Limbavalli calls MU and autonomous colleges meeting to settle issues

Limbavalli calls MU and autonomous colleges meeting to settle issues

Mangalore Today News Network

August 12: Aravind Limbavalli, the minister for higher education, convened a meeting in Bangalore on Thursday of the principals and registrars of five autonomous colleges and the vice chancellor and registrar of Mangalore University to work out a solution to the rift between Mangalore University and autonomous colleges.

The minister took this move after a silent procession organized by St. Aloysius and St. Agnes Colleges in protest against a Mangalore University circular denying admission to students of autonomous colleges to postgraduate programmes in Mangalore University and its affiliated colleges since their examination schemes are not in par with the university’s standards.

Earlier on Wednesday, around 200 students belonging to St. Aloysius College met Prof T. C. Shivashankar Murthy, the vice chancellor of Mangalore University, who reportedly informed them that the university will admit students of autonomous colleges provided they convert their marks according to university norms.

The autonomous colleges, however, argue that the university can convert the marks of students seeking admission to its postgraduate courses according to its requirements. A professor wanted to know why the university is discriminating against students under its purview when it admits students of other universities, including foreign universities, which follow totally different examination schemes.

Solutions to the problem will be discussed during the meeting with the minister on Thursday.

 

VC’s Justification
Vice Chancellor of Mangalore University T. C. Shivashankar Murthy justified the university’s move to deny admission to the students of St. Aloysius College (autonomous) and St. Agnes College (autonomous) in its postgraduate courses and said that these two autonomous colleges have not followed the university’s accepted examination scheme of 80:20 (80 marks for theory and 20 for internal assessment) and implemented their own scheme of 70:30 (70 for theory and 30 for internal assessment) instead.

He said that the colleges have been given autonomy to design their courses, set question papers, value answer scripts, announce results, have their own events, and allot workload to teachers.

Further explaining the issue, he said that the examination scheme followed by the autonomous colleges was not in par with the university’s basic policy and urged the colleges to correct their schemes. He also said that the university had extended its deadline for receipt of applications to its postgraduate courses from Aug 7 – 16, which gives these colleges ample time to correct their examination schemes.

College submits memorandum

St. Aloysius College recently submitted a memorandum to the governor of Karnataka, in which it states that the current examination scheme of 70:30 followed by it had received the VC’s approval. Moreover, it was approved by the government of Karnataka in the presence of the vice chancellor and other officials.

The university is admitting students of other universities, which follow a different examination scheme, but is denying admission to its own students. No other university in Karnataka faces such problems although the statutes guiding autonomous colleges are the same, stated the memorandum.

AMUCT supports protesting students

The students of St. Aloysius College (autonomous) staged a protest in front the administrative block of Mangalore University on Wednesday evening and demanded that the vice chancellor should reconsider his decision. The demanded the immediate withdrawal of the recent circular issued to its postgraduate departments and affiliated colleges directing the managements to deny admission to students who have answered examinations with 70:30 schemes.

The protesting students said that this circular makes them and the students of St. Agnes College (autonomous), who passed in 2009 – 10, ineligible for postgraduate courses in the university and its affiliated colleges for the current academic year. They also submitted a memorandum to the vice chancellor requesting an immediate solution to the problem.

The Association of Mangalore University College Teachers (AMUCT) has decided to support the students. In a recent press release, President Ummappa Poojary and General Secretary Denis Fernandes urged the vice chancellor to resolve the issue at the earliest possible.