NDTF is convinced that Delhi University is hardly functioning for the past four years with cases of pensions, promotions and appointments piled up beyond alarming limits. Just to establish this point beyond all doubts it should be enough to state that the size of the problems in all these cases have swelled by at least twice of what it was four years ago. And the fact that the University is hardly showing any urge to even acknowledge the explosive state of affairs goes on to paint a disastrous picture of DU with almost no sign of its recovery in the immediate future. DUTA being on a continuous strike mode for more than three months and Karmachari Union also following the same line further multiplies to our combined worries. One can easily realize that instead of resolution of issues, negative approach adopted by the University authorities on several contentious concerns has culminated into aggravating the problem to unmanageable levels. A routine fixation of scales of working employees on account of implementation of new pay scales has resulted this time into controversial notices of recoveries. Many colleges have failed to complete this routine task even after a passage of more than two years now. Ironically, all such problems have originated due to some undesired/unnecessary re-opening of issues that were duly settled long ago within the University. Another such absence of ‘timely or otherwise’ action by DU authority has led to the misinterpretation of yet another issue that was well settled within the University more than three decades ago regarding the status of teachers working in the department of Physical education.
I am afraid, but for Professor Tyagi, any administrator would have contemplated of resigning from the post – but ironically for that too, one will need to act. Our university, arguably one among the largest in the world, can hardly afford to suffer from inaction and indecisiveness of Professor Tyagi, the Vice Chancellor. Cases of promotions have been made to hang in inaction first by playing blind to the problems, then by denying the due dates of promotions in a countable few cases of the Law Faculty and then latest by notifying a mysterious ‘Option Form’. This ambiguous option form hides everything and reveals little to help the applicants exercise the options. Even routine cases of notifications of Headship in the University Departments are facing inexplicable delays in departments such as Hindi and Physics and are forced to function under adhoc arrangement for a prolonged period. Governing Bodies and Acting Principals are forced to continue by default in the absence of timely communication for their continuity. The University is running without a dedicated Pro-Vice Chancellor, Dean of Colleges and South Campus Director and more recently without a Registrar.
The Vice-Chancellor has shown not even a fraction of interest in running the primary affairs of Delhi University as compared to whatever strange interest he has taken in the functioning of allied institutions like non-collegiate women education (NCWEB), Delhi School of Journalism and IoE. Almost half the Colleges of Delhi University are still being managed by acting and officiating Principals and almost half of the teachers’ strength is compelled to work on adhoc basis. The strangest of all his misadventures has been his recalcitrant approach in introducing guest and contract teaching in this University and that too when the University was supposedly struggling to act under the pressures from the government and the courts to make time-bound and extra-fast permanent appointments. Just a few months ago the misadventure of VC in the form of the August 28 letter threatening to snatch the livelihood of five thousand teachers in one stroke led to an unprecedented turmoil in this University on December 4, 2019, that has refused to die down completely even now. That blunder in judgement was enough to make any sensible person to realize that he poorly lacks the desirable skill to run a University of the size of DU. After that day when teachers occupied the Vice chancellor’s office for more than two days, the University is running almost clueless on how to bootstrap the University from this mess created by inaction and indecisiveness of the Vice Chancellor.
He has not only been a mute spectator of the armtwisting by Delhi Government that is politicizing the constitution of Governing Bodies in the 28 colleges managed by them but has succumbed to their blackmail by agreeing to accept their recommendations of including members purely on political grounds defying all norms and resolutions of DU. He did nothing to ensure that these institutions do not face Funding problem as they have been reportedly facing problems in paying salaries to their employees and teachers.
What is even more disturbing is the fact that most of the concerns faced in Delhi University are on issues that hardly require any move, clarification or direction from the central government. To make this point clear it is sufficient to notice that while promotions and appointments are being done at a very fast pace in all other central universities, DU alone is yet to make a meaningful move in the direction. UGC regulations 2018 that offers solution to a vast collection of promotion cases that had got stuck in the earlier UGC Regulation 2010 are still being misinterpreted for weird reasons. The Vice-Chancellor’s continued stubbornness for an inexplicably long period in not yielding to count the adhoc teaching for the purpose of promotions even after the clause 10 of UGC regulations 2018, clarifying all ambiguities in this regard is baffling. NDTF feels that it is time for the Vice Chancellor to realise that the problems of this University needs an efficient administrator to handle these long pending issues and piled up cases and in the best interest of this University he must allow someone else to take up this responsibility at the earliest.
Yes, to save this premier University, he must leave.
