MADURAI: Are all the teachers in colleges in the State qualified? Not all, says President of Tamil Nadu All Government UGC Qualified Guest Lecturer Association V Thanaraj. “Nearly 2,000 of the total 4,084 guest lecturers in various colleges in the State lack qualifications prescribed by University Grants Commission (UGC) - NET or SET or Phd . It’s a blatant violation of the UGC norms as well as the High Court order,” he said.
He said that the issue gains currency as more than 30,ooo UGC-qualified candidates are finding it difficult to land jobs in Government Arts and Science Colleges in the State. “Plus, appointing unqualified candidates as teaching faculties will definitely affect the development of students,” he said, adding that in reply to a query under Right to Information (RTI) Act, the Department of Higher Education (DHE), said that the ‘unqualified’ teachers would not be removed as it would affect the students.
Seconding the claims of Thanaraj, retired professor and former syndicate member of Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, M Anandakrishnan said that even colleges under various varsities, including Madurai Kamaraj University (MKU), Manonmaniam Sundaranar University (MSU) and University of Madras have appointed unqualified teaching faculties in permanent posts. He said that as per the UGC norms, every college should publish the list of teaching faculties on their respective websites.
Speaking to Express, MKU Vice Chancellor M Krishnan said that following the High Court order, a committee was constituted and fresh interviews were conducted. “Only UGC qualified persons were appointed in MKU College and its constituent colleges. At the same time, affiliated colleges do not have 100 per cent UGC-qualified teaching staff,” he said.
In his response, Regional Joint Director of Collegiate Education Ponmuthuramalingam said that though the DHE granted time to unqualified teachers to take the necessary qualifications, many in Government Arts and Science Colleges in the State are yet to take it. Meanwhile, on condition of anonymity, an official from DHE said that it is the duty of the Principal Secretary of DHE to ensure that the colleges are following UGC norms. “Many unqualified teaching faculties have political backing,” he added.