HYDERABAD: Close to half of the teachers at Hyderabad’s Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) cannot write or even speak the Urdu language. This after the university’s website notes that it was established by a Central Act, “...to impart vocational and technical education in Urdu medium through conventional and distance modes”.
Speaking to media persons on Saturday, MANUU Vice-Chancellor, Dr Mohammad Aslam Parvaiz, blamed the previous administration heads of the university of flouting rules governing recruitment of faculty for the varsity. He further pointed out that nearly 40 per cent of the university’s faculty does not use Urdu as a medium of instruction, sometimes because they do not know the language at all or even if they know the language, they are not learnt in its script. The VC noted that not only was this criminally wrong, considering many students who take admission into the university come from underprivileged socioeconomic backgrounds, they only understand Urdu, and are very poor in English.
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Dr Parvaiz also pointed out that because of such faculty, the university’s Directorate of Translation and Publication was forced to hire people from outside in order to publish around 50 books in Urdu.
When asked if any action would be taken in the matter, the VC said that such employees cannot be removed now. Clarifying that removing them was not the aim, Dr Parvaiz said that he is ensuring that all such faculty who are not good at Urdu do not benefit from the Career Advancement Scheme unless they clear a six-month Urdu course with good outcome.