Bihar’s AKU awaits fulltime V-C since September last year

AKU’s advertisement seeking applications, issued by the Raj Bhavan, has been cancelled twice through the process, the latest being last month

The vice chancellor (V-C) post in Bihar’s Aryabhatt Knowledge University (AKU) has been vacant since September 20, 2020.

Aryabhatt Knowledge University at Mithapur in Patna. (File photo)

AKU’s advertisement seeking applications, issued by the Raj Bhavan, has been cancelled twice through the process, the latest being last month.

Set up in 2010 to regulate all technical institutions by bringing them under one umbrella, AKU has been without a regular V-C since the term of Arun Kumar Agarwal ended. Former AKU pro-V-C Syed Mohammad Karim held the additional charge till his retirement a couple of months ago.Now, Lalit Narayan Mithila University V-C SP Singh holds the additional charge along with that of other universities.

The Raj Bhavan invited applications for the appointment of V-C in January this year after cancelling the September 2020 advertisement “due to unavoidable reasons”. But before the process could be completed, the advertisement was cancelled and a fresh one issued on January 14, 2021 through a notification from Raj Bhavan. The last date for submitting applications was March 1.

Now, the second advertisement has also been cancelled without any further notification. “The re-advertisement datedJanuary 14, 2021regarding submission of application form for the appointment of V-C in AKU is cancelled due to some unavoidable reasons,” said a July 10 letter from Robert L Chongthu, principal secretary to the governor.

Sources in the department of education said that a lot would depend on the trifurcation of the AKU, regarding which Bills were also passed by the Bihar assembly during the just concluded monsoon session. After governor Phagu Chauhan’s nod, AKU would no more be a university like before to regulate all technical institutions -- there would be separate universities for health and engineering, besides one for sports with the chief minister, not the governor, as the chancellor of the proposed universities. “After the gazette notification, the process for the appointment of V-Cs in the new universities could begin afresh,” an official added.

However, all the four Bills related to universities are yet to get gubernatorial nod. If the Governor does not approve of it, as had happened in 2015 when former Governor Keshri Nath Tripathi refused to give his nod to a Bill for the constitution of a university and college tribunal on the lines of the Central Administrative Tribunal to deal with the growing number of court cases, it could cause further delay. Despite former Advocate General and then education minister PK Shahi meeting Keshri in this regard, he remained unconvinced. The tribunal was in the pipeline for over six years. The only difference was that in 2015, the governor’s nod was sought ahead of placing the Bill before the Cabinet and the House and once refused, it could not be placed. However, sources said that such a requirement was restricted to money Bills only.

At present, the government is keeping its fingers crossed, as none of the seven Bills passed during the monsoon session have been signed by the governor yet. “It usually comes after a week. The session ended on July 30 only,” said an official.