Top Delhi University colleges without principals may face UGC wrath

Some of the top Delhi University colleges, including Hindu, Jesus and Mary and Gargi, may face severe action for not appointing regular principals, officials said.

It is learnt that the Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry has directed the University Grants Commission (UGC) to initiate action against all the colleges who have not made the appointments despite instructions from the President’s office.

The President is the visitor of Delhi University. The President’s office had earlier expressed concern that the colleges are being run by acting heads for years. Some of the colleges have been without a permanent principal for the past eight years or more.

Over 20-odd Delhi University colleges including Hindu, Gargi, Kamla Nehru College, Jesus and Mary College, Maitreyi, Aurobindo College and Moti Lal Nehru among others have still not taken steps to appoint principals.

According to a senior UGC official, they will be chalking out details of action that they can take against the colleges and will submit a report to the ministry in this regard.

“The government has been emphasising the need for filing up posts of principals in 21 Delhi University colleges in the interest of academic progress. But despite giving several deadlines they have not taken any concrete action. Since these are all grant in aid colleges, government expects better administration. We have asked the UGC to initiate action and submit a report in this regard,” said a senior HRD official.

DU vice-chancellor and registrar did not reply to text messages and phone calls by HT.

Permanent principals are important for taking crucial administrative decisions. Several projects are hampered when the colleges have ad hoc principals, said another UGC official.

Hindu College, for instance doesn’t have a regular principal since 2012.

“Our college has already started the process and screening of candidates was completed almost a month ago. I was told that interviews will start soon but I cannot comment more,” said Hindu College’s officiating principal Anju Srivastava.

She is one of the candidates for the position of principal.

A meeting was held in June last week at the Rashtrapati Bhawan to discuss the appointment of principals in Delhi University colleges.

The meeting was attended by the vice-chancellor of Delhi University, UGC chairman and senior HRD officials. Following the meeting, the colleges were given a deadline of July 15 to complete the process of selection and appointment of principals. Though the colleges and the university had assured that regular principals would be appointed, a status report submitted to the ministry revealed that most colleges have still not appointed principals.