Goa: Education sector livid over new agriculture university plans

PANAJI: Agriculture minister Chandrakant Kavalekar recently announced that his ministry would establish an agriculture university in Goa within the next one year, to focus on the study of organic farming.
This decision to set up a university under a ministry other than education has not gone down well with officials and academicians in the state. They say this move will spell chaos for the education sector, if individual ministries are allowed to start their own institutes.
Educationists also questioned the move to start an agriculture university when agriculture is no longer a flourishing profession in the state, where agricultural production is on a constant decline and shortage of land leaves limited scope for expansion. Additionally, state officials say that a government-funded university will prove draining on the state's already strained finances.
"To be able to set up a university under a state department, the business allocation rules of the Goa government will have to be amended. This will set the wrong precedent. Tomorrow, forest department may want to establish its own university, animal husbandry may ask for its own institute. This will lead to chaos in the education sector," said a state education official . "Besides, the state needs an initial investment of Rs 500 crore and a government university would be a recurring burden with salaries, maintenance and infrastructure to pay for, continually," said the official.
He said that Goa already had the Don Bosco Agriculture College, which is doing well, and there is no good reason why the proposed organic farming programme cannot be started under this existing college or even in the Goa University premises.
Louis Vernal, who has served on various advisory bodies of Goa government in the education sector and who is currently a member of Goa University's executive council, agrees.
"There is already a system in place where a university comes under the University Grants Commission. Any new programme can simply start with affiliation of Goa University, under the existing system. Not every state ministry can start its own university , because they do not have the expertise. Presently, only Goa Board and Goa University are the two examining bodies in the state. I do not think it is a good idea to start a parallel system," said Vernal.
He said that if any degrees are issued by such a university run by a non-educational ministry of the state then the qualifications will have no value outside the state.
Educational experts said that Goa already has the Don Bosco Agriculture College, which is doing well, and there is no good reason why the proposed organic farming programme cannot be started under this existing college or in the Goa University premises.