Erstwhile constituent units of Bharathiar University grounded sans financial support

Erstwhile constituent colleges of Bharathiar University that were converted into government arts and science colleges continue to look up to the parent institution for hand-holding support, in the absence of financial support from the government.

Heads of the constituent colleges of the university at Modakurichi in Erode district, Valparai in Coimbatore district and Gudalur in The Nilgiris district as well as the new government colleges started over the last decade at Sathyamangalam, Thalavadi, Palladam and Kangayam have been flagging their concerns over infrastructural and faculty shortages to the university.

Though new programmes are granted, the colleges are not provided with prompt financial support and faculty for running the courses.

At the recent meeting of the Senate, a head of a government arts and science college lamented that even students of B.Sc. Computer Science did not have access to desktops, while requesting the university to spare its unutilised or underutilised gadgets.

According to university sources, while there is no problem in sharing the gadgets donated by philanthropists, the equipment purchased by the university with its own finances cannot be shared as there would be audit issues.

The inference drawn by college heads at the Senate meeting was that the coordination between the university and the Directorate of Collegiate Education had to be firmed up for improving the administrative impact in the areas of teaching-learning and research.

Though the Director of Collegiate Education is the ex-officio Syndicate Member, the extent of coordination at the ground level leaves much to be desired, according to a head of a government college, referring to persisting lacuna in sharing of data of students.

For instance, a teacher in the cadre of Associate Professor in a government college is denied the opportunity for becoming a research guide despite completing three years in that position, which is a pre-requisite of the university.

The reason cited by the university is that faculty in that position in the university departments do not enjoy the privilege of automatic qualification for guideship.

There have been instances of the guideship applications getting rejected by the selection panels, it is learnt.