COIMBATORE: Even as a section of staff and students of Avinashilingam Deemed University for Women has been protesting against the management for months, a group of teachers has condemned the protest and urged the students not to participate in it.
The rival group has formed an association called ‘Avinashilingam Deemed University Employees’ Welfare Association’ with Dorothy Jagannathan as its president. “The students have been furnished with unauthentic, unreliable information and have been counselled by select faculty to participate in protests” the association alleged in a media release.
It also said that statements issued by protesting faculty members were “all false”.
These statements say that the university would become self-financing, its degree certificates would become invalid and the Centre would stop its funding after March, 2017, if it does not change its management structure as per the UGC’s norms.
The rival association’s statement said, “This university is presently receiving 100 per cent maintenance grant from the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) through the UGC. Hence, the fee structure prescribed by the MHRD will only be followed.”
It added that there is no reason to fear that the degrees would be made invalid. However, some employees are issuing false statements about the validity of degree certificates to involve the students in a mass protest.
It added that funding for the university had been enhanced with every five-year plan, which is a routine procedure. For the next five years, the sanction and approval of funds will be received from UGC after the plan period, i.e, after March, 2017. This fact had been falsely projected to the students, it said. In fact, the university is finalising the memorandum of agreement by further revisions as directed by UGC.
It requested students and parents not to believe rumours and to enable the university to conduct classes smoothly and hold examinations in time.
However, the protestors stood their ground.
“Our demand is that the university should continue as a public-funded institution. We are given only an oral assurance,” said B Nalini, general secretary of Avinashilingam University Teaching and Non-teaching Staff Welfare Association, which is leading the protest.