Rajasthan
Ashok Gehlot: Most Colleges Announced In Last 4 Years Have No Campus | Jaipur News
Jaipur: Chief minister Ashok Gehlot announced 230 new colleges in the last four years, including 20 in 2022-23 Budget, but majority of those are yet to see their own campuses.
Barring a few, most of them are running from makeshift campuses — schools, existing colleges in shifts, rented and abandoned buildings. Adding to the woes is a shortage of faculty and poor infrastructure that is defeating the purpose of imparting quality education.
A report says almost half of the teaching posts in the higher education department are vacant and the opening of new colleges will only add to the burden on the existing teaching staff.
Of the 6,792 sanctioned posts in 440 colleges including government engineering colleges, 2,782 were vacant as per the reply in the assembly by the higher education department in April 2022.
“We have been advised by the higher education department not to open new institutes without allocating funds, land and teachers. The way the government had allocated Rs 1000 crore for the opening of new medical colleges in Nagaur, Jalore and Pali, a similar allocation has been made for the opening of colleges,” said Puneet Sharma, an education department official, adding that ideally, CM Ashok Gehlot should have announced a timeframe for the start of colleges on their own campuses. “Neither we have a principal nor we have the administration staff. The existing teaching staff of 7 was also drawn from other colleges. I am a commerce teacher but this college only has social sciences and I am hoping that this year they might start else I would end up doing administration staff work only,” said a teacher.
Commenting on the trend of new colleges, former education minister Vasudev Devnani said over 200 colleges opened by the Congress government are running from makeshift campuses with no hope of getting their own campuses even in the near future.
“Our government had always restrained from making populist announcements and announced new colleges only after through feasibility study and, also allocated funds in the budget only. Such announcements will only cheat the students,” said Devnani.
Barring a few, most of them are running from makeshift campuses — schools, existing colleges in shifts, rented and abandoned buildings. Adding to the woes is a shortage of faculty and poor infrastructure that is defeating the purpose of imparting quality education.
A report says almost half of the teaching posts in the higher education department are vacant and the opening of new colleges will only add to the burden on the existing teaching staff.
Of the 6,792 sanctioned posts in 440 colleges including government engineering colleges, 2,782 were vacant as per the reply in the assembly by the higher education department in April 2022.
“We have been advised by the higher education department not to open new institutes without allocating funds, land and teachers. The way the government had allocated Rs 1000 crore for the opening of new medical colleges in Nagaur, Jalore and Pali, a similar allocation has been made for the opening of colleges,” said Puneet Sharma, an education department official, adding that ideally, CM Ashok Gehlot should have announced a timeframe for the start of colleges on their own campuses. “Neither we have a principal nor we have the administration staff. The existing teaching staff of 7 was also drawn from other colleges. I am a commerce teacher but this college only has social sciences and I am hoping that this year they might start else I would end up doing administration staff work only,” said a teacher.
Commenting on the trend of new colleges, former education minister Vasudev Devnani said over 200 colleges opened by the Congress government are running from makeshift campuses with no hope of getting their own campuses even in the near future.
“Our government had always restrained from making populist announcements and announced new colleges only after through feasibility study and, also allocated funds in the budget only. Such announcements will only cheat the students,” said Devnani.
