Verdict against BEd Colleges

Division Bench of J&K High Court has dismissed the case of private BEd Colleges who, after coming under the scanner of the Jammu University, face reduction in intake capacity of students for Bachelor of Education degree. Actually, the College Development Council of Jammu University had taken a decision of reducing the intake number of private BEd Colleges for some serious reasons. These colleges have to get affiliation to the university and then only can they issue formal degree to the students after completing the course. While doing so, the affiliated BEd Colleges are supposed to observe the norms set forth by the College Development Council of the University of Jammu.
The College Development Council of Jammu University, conducting inspection and surprise visits to the affiliated BEd Colleges in pursuance of its mandate was shocked to find that absenteeism among the students was rampant in most of these colleges. The situation was same in two or three surprise visits of its team. The University authorities took very serious note of this situation, and after due deliberations and in the light of standing rules and regulations, decided that the remedy to this ill was to reduce the intake number of students to the colleges. The decision was taken not with any malice towards the institution or those running them, but in view of the compulsion of maintaining high standard of a training institution wherefrom trained teachers come and guide the destiny of the nation.
Let us not mince words when we need to recount the general impression which academics have formed about these training colleges. It is said that these have turned into industry of minting money. Interestingly, many public figures including MLAs and even ministers are reported to be the owners of BEd institutions and are minting money. True that some of these colleges have developed infrastructure and have provided other requirements but most of them fall dismally short of the prescribed standard. There is also no uniformity of fees and other charges extracted from the students under various heads. Many of them have engaged retired educationists though some do have well qualified faculty.
The court has based its judgment on one essential principle and that is maintaining the high standard of an educational institution. The situation actually is that students get themselves registered in these colleges as bonafide students and pay the fees as set forth by the college but with the connivance of the staff, remain absent from the classes because they are either doing some job or running business or have engagements to add to their source of income. In such a situation they cannot claim to be the bonafide students. They come to the classes occasionally once a month or two months and are not facing any objection from the college authorities nor are they declared absentees and thus running shortage in attendance, which would naturally disqualify them for sitting for the test. It is a sort of racket in which college authorities, staff and the students all are involved.
We need to recollect that our top leadership including the President and the Prime Minister have been emphasizing on the need of raising the standard of education in our educational institutions. There is no hiding the fact that the standard of education and research in our institutions has dwindled and we have lost the fame of having very high standard. This is a serious challenge to the country. We cannot afford to be relegated to backburner in the matter of educational excellence. The Government is making full efforts to provide all necessary wherewithals to educational institutions like infrastructure, laboratories, libraries, highly trained and experienced faculty, opportunities of interaction with other renowned institutions etc. But despite that our educational standards have fallen. No Indian university figures among the 20 top universities of the world. Our researches in science and technology have come down. The President has many a time said that we need to focus on research that is oriented to the needs of the people of the country. Why have we lost the urge for innovation and initiation? A student of BEd College is expected to develop the faculty of teaching and then disseminate it to his students and thus infuse the culture of inquiry and debate among the students. But when he is among the absentees and manages to obtain fake certificate, it means that he is cheating the society and the nation. This is shame for our educationists if they allow it to happen.
We heartily welcome the decision of the Court of dismissing the case of BEd Colleges affiliated to the University of Jammu. University authorities have taken a bold and upright decision and set forth an example that the University will do all it can to maintain high standard of educational institutions, This having been said, the Court has, at the same time, categorically stated that the number of students to whom these institutions will grant admission should be reasonably adequate so that the institutions are not handicapped in terms of finance to run the sessions. Obviously, the number of students admitted will be commensurate with the level of infrastructure meaning accommodation, faculty, library, and other basic requirements. Thus we find that the Court has not imposed blanket ban on the number of students to be admitted; it has to be reasonable and the University will take proper decision in this respect.

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