Autonomy without accountability in institutes meaningless

New Delhi, July 11 (UNI) University Grants Commission Chairman S K Thorat has advocated creation of smaller universities with a manageable number of affiliated colleges as part of reforms in the national education system.

He also emphasised the need to grant autonomy to a large number of educational institutions.

''Autonomy without accountability is of no use and if an institution has this freedom but not the capability to use it then it is rendered useless,'' he said at a panel discussion on 'Autonomy For Educational Institutions' organised by the NCERT.

Rather than having a general framework of autonomy, the UGC works statewise. Only 272 out of 6000 colleges that the Commission supports have an autonomic set up...reason being that all the institutions are not capable of enjoying the autonomy, Professor Thorat said.

The UGC has been trying to reform the national education system by introducing grading system, internal assessment and annual xaminations but they are of no use until the educational institutions have the capabilities to adopt them, he added.

NCERT Director Krishna Kumar, Dr Bharat Wariavwalla from the Centre for Studies of Developing Societies (CSDS) and Jamia Milia Islamia's Vice-Chancellor Mushirul Hassan also participated in the panel discussion held at India International Centre last evening.

Discussing the state of public culture and how it opposes and undermines autonomy and vice-versa, Dr Kumar said, " Our public culture is far to be desired for preserving autonomy....In a university in Uttar Pradesh where I went before the assembly elections, one gets the feel that it is not an educational institution but a kind of political fight between Mulayam Singh and Mayawati. Similar is the issue of the Fine Arts College in Vadodara.'' The institutions where autonomy is legal are very nominal in number and those who have it obligate a prevailing policy or explain a policy to public at large but as such are not autonomous.

Moreover, they are entirely government funded and the people who manage it are retired bureaucrats who work according to a governing council which too comprises members of the government, Dr Kumar said.

''But however hostile the public culture may be, one can still preserve autonomy by preserving their accountability,'' he added.

Highlighting the importance of social consciousness in autonomy, Mr Wariavwalla said, autonomy needs to provide a space or venue which cultivates values in the service of humanity. For the reformation of the idea of an 'democratic state' every institution needs to serve the moral goals on which the state functions.

''We are in a era of widespread privatisation of the educational institutions but the universities have not been able to go beyond the 19th century colonial culture within themselves. They do not even care to share their resources in improving the state of elementary education in the country,''he added.

Citing the example of Delhi University's infrastructure lying in abeyance for three months during the summers, Mr Wariavwalla said the same can be utilised for training the school teachers.

It is not the government and politicians who are to be blamed for nibbling away the autonomy but the Indian Univerities hemselves...''Its high time that the Indian Universities introspect,'' he added.

UNI