Teachers oppose Mumbai University’s plan to set up 73 new colleges

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, enrolment numbers for the university dipped in 2020-21 to 1.9 lakh from 2.2 lakh the year before, according to data released in a senate meeting earlier this year

Teachers of the University of Mumbai (MU) have raised their voice against the varsity’s plan to add 73 new colleges to its roster. Members of the academic council, representing the Bombay University and College Teachers Union (BUCTU), registered their dissent against the university’s proposal to add new colleges according to the perspective plan in the academic council meeting held on Thursday.

University of Mumbai. (Hindustan Times)

Even as the perspective plan was passed with majority votes in the academic council, teachers’ representatives at the council were unhappy with the move. Perspective plan is a detailed five-year plan prepared by the varsity to chart the future course of action.

“The 73 proposed colleges in the plan are put forward without fundamental study, without considering the precarious conditions, geographical locations. The statistical data received from the university clearly shows the drastically falling enrolment of students from 2019 onwards. At present the colleges in Konkan have not been able to complete even 50% of the usual enrolment. Existing colleges will be adversely affected and the entire landscape will be wiped out,” read the dissent note.

Council members and BUCTU members Madhavi Nikam, Tanuja Sarode, Sudhir Nikam and Dhakne Rajendra, who made the dissent note, declined to comment. MU pro vice-chancellor Ravindra Kulkarni was not available for a comment.

However, an office-bearer of BUCTU said, “The stand taken by the four council members is representative of the teachers’ stand. New colleges have been proposed without due diligence and not taking into account why some colleges are seeing poor enrolment.”

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, enrolment numbers for the university dipped in 2020-21 to 1.9 lakh from 2.2 lakh the year before, according to data released in a senate meeting earlier this year.

However, BUCTU has been opposing new colleges since 2018. In a letter to the chancellor that year, BUCTU members had said the varsity completely missed three inputs while preparing the perspective plan — district maps with location of colleges, population figures and year-wise enrolment data. It had also pointed out procedural irregularity in the process.

In 2019, BUCTU again wrote to the chancellor complaining that the varsity had not placed the perspective plan for 2020-21 before the senate, academic and management councils.