Varsities lack webs to grant affiliation

Thiruvananthapuram: The universities in the state would have to develop a credible web-based affiliation system to adhere to the UGC decision empowering the universities  to approve and affiliate engineering colleges within their territory from the next academic year.

A Supreme Court order had wanted the colleges to upload the details for affiliation on the web portals of the universities. However, most universities do not have a web portal for the purpose, sources said.

The Kerala State Self Financing Engineering College Managements Association (KSFECMA) secretary T.A. Vijayan told Deccan Chronicle that the universities did not have the facility for evaluating the infrastructure of the colleges as of now and that there was no clarity on the issue.

The Supreme Court in an order on April 25 had said that the All-India Council for Technical Education does not have the authority to  affiliate engineering colleges across the country.

The court also said that only the UGC,and not the AICTE, was empowered to regulate higher education institutions in India. 

Following this, the powers of the AICTE for affiliation were handed over to the universities through a UGC decision on January10.