E-Paper
Parliamentary committee seeks answers from BHU on range of issues
The committee, led by Rajya Sabha MP Digvijay Singh, which inspected the BHU on July 1, has sought a written reply from BHU. The questionnaire includes posers on academics, probe and compliance of NCW directives among others. The university administration is preparing answers to these questions, an official said.
The Parliamentary standing committee on education, women, children, youth and sports has sought answers to 40 questions from Banaras Hindu University (BHU) on a range of issues such as academics, probe and compliance of National Commission for Women’s directives among others, according to an official.
The committee, led by Rajya Sabha MP Digvijay Singh, which inspected the BHU on July 1, has sought a written reply from BHU. The university administration is preparing answers to these questions, the official said.
The panel also includes members such as Rajya Sabha MP Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, Dr Bhim Singh, Ghosi MP Rajiv Rai, MPs Rekha Sharma, Brijmohan Agarwal, Amardev Sharaddev Kale, Dr Hemang Joshi and Shobhanaben Mahendra Singh Baraiya. After a campus inspection and a marathon meeting with university officials, the committee has now sought a written response supported by relevant documents.
One key concern is the prolonged absence of a regular vice-chancellor. The committee asked when the last full-time VC demitted office and how many administrative posts a single person can legally hold under BHU statutes.
On the academic front, the committee inquired whether BHU currently has elected teacher, staff, and student bodies. It also raised multiple questions regarding the utilisation of funds under the Institute of Eminence (IoE) scheme. These include the total funding received over the past four financial years, the officials responsible for implementing the programme, audits conducted and the list and status of projects undertaken using IoE funds, particularly in terms of infrastructure development.
Regarding administrative appointments, the committee asked whether the current registrar is holding additional charge or is duly appointed, and requested a list of registrars over the last decade, along with their appointment status.
It also questioned the appointment status of the medical superintendent at Sir Sunderlal Hospital, asking for the last date of a regular appointment and the basis for the current temporary arrangement.
Among financial queries, the committee asked about the doubling of grants to IMS (from ₹165 crore in 2020-21 to ₹305 crore in 2021-22) and whether there was any move to convert IMS into a full-fledged AIIMS.
The committee raised concerns over the reported privatisation of CT scan and cardiac catheterisation & intervention (CCI) lab facilities at IMS-BHU, pointing out that NMC guidelines require such services to be institution-owned. It also questioned the prolonged tenure of the professor-in-charge of the trauma centre and whether the IMS director had written to the acting VC regarding their removal.
The committee has also demanded the status and reports of internal probes such as the Prof Jyoti Shukla committee on the blood bank and the Prof PS Tripathi committee on the ₹104-crore GEM procurement for the emergency centre.
It also flagged alleged irregularities in the lottery-based admissions to Central Hindu Schools (affiliated to BHU) for both boys and girls.
