CHENNAI: No coercive action will be taken against teacher training institutions in the State for not implementing the new regulations in the National Council for Teacher Education (Recognition, Norms and Procedures) Regulations, 2014, its counsel K Ramakrishna Reddy told Madras High Court on Tuesday.
When a batch of writ petitions from the TN Self-Financing College of Education Management Association and others challenging the new regulations came up, he told the first bench of Chief Justice SK Kaul and Justice MM Sundresh that the NCTE would not resort to any coercive step to implement the rigours of the new provisions till a final decision was taken.
According to advocate R Suresh Kumar and others, the new regulations were impracticable as they made drastic changes in the existing system. Among other things, they doubled the duration of the courses, halved the students intake and enhanced the eligibility criteria of the institutions. They have also revised the infrastructural and instructional facilities and enhanced the amount of endowment and reserve fund, the qualification of teaching staff, curriculum and implementation strategies. These regulations are made applicable to the existing ones, too, Suresh Kumar contended.
When the matter came up, Suresh Kumar submitted that an expert committee has been appointed by the Union HRD Ministry to look into the feed back of the implementation of the regulations and the committee had sittings throughout the country including Chennai where the representatives of the petitioner met the committee.
Since the committee itself is examining the matter, troublesome provisions may not be given effect to till the exercise is completed, he added.
On the other hand, Reddy stated that sufficient time would be granted to do the needful.
“We are, thus, of the view that since the challenge to the statutory regulations is not stressed, but what is prayed is a re-visiting of those provisions, in view of the exercise already being undertaken by the authorities as also in view of the submission which has been made by Reddy, a reasonable view may be taken in this behalf and as stated, sufficient time would be given to implement the new rules,’’ the bench said and added that the authorities may carry out the exercise as early as feasible.