Senate members meet CM to change eligibility

Senate members of the University of Mumbai met Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Tuesday over the new eligibility criteria for the governing bodies of the university such as the senate, management and academic council.

Senate members of the University of Mumbai met Chief Minister Ashok Chavan on Tuesday over the new eligibility criteria for the governing bodies of the university such as the senate, management and academic council.

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The senate election is to be held this month and if the ordinance, which the state government passed in September 2009, stays then several members will become ineligible. The new ordinance makes PhD a compulsory qualification for all.

“The ordinance is an attempt to kill the spirit of democracy in the university. There aren’t enough PhDs in the varsity,” said a senate member.

The ordinance states that deans of faculties must also have published at least three research papers in respected national or international journals and should be guiding PhD students.

The committee was headed by Vispi Ballaporia, the chancellors’ nominee to the senate, and representatives from each constituency — Dilip Karande, Madhu Paranjpe, Prakash Derekar, Nilesh Gosawi, Prashant Ingle, Deepak Mukadam and Krishna Patil —put forth their case.