COIMBATORE: With the Madras High Court dismissing the petitions filed by 14 deemed universities in Tamil Nadu challenging the UGC (Institutions of Deemed to be Universities) Regulations 2010 on Tuesday, the decks have been cleared for regulating fees and admissions in such institutions, unless an appeal is filed.The regulations were framed by the University Grants Commission close on the heels of an expert committee constituted by the Union Ministry for Human Resource Development (HRD) finding serious lapses in the functioning of deemed universities in the country. The expert committee comprising noted academicians had blacklisted 44 deemed universities across India including 16 in Tamil Nadu.Until now, deemed universities have been fixing fees arbitrarily and admitting students in disproportionately large numbers without any relation to the availability of teachers and classroom infrastructure. Once the UGC Regulations take effect, the fee structures “shall be fixed in accordance with the fee regulations framed by the government or by the commission (UGC) in this behalf from time to time.” In fact, the level of fees charged shall have a reasonable relation to the cost of running the course. The regulations also mandate that deemed universities must admit students solely based on merit through an all India examination. Besides, “deemed universities shall implement the reservation policy in admissions and recruitment, in accordance with any Act of Parliament for the time being in force.” In matters of internal reforms, the regulations mandate that the owner/founder of an institution or his/her relative cannot be appointed as chancellor of the deemed university. “The chancellor shall be an eminent educationist or a distinguished public figure other than the president of the sponsoring society or his/her close relatives,” the regulations say. Also, the highest governing body of the deemed university shall be a board of management to be headed by the vice chancellor or a distinguished academic. This body shall consist of a minimum of 10 members and a maximum of 12 members with only one nominee of the sponsoring society.The High Court order too harps on this point. Under the 2010 Regulations, the Central Government and the UGC are empowered to conduct surprise inspections in deemed universities and withdraw the deemed university status if there are violations in admission of students. “In the event of such withdrawal of the declaration, the entire movable and immovable properties of the institution deemed to be university shall stand forfeited to the Commission (UGC),” the regulations say.
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