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Journalism of Courage
MUMBAI, APRIL 16: Academicians have expressed concern about the functioning of BEd colleges, their deteriorating financial conditions and administrative anarchy.
The teaching and non-teaching staff as well as principals of unaided BEd colleges in the state had, in February this year, staged a dharna at Azad Maidan to highlight their demand for a government grant. This demand was supported by the Maharashtra Federation of University and College Teachers Organisation (MFUCTO), and at the Senate meeting held in March, the issue was raised by Tapati Mukhopadhyay. Thereafter, it was decided that a university committee would ask the government for financial assistance. However, at this point in time, the crisis remains as big as ever.
As far as BEd education is concerned, there are 12 government colleges, 36 aided private colleges and 96 unaided private colleges in Maharashtra. There are 27 BEd colleges affiliated to the University of Mumbai, out of which 15 are unaided.
At a meeting in September last year, BEd college principals had said that after implementation of the Fifth Pay Commission, the deficit per college would rise to Rs 13 lakh per year, which was unaffordable for any college management. This was the reason the Somaiyya management applied to the university for closure of its BEd college. In January 1999, the Shikshan Shastra Mahavidyalaya Pracharya Parishad, Maharashtra (an organisation of BED college principals) had projected that the financial liabilities after implementation of the Fifth Pay Commission would come to a minimum of Rs 22 lakh per year for a college having 80 students.
President of the Parishad, N K Patil, said this may lead to fees amounting to Rs 15,000 for free seats and Rs 39,000 for payment seats. The MFUCTO’s C R Sadashivan is, however, against an increase in fees as that would put students to a disadvantage. Colleges fear that with such high fees and no guarantee of employment after completion of the BEd course, students would be reluctant to join in. In any case, the number of students coming out of BEd colleges every year is three times more than the annual requirement, and there are a huge number of unemployed or “ill-employed” BEd degree holders, academicians said.
The academic and administrative scenario in unaided BEd colleges is also bleak. For years, the colleges have not been appointing lecturers as per the student-teacher ratio (10:1). Teachers are appointed as late as February though the course begins in June. Every year, teachers’ services are terminated to save vacation salaries, and contributory PF schemes for employees hardly exist in any unaided college.
The qualification of lecturers is also not as per the NCTE norms, which say a master’s degree is necessary in the subject for which the vacancy exists, along with a PG degree in education (minimum 55% marks). The university too is not bothered about implementation of this rule. For example, the university does not insist on a master’s degree for the school subject.
The Parishad has found that even aided colleges do not bother about appointment of teachers before the beginning of an academic year, inspite of an university circular of March 1999 which requests all colleges to send advertisements for approval in the first week of March every year. However, the pro vice-chancellor of University of Mumbai, Dr Naresh Chandra, maintained that all is right with college recruitment.
The problem of vacancies of lecturers is huge. There are ten students attached, according to their special methods of teaching, to a lecturer specialised in teaching that subject. For instance, if a geography `special method’ lecturer is not appointed for the academic year 1999-2000 in Gokhale Education Society’s College of Education, Parel, there will be no person to lecture students taking that subject.
