Bhubaneswar: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has requested the Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to set right the discrepancies in the Odisha University (Amendment) Act 2020 as per the legal and regulatory framework. In a letter to Majhi, Pradhan has asked the former to make necessary amendments to the Act.
Pradhan wrote that this amendment was important for restoring the confidence of educators, safeguarding the autonomy of educational institutions, and ensuring that the state maintains the highest standards of education.
The Union Education Minister further wrote that the former BJD government in the state had amended the University of Odisha (Amendment) Act, 1989 for political reasons, thereby bringing in extensive changes in the original Act, 1989. These changes in the law created conflict in provisions of the UGC Act and rules laid down by the Commission. It also undermined the interests of the educational institutions and their autonomy.
The specific provisions contained in the University of Odisha (Amendment) Act, 1989 regarding the appointment of Vice Chancellors and recruitment of educators in universities is inconsistent with these regulations of UGC. They also ignore the judicial directives laid down by the Supreme Court.
Urging the Chief Minister to intervene in the issue, the Union Education Minister added, “The amendment grants excess government control over educational institutions, which would undermine the freedom of teachers.”
