KORAPUT/JEYPORE: Students of the Central University of Odisha (CUO) in Koraput staged a dharna outside the main campus at Sunabeda on Monday protesting large scale vacancies in teaching positions.
The university was established in 2009 along with 11 other Central institutes across the country in around 430 acre with an aim to promote education in the tribal pocket.
A decade down the line, the university has hardly served its purpose. Instead, education has taken a backseat due to acute shortage of faculty. The PhD output from the university has also been negligible all these years.
On any given day, only two to three classes in each department are held. Although students had apprised the university authorities of the problems arising out of lack of faculty members and the latter assured them of filling up the vacancies by August 15, it did not happen. Even the Vice-Chancellor post is vacant for the last five months.
At present, the university offers 11 Master’s Degree programmes in Odia, English, Hindi, Sanskrit, Sociology, Anthropology, Economics, Journalism and Mass Communication, Biodiversity and Conservation of Natural Resources, Business Management and Statistics. Besides, 5-year Integrated Masters programme in Mathematics, three years Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA) and two-year Bachelor of Education (BEd) programme are offered by the university.
For 14 departments, as per the guidelines of the University Grants Commission (UGC) there should be one permanent Professor in each department, two permanent associate professors in all 14 departments and four assistant professors in all the departments.
But, against total 98 permanent faculties, only 16 are working in the university. There are no regular Professors and Associate Professors in the CUO, while 16 regular Assistant Professors and 20 contractual assistant professors are managing the affairs.
In fact, no permanent professor or associate professor has been appointed since the university’s inception.
The existing faculty members are also looking after other academic developments and examination process apart from taking regular classes.
With the in-charge Vice-Chancellor on leave on health ground, Registrar Ashit Kumar Dash said the matter would be resolved after he joins. He further informed that an advertisement has been published for recruitment of faculty members in next four months.