CHENNAI: Anna University (AU) faculty members are clamouring for an immediate shake-up of its deans and heads of departments (HoDs), as some of them have been holding on to their chairs for 12 years despite the three-year rule.
While AU statutes provide for rotation of deans and HoDs every three years, some deans at its constituent colleges have been holding office for as long as 12 years. This has led to faculty members seeking an immediate overhaul.
Tenure data compiled by the Tamil Nadu Anna University Teachers’ Association (TNAUTA) for 16 constituent colleges show that the deans at Tiruchy, Coimbatore, and Villupuram campuses have each completed 12 years in office. The dean at Arni has been in the post for nine years and the Dindigul dean for eight. Kancheepuram, where the dean has completed two years, is the only campus in the list where the tenure is below three years.
“We are unable to understand why this long-pending grievance has remained unresolved despite repeated representations,” the association said in a memorandum submitted to the university.
TNAUTA chief R Prabakaran told TNIE that prolonged continuation in administrative posts was denying other senior faculty members an opportunity to take up leadership roles. He also alleged that the absence of rotation has affected the pace of development on some campuses.
The demand comes at a time when several AU constituent colleges have been struggling to fill seats, with faculty members pointing to inadequate infrastructure and delayed improvement works as among the issues affecting the campuses.
“These campuses are finding it difficult to fill seats despite being part of AU,” a senior professor said.
Anna University Registrar V Kumaresan confirmed that the association had submitted a representation and stated that they were working toward resolving the issue.
