THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The argument that the launch of Sree Narayana Guru Open University was borne more out of political considerations than academic has gained credence with the High Court permanently staying the controversial clause in the varsity's Ordinance that prohibited other state universities from offering courses in distance education mode.
It has also laid bare serious lapses on the part of the government in setting up the Open University in a hurry, leading to uncertainty among students who seek admission to distance education courses. Every year, state universities witness an enrollment of around 1.5 lakh students in both distance education and private registration modes.
"Any newly set up state university needs to obtain UGC's approval for its courses within three years of its inception. However, varsities offering distance education and online courses need to obtain prior approval from UGC's Distance Education Bureau," pointed out a senior official.
Also, at least 60 per cent of the study material need to be prepared in advance. Ironically, the Open University had not even started the process of constituting the Academic Council or Board of Studies.
It is learnt that J Prabhash, the Special Officer chosen for the government for setting up the Open University had clearly stressed on the need for prior UGC approval. But the state government, in a hurry to fulfill its promise of setting up an Open University, disregarded these aspects and announced the university with much fanfare. The appointment of the Vice Chancellor and other statutory officials had also landed in soup for alleged violation of UGC norms.
"For the government, setting up the Open University had more of a politicial objective than academic. Had it been for academic reasons, the whole process of setting up the University would have been carried out following the due process," said R S Sasikumar, convener, Save University Campaign Committee.
The Road Ahead
Sensing the adverse court verdict, the government had allowed state varsities to go ahead with distance education courses. However, only the University of Kerala has received UGC approval to offer such courses in the ongoing academic session.
Calicut University, which had not applied to the UGC for approval of distance courses earlier, has now applied for the January 2021 academic session.
"Due to uncertainty regarding distance courses in the state, thanks to the Open University Ordinance, a large number of students have already started making inquiries for admission to universities in Tamil Nadu and other states. It is the government's lack of farsightedness that has led to such a situation," pointed out a senior academic.