Board of Studies PG teachers don’t meet criteria

An RTI query filed by a professor at Mumbai University reveals that several co-opted members appointed as postgraduate teachers in the Board of Studies (BoS) in different subjects are teaching in colleges which do not offer those subjects at the PG level.

The teacher, who has filed the RTI, on condition of anonymity said, “The Maharashtra Universities Act, 1994, under section 37(3)(a) lays down the rule for the appointment of PG teachers in the BoS.

If there are not enough qualified members, the university should have kept the posts vacant. These professors are going to set syllabi, would be responsible for selecting the deans in those subjects. There are several colleges that offer PG courses in the subjects that are under dispute. The law clearly states that a teacher should have been an approved teacher.”

Section 37(3)(a) of the Maharashtra Universities Act states that a post graduate teacher on the BoS shall be an approved teacher having not less than 10 years of teaching experience from amongst the teachers of the affiliated college having PG teaching in the subject. In the RTI reply, the university has listed names of 23 members who are co-opted as post graduate teachers under section 37(3)(a). Out of these, teachers in the board of studies of at least eight subjects are teaching in affiliated colleges that do not offer the subject at the PG level.

Rajan Padwal, from MD College, Parel, who is planning to move the court, said, “Teachers elected on the BoS should be well informed about the developments in the industry to be eligible for framing the curriculum. If we have teachers who are not teaching at PG level in colleges, then how can we talk about our students being qualified for the industry?” Officials from the university, including registrar MS Kurhade, and vice-chancellor, Rajan Welukar, were not available for comments in spite of repeated attempts.