The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mysore, Prof. N.K. Lokanath, stated that if the government proceeds with the closure of the nine new universities as outlined in the State Cabinet Sub-committee’s report, those universities should be merged with their respective parent institutions.
Prof. Lokanath said the decision of the previous government to downsize the existing and established universities and create new ones in every district was not financially prudent or academically sustainable.
He told The Hindu that the rapid expansion of universities without adequate resources or planning strained the system, both financially and in terms of academic quality.
While the new universities did not get adequate resources, the future of the student community from these universities was in peril as they had to graduate from a nascent varsity that was yet to establish themselves to command confidence from potential employees, he said.
The establishment of new varsities also had financial implications for established ones. The revenue generated from affiliation, student admission fees, laboratory fees, and examination fees was significantly reduced.
Prof. Lokanath said for the University of Mysore, the revenue from the above heads was almost ₹35 crore to ₹40 crore which was a sizeable amount. But after the university was truncated and varsities were established at Mandya, Hassan, and Chamarajanagar, the revenue was down by 50%, he added.
Before it was truncated, the university had about 224 affiliated colleges. However, after the establishment of universities in the three districts, the number of affiliated colleges was down to 112 only and thus dried up its revenue.
If the universities in Mandya, Hassan, and Chamarajanagar are closed and their colleges are re-affiliated with the University of Mysore, the number of affiliated colleges will increase to 212, expanding the Mysore varsity’s jurisdiction.
Previously, the university enrolled nearly 40,000 students each year, but now only admits about 20,000, with the remaining students attending the universities in Hassan, Mandya, or Chamarajanagar.
Prof. Lokanath pointed out that this shift could impact academic quality, as a larger pool of students would compete for the same undergraduate and postgraduate seats. Only the most qualified students would secure admission under such a scenario.
More importantly, the increase in student intake and wider geographical jurisdiction will also have a positive bearing on the NAAC ranking of the university, said Prof. Lokanath.
But regardless of the final decision of the government, the University of Mysore is beset with other problems that have no solution in sight for now. Against the sanctioned teaching staff strength of nearly 400 posts, there is a 65% vacancy and only 35% are on rolls. Even this number is dropping with each passing year due to the staff members retiring on attaining superannuation.
Therefore, the government must intervene and recruit both teaching and non-teaching staff, according to the varsity authorities.
