The University Grants Commission has adopted a new draught regulation on autonomous colleges, giving colleges in India the opportunity to become autonomous (UGC). In a few days, the UGC is anticipated to make it available for stakeholders’ feedback. In the top level committees of the colleges following autonomy, there won’t be any or very few UGC and university nominees. Additionally, there will be less disruption to the college’s operations.
According to UGC Chairman M. Jagadesh Kumar, autonomous colleges are free to establish their own admission requirements, develop methods of evaluation, hold exams and announce results, encourage research in pertinent areas, etc.
According to Kumar, autonomous status would be granted for a 10-year first phase and a subsequent 5-year extension.
A college will be permanently regarded as autonomous if it has been operating independently for 15 years running.
As a requirement of being eligible for autonomy, however, such a permanent autonomous college must continue to receive the required NAAC/NBA etc. grades and report this information to the parent institution.
According to the UGC’s standards, an institution that wants to become autonomous and meets the requirements must submit an application on the UGC portal at any time of the year. The proposal must be submitted by the college to the parent or affiliated institution, which has 30 days to convey it to the UGC.
The parent institution will review the college’s request for autonomy via the UGC portal and respond with recommendations and justifications within 30 days.
The institution will be assumed to have no objections to the UGC processing the application for the grant of autonomous status if it does not respond on the UGC portal within 30 days.
The UGC will review the college’s request for autonomous status through a standing committee. Depending on the standing committee’s decision, letters of permission or rejection may be sent out. The commission may subsequently confirm the judgments.
With the previous consent of the parent university, an autonomous college may combine with another autonomous college (or colleges) or institution (or institutions) governed by the same parent body of the independent colleges.
If the college has NBA accreditation for at least three programmes with a minimum score of 675 or NAAC accreditation for at least three programmes with a minimum grade of “A,” the autonomous status will automatically be extended.
If autonomous colleges are unable to receive NBA accreditation for at least three programmes with a minimum score of 675 or NAAC accreditation with at least a “A” grade, their autonomy will be automatically withdrawn. Following the revocation of their autonomous status, no new admissions will be made in the autonomous mode.
(With inputs from IANS)
