need is to be loyal and determined towards the efforts, he added.
The Principal Secretary Higher Education Hariranjan Rao said that special attention is being paid to the higher education in the state. Autonomy in the field of education is increasing. The accountability of educational institutions will also increase. Solution to meet the challenge of declining confidence of the society in education system and environment is the priority of the present day. He said that if the Vice-Chancellors face challenges with information technology and innovations, then the future of the university will certainly be brighter. He said that producing better results within limited resources is true service to the nation.
The first technical session in the workshop was addressed by the Chairman of the NAAC Prof. V.S. Chauhan and Vice-Chancellor of the Dr. Hari Singh Gaur University Sagar Prof. R.P. Tiwari. In the second session, seven groups of Vice-Chancellors were formed. Seven subjects were discussed in the group. Finally, all the groups submitted the workshop report to the Governor.
