Varsities violate Supreme Court rule

Hyderabad: Gitam deemed university in Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad, and Symbiosis International have not obtained approvals from the AICTE to hold technical programmes, an RTI query has revealed.

The institutions have been accepting admissions in direct violation of Supreme Court’s orders that clearly state that approval is needed for engineering, pharmacy and management courses, among others.

Documents in procession of this newspaper have shown that these institutes lack approvals.

Another allegation that was brought to the notice of the TS Council of Higher Education (TSCHE) by an anonymous tip-off was that off-campus centres of private universities had started functioning in the state without approval from the UGC and the government. 

According to the UGC establishment regulation, the approval of both is mandatory to hold technical courses. 

The TSCHE norm also states that all colleges offering regular graduation courses in the state should obtain approval from TSCHE and should be affiliated to state universities.

The letter alleged, “There are business schools based in Uttar Pradesh that have violated these rules by offering BBA and MBA without the approval of AICTE, UGC, TSCHE and others. Courses in agriculture are also being offered in select universities.”

It stated that notices should be served to all regulatory bodies to ensure that students’ interests are met and that they are not fleeced by such institutions.

Mr V. Venkataramana, TSCHE vice-chairperson, said, “The letter was sent by an anonymous person and we cannot take action. We will look into the matter but we need more evidence. There are many allegations in the letter and therefore verification will take some time.”

In case the universities are found to be at fault, TSCHE will take steps to cancel admissions and refund the admission fees paid by students at the earliest with damages. 

H3