Sruthisagar Yamunan and C Shivakumar
CHENNAI: While the CAG, in a recent note, had pointed out that the Manonmaniam Sundaranar University (MSU) ran 329 unapproved programmes through "Satellite Centre Courses" between 2008 and 2011, fresh documents that have surfaced reveal that more than 80,000 students across the country might be adversely affected having enrolled in these courses, with the validity of their certificates coming under the scanner.
Express reported on April 21 that a 'Factual Note' prepared by the Deputy Accountant General (ISC II), P S Iyengar, had rapped the University for irregular franchising of courses, leading to a loss in revenue of Rs 35.41 Crore. This also gave technical collaborators, which included 74 private parties, undue benefit of Rs 27.73 crore.
The audit note on the University, which is likely to be considered for inclusion in the CAG report of 2011-2012, had observed that the varsity neither had the approval of the Distance Education Council (DEC) or from other bodies like All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) for the courses.
However, fresh documents, available with Express, reveal that the private collaborators had gone on an overdrive in recruiting students for these courses between 2009 and 2011 during the tenure of the former Vice Chancellor.
According to an inter-departmental note within the University, circulated in June 2011 between the top decision making authorities in the varsity in relation with funds for printing, the number of students enrolled in the courses offered by the institution's Directorate of Distance and Continuous Education (DDCE) touched a whopping 83483 in 2010-2011.
Informed sources in the loop said that the rate of enrollment to these courses increased with the introduction of the satellite courses in 2008. How? Sample this: The total enrollment registered for distant education programmes at the MSU in 2007-2008, the year before the satellite courses introduction, was just 3914. In subsequent years till 2011, DDCE added 79569 students to this list. Between 2009 and 2011 alone, the number of students in such programmes spiked by a colossal 61923. A majority of them were recruited through the technical collaborations, they said.
Senior officials at the University opined that if the observations of the audit reports are accepted, the validity of degree certificates issued for such students might be put under a big question mark.
"The worry here is, do the students even know if their courses are unapproved by the DEC? What will the employers, who had given jobs to these people based on the certificates, do when they find that such courses themselves are unapproved?" asked the official, who wished not to be named.
This apart, the amount spent on the course by the students, which in some cases went up to Rs 5.50 lakh owing to non-adherence by private collaborators to the official fee structure fixed by the University, could go down the drains.
When asked over the phone if the certificates of those who enrolled to the course through satellite centres were valid, Registrar of the University, S Manickam, said "they should be," given that they were approved by the Syndicate. However, he refused to reply when asked if the Syndicate had the powers to approve running of distant courses without DEC approval, which according to the CAG note was "mandatory."
The audit note had also observed that the varsity disregarded the instructions of the State government in 2010 to stop conducting classes for such collaborative courses outside its jurisdiction. Infact, the varsity was accused of not mentioning the mode of study i.e distance education, in the statement of marks and diplomas issued with effect from June 2010.
The decision to discontinue the courses was initiated only in August 2011
No comments:
Post a Comment