Yet-to-be-approved syllabus scrapped,750 NDA cadets left in the lurch

The 127th course that joined in January 2012 has been doing the BE syllabus for a year and the 128th course that joined in June 2012 has been doing it for over half-an-year.

The decision to revert to the BSc course from this week comes after the mid-term exams were over on March 18.

It is learned that Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) which awards BSc and BA degrees to NDA cadets turned down NDA’s proposal to approve BE subjects for which the academy had never got the go-ahead in the first place.

According to documents with The Indian Express,the hasty implementation has severely upset cadets and many of them have requested a change of stream.

The tale dates back to March 2012. The NDA,then headed by Lt Gen Jatinder Singh,started teaching the unapproved BE (Military Engineering) to 350 cadets of the 127th course that joined in January 2012 after teaching the cadets BSc course for the first three months of joining. In June 2012,when 128th course joined,400 cadets enrolled for the BE and 50 for BA course as the 127th course progressed to the second term of the yet-to-be-approved BE syllabus.

Incidentally the BE programme was to be implemented under University of Pune (UoP) and not JNU. NDA started teaching BE to cadets without affiliation given that UoP affiliation has never been approved till date.

In fact,in November,when The Indian Express approached NDA as well as the UoP,the latter was clueless about the programme status at the NDA,while NDA had replied that there is no BE degree taught at NDA.

In September,NDA called off the BE degree,but what the 127th and 128th course cadets learned since their joining could not be undone.

In what was seen as an apparent cover-up bid,on September 8,2012,in the academic committee meeting of the NDA,12 subjects of BE- which were taught to the 127th and 128th courses were presented to JNU for approval under a new name,BSc (Honours).

And despite the fact that JNU approval for BSc (Honours) was never received,NDA continued to teach BE subjects to 127th,128th and even the latest 129th course cadets who joined NDA in January 2013 under the name BSc (Honours). The mid-term exams were conducted between March 12-16 this year.

A letter dated February 18,2013 by principal O P Shukla,marked to all HODs,battalion commanders,adjutants as well as to the deputy commandant made the announcement: “Academic training for 128th course and 127th course would be as per old JNU syllabus. Necessary finetuning of the course content to be taught after mid-term tests to be worked out at the year end.”

In the same letter,JNU’s approval for BE subjects as ‘modified curriculum’ ‘only’ for 129th course was conveyed. The order might be a reliever for 129th course,but what remains to be seen is the fate of 750 cadets of 127th and 128th courses,who,having joined the cradle of military leadership with high hopes,are clueless on how they are going forget the entire syllabus 12 departments of NDA taught them and learn the old syllabus which is new to them.