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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | UGC fails to spend cash, wants more by Basant Kumar Mohanty

UGC fails to spend cash, wants more by Basant Kumar Mohanty

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published Published on Jan 11, 2012   modified Modified on Jan 11, 2012

The University Grants Commission has demanded a four-fold hike in funds allocation in the 12th five-year Plan to create 10 million additional seats in higher educational institutions.

The demand has come in spite of the higher education regulator managing to spend only 50 per cent of the Rs 46,449 crore allocated in the 11th Plan three months before the period ends.

The UGC has submitted a detailed report to the HRD ministry, which has forwarded it to the Planning Commission. The report seeks to project an unprecedented expansion in the general higher education stream, including setting up 20 women’s universities and 800 constituent colleges in 40 existing central universities, and capacity expansion in 20,000 government and aided undergraduate colleges.

The UGC had planned several ambitious projects in the 11th Plan period, including setting up 374 degree colleges, one each in every educationally backward district, capacity expansion of existing universities and colleges, and setting up new universities (see chart).

But three months before the current plan period ends, it has failed to spend half the funds allocated to it. The unused money will lapse, despite many schemes being at various stages of implementation. The project for setting up 14 innovation universities has remained a non-starter.

A UGC official blamed the failure to use the money on the time-consuming exercise of releasing funds to universities and colleges and the inability of state governments to provide grants for projects such as the one to set up degree colleges.

“The ministry releases funds on a yearly basis depending on the demand we make. In fact, the process of inspection and assessment of funds requirements of central and state universities took about two-and-a-half years,” the official said.

“By the time we sent the 11th Plan proposals of the central and state universities, half the plan period was over. That is the main reason why a large chunk of the funds remains unutilised.”

However, this time around, the UGC has changed the procedure for preparation of proposals. Instead of sending an expert team to all universities, it has asked the varsities to prepare proposals for capacity expansion under the 12th Plan. The UGC will set up a national committee to scrutinise the proposals and forward them to the HRD ministry.

“The universities have been asked to submit their proposals by March 15. Once the proposals come, they will immediately be processed and finalised at the UGC level and then sent to ministry,” the official said.

In Bengal, 10 state universities and Visva-Bharati, a central varsity, get funds from the UGC.

For the degree colleges scheme under the 11th Plan, state governments were required to provide matching grants. Each college would have cost around Rs 8 crore, of which the UGC would have provided Rs 2.67 crore. But many states, including Bengal, expressed inability to provide funds for the scheme.

“In the 12th Plan, the UGC is proposing to bear 100 per cent cost of such colleges. Besides, there is a plan to set up centrally funded colleges in every district of the country,” the official said.

At present, nearly 15 million students are pursuing higher education in about 32,000 universities and colleges. The projected expansion would take the gross enrolment ratio in higher education to 25 per cent by 2017, against 17 per cent now.

Vinod Raina, a member of the Central Advisory Board of Education, said the UGC’s projection for expansion was not out of place but its efficiency to spend such a huge amount was under question.

“There is a need to expand the higher education system…. But non-utilisation of the 11th Plan funds shows the inability of the UGC. The UGC will have to try for faster utilisation of funds.”

Raina said the government was planning to replace the UGC with an overarching body as it had failed in many areas, including utilisation of funds.

IIT Kanpur chairperson M. Anandakrishnan said the UGC had not prepared to properly utilise 11th plan funds. Many central universities, which had been started, could not avail themselves of the funds as they were running in temporary campuses.

“I hope the new central universities have stabilised now. They can avail themselves of more funds. Besides, the reforms in preparation of proposals will help faster release of funds,” he said.

The UGC demand will be considered by the National Development Council headed by the Prime Minister.


The Telegraph, 11 January, 2012, http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120111/jsp/nation/story_14991008.jsp


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