Student strength weakening courses8217;

This, maintained Kadam, is shocking. 8220;All these years through the circular, we have been led to believe of a certain student strength stipulated at the entry level alone. Butfor the last academic year, officials are insisting that the third year be regarded as an entry point as well. In several subjects mainly in the science and arts faculties, you barely get 24 students at the FY. How can you expect that figure at the TY level as well?8221; he said.

Last Wednesday, members of the Association of Non Government Colleges ANGC and the Bombay University and College Teachers Union BUCTU held a meeting to thwart the education department8217;s move. Their meeting was significant as they decided at the meeting that they would pressurise the prospective government into addressing the larger issues affecting education.

Subjects like economics, psychology, sociology, Marathi, Hindi, Urdu and ancient Indian culture will either have to be axed or be taught only in certain colleges. Or, colleges will have to bear the costs of running these courses as well as pay teachers on a clock-hour basis . This, point out educationists, is self-defeating. They ask: where will the surplus teachers go?Does it not further impoverish the education system by arbitrarily clamping down on some branches? Also, paying teachers on a clock-hour basis will ultimately hamper teaching quality.

Even in commerce, the favourite pursuit of students these days, optional papers like the popular direct-indirect tax, travel and tourism, industrial psychology and economic systems are being asked to take the fall as they are new subjects and are therefore dispensable. Principal P Unnikrishnan from Vivek College of Commerce, Goregaon, explained that in 1994, the University of Mumbai revised the pattern from 18 papers to 20 papers throughout graduation. The government had clarified at the time that there could not be any increase in teacher strength, which colleges have abided with.

8220;Therefore, I do not understand the logistics behind such a demand. That apart, a subject like direct-indirect tax is not new, but an offshoot of accountancy. The options are classified under applied component subject and are very popular amongstudents. How can one just close them down?8221;

The arts and science faculties have been severely hit by the student outflow towards computers and other technical subjects. Said Unnikrishnan, 8220;This clamping down on certain branches that were provided by the university to be in tune with the time will only de-motivate students.8221; He maintained that since the official observations are only verbal, efforts are on to make them see reason. 8220;Otherwise, we will feel the pinch by the year-end.8221;

C R Sadashivan, president of BUCTU, maintained that by the end of this month, a sub-committee representing both the organisations will thrash out the issues at stake in higher education, including technical and other professional disciplines. By early September, the organisations will also host a seminar on these issues for experts, teachers, students as well as parents. Once a new government is elected, teachers will march to Mantralaya and present a charter of demands framed on the basis of the seminar.