Why more private universities?
We are at a loss as to why the University Grants Commission (UGC) is granting permission for the establishment of an additional 16 private universities, especially at a time when the quality of education in most of the existing 95 such institutions is suspect. By the UGC's own observations, 42 of the 95 have no Vice Chancellors, 62 have no pro-VC and a massive 52 have no treasurer! Then of course, some 12 of the 95 universities have no dedicated campus, a prerequisite of the Private University Act 2010.
Given such gross anomalies with which many of these highest seats of learning are operating and the inability or unwillingness of the UGC to enforce the Act, what are the grounds for granting permission for more of the same? The more than 450,000 students who are enrolled in private universities face an uncertain future with the "degrees" that they earn. With the exception of a handful of private universities, the bulk of these institutions have mushroomed in all parts of the country with little to show in way of governance or quality in terms of the education they impart.
The only rational explanation for such great enthusiasm for setting up a university is of course commercial; that we have essentially transformed education into a moneymaking machine is obvious even to a blind man. Successive governments have given approval for an abnormal number of private universities which are both understaffed and that have failed to meet standards set by legislation passed to oversee quality of education. We find this latest move a step in the wrong direction and authorities should focus more on streamlining the quality of education in the existing private universities before embarking on granting more licenses for universities in the private sector.
Comments