SS Mantha on Monday quit as chairman of the All-India Council of Technical Education, making the controversial apex body of technical education headless. Vice chairman of the council Avinash Pant has been given the charge for the time being.
Why did he quit?
Mantha resigned because the ministry of human resources and development (MHRD) is said to have not approved extension of his tenure.
What is Mantha saying?
He denied his departure has anything to do with the restructuring (of the council as planned by the Centre) or unhappiness of the (human resources) minister. "I have completed my tenure of three years and now I am back to my parent institution VJTI. There is no controversy at all."
What has govt planned for the council?
The Smriti Irani-led ministry has decided to restructure the council owing to its "incompetence". It constituted a four-member review committee in October to "restructure and strengthen" the council as per the vision of the BJP government. The committee, headed by ex-secretary of MHRD MK Shaw will submit its report by March.
Why's Centre restructuring it?
The ministry believes the 1987-born AICTE hasn't been able to curb commercialisation of technical education and has also failed to ensure the standard of the sector.
As per the MHRD order...
"There is a realisation that the council is finding it difficult to match the demand of private players in the field of technical education… there is a growing trend of commercialisation and the laid down norms and standards of the technical education are not fully implemented. The technical education sector needs to be reoriented and redefined in light of these difficulties, globalisation and competition in economy and research. Therefore, it is imperative... an urgent review of the AICTE is needed."
What will the committee's tasks be?
The committee will have to evaluate the performance of the council, and analyse its functions, regulatory lapses, work culture etc. The committee will also suggest amendment in the AICTE Act, 1987, measures for restructure, effective methods to enhance quality education, curb commercialisation, regulation of private institutes, and internalisation of education among other things.
What is AICTE?
It's the apex body for almost all professional courses in the country, including engineering, technology, management, MCA and pharmacy. It has over 4,600 institutes including engineering, pharmacy, IT, architecture and hotel management under its ambit.
Its controversies
The council had invited the ire of the Supreme Court last year. SC revoked its power to regulate MBA and MCA education, ruling that these were not under purview of the council as per the law.
The body is also blamed for its "liberal approach" to approve colleges which led to mushrooming of private institutes across the country, lowering the quality of education. It has been dragged to court many times for its controversial approval and revoke process. Courts have nailed the regulator many times, imposing fine at least twice.
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