Appalled by proposal to let a private party run the university's ill-kept hostels, opponents of outsourcing call the suggestion a bid to favour a certain set at the cost of student welfare
Appalled by proposal to let a private party run the university's ill-kept hostels, opponents of outsourcing call the suggestion a bid to favour a certain set at the cost of student welfare
Au00a0proposal by the vice-chancellor of Bangalore University to outsource the management of hostels has sent several members of the Syndicate, the policy-making body, and others on the warpath.
After media reports exposing the inefficient handling of university hostels, N Prabhudev, the vice-chancellor, reacted with great speed yesterday and suggested the management of the seven hostels under the university be passed on to a private party.
The university is facing severe criticism in the media these days for the state of its hostels, which are said to stink to high heavens with garbage waiting to be cleared and unclean toilets.
Prabhudev made his suggestion at an informal meeting of Syndicate members, wardens and directors of student welfare called by him.
He is learnt to have drawn flak at the meeting, as many of those attending it saw his proposal as a bid to favour private parties under the pretext of better housekeeping.
"According to his plan, the private party will collect the hostel fees from the students and the university won't benefit out of it," said A P Ranganath, a Syndicate member. "It is as good as privatising the system, and poor students will suffer."
Members of the Syndicate, a body that includes the vice-chancellor as well as nominated members, and others said Prabhudev was using the current state of the hostels as a lame excuse to achieve his own ends.
"The vice-chancellor thinks a private individual can (better) manage the hostels, but the question is why can't the university do it in the first place?" said L Vasudevamurthy, former member of the Academic Council, a university advisory body. "The whole drama looks like a conspiracy to favour somebody."
He was concerned that students may be asked to pay more to stay in the hostels if the management were to be outsourced. Now, general category students pay Rs 1,050 as hostel fees, while Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe students are exempted from paying the fees.
Syndicate members suspect the fees would rise at least threefold if the outsourcing takes place.
Ranganath also accused the hostel authorities of making money on the side by allowing unauthorised students to stay, and that more than 4,000 people were living in the hostels when the capacity was not more than 2,000.
"If we can address this (unauthorised stay) issue, more than 50 per cent of the problem is solved," he said. "Privatisation is not a solution, definitely."
Not the 1st time
IT is not the first time that N Prabhudev, the vice chancellor of Bangalore University, has come under attack for his privatisation zeal. A couple of months ago he handed over the nodal agency which has the authority to establish study centres for distance education and collect revenue from these to Bangalore Resource Pvt Ltd, a private firm with no academics experience.
The Distance Education Council had in a stinging letter struck down the idea, saying it was illegal to ask a private party to run the nodal agency.
The Other Side
N Prabhudev, vice-chancellor, Bangalore University, defended his suggestion to let a private party run the hostels. "Unauthorised guests (in the hostel) are a menace and once a private party comes in, it (the practice) will be curbed," he said. "We shall select the outsourcing party through the tender process, and it will be transparent. There is no question of favouring anybody," he added. He also said students "would not be overburdened" with high hostel fees. "They will get value for their money," he said.
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