Teachers block bid for autonomy

A CPI(M)-controlled teachers’ union is trying to bully Basanti Devi College into withdrawing its application for autonomy just as the one at Presidency College had tried to queer the pitch for the institution’s upgrade to a university.

The University Grants Commission is apparently keen to grant autonomy to the 51-year-old Gariahat institution but the teachers’ union insists that any such step would prove to be counter-productive.

“I don’t think Basanti Devi College is ready for autonomy. The college does not have the requisite infrastructure and, therefore, must not be granted academic freedom to run its own courses independently at this stage,” declared Tarun Patra, the general secretary of the teachers’ council.

A senior official said the opposition to autonomy stemmed from insecurity over jobs rather than concern for the college. “An autonomous college can frame its own syllabi, conduct examinations and award degrees. But the teachers seem to consider autonomy as privatisation by another name,” he said.

State-aided autonomous institutions are free to start new courses but they don’t receive any grants to run these. “The teachers fear that recruitment and addition of infrastructure for such courses would be a financial burden on the institution that could also endanger their jobs,” the official explained.

With resistance building up within and without — the West Bengal College and University Teachers’ Association is throwing its weight behind the staff union — the buzz is that the autonomy application could even be withdrawn.

Principal Maitreyee Bardhan Roy admitted that opposition from the teachers had put the autonomy advocates within the institution in a fix.

So is Basanti Devi College going to back out from the autonomy race? “We might not have a huge campus but our academic credentials are impeccable. We have been trying for autonomy since 2007. But the procedure for autonomy requires unanimity,” said the principal.

The UGC had written to Calcutta University and the state government a fortnight ago, asking for representatives to be included in the inspection team. The teachers’ council at Basanti Devi adopted a resolution not to accept autonomy and forwarded it to the governing body.

The governing body has since referred the resolution back to the teachers’ council. “It’s going to be very embarrassing for us if we have to tell the UGC not to conduct an inspection,” rued a member.

Opposition from teachers had also threatened to scuttle Presidency’s campaign for university status until chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee stepped in to fast-track the process.


Mita Mukherjee, The Telegraph Metro