Delhi colleges facing fund crunch urge L-G to intervene

A delegation of Delhi University Principals Association (DUPA), comprising Jaswinder Singh, DUPA president and principal of Khalsa College, Manoj Sinha, principal of Aryabhatt College, and the principals of three other colleges on Thursday met Delhi Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena. They brought to his notice the serious constraints being faced by 12 colleges under Delhi University, which are funded by the Delhi government.

The DUPA and the principals sought the LG's intervention in resolving the issue of the delay in releasing sanctioned grants. The DUPA in its representation said, "numerous new and relevant courses were started in these colleges to cater to the needs of the emerging economy and provide employment to the youth and as a consequence many teaching and non-teaching positions were filled, the approval of which is pending with the government. The sanctioned grants are also often delayed on one pretext or the other."

The serious issues that are affecting the quality of education in these colleges include deliberate curtailment of funds, non or delayed payment of salaries to staff, non-sanctioning of teaching and non-teaching posts by the Delhi government and day to day interference and harassment by incapable and inexperienced persons appointed to the Governing Bodies of these colleges by the AAP government, said the LG Secretariat.

The DUPA has requested the LG "to intervene and take steps to ensure ex post facto approval of all the positions and allow further recruitment for the teaching and non-teaching posts as it is happening in other colleges of University of Delhi. It is further requested to ensure transferring the sanctioned grants to the above colleges."

The LG Secretariat has in turn marked the representation submitted by DUPA along with another representation submitted by the Delhi University Karmachari Parishad to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for remedial action on priority.