No full-time vice-chancellor worsens Kakatiya University's condition

Warangal: It's been 13 months since the Kakatiya University (KU) is without a full-time vice-chancellor (VC). Even though the inordinate delay in the appointment of VC is adversely affecting the functioning of the varsity, the government seems to be apathetic. KU is one among the nine State varsities without a regular VC at present.

It may be mentioned here that after Prof R Sayanna completing his term on July 24, 2019, the government appointed Principal Secretary for Agriculture B Janardhan Reddy as the in-charge VC.

The government which issued notification for the appointment of VC for KU along with the other varsities in August 2019 had received a whopping 110 applications. Among those candidates in the race for the coveted post include those presently working with the KU and other universities and retired professors.

Later, it constituted a search committee that included former VC of JNTU Rameshwar Rao (KU executive committee nominee), Harisingh Gour University VC Prof Raghavendra P Tiwari (UGC nominee) and the then special chief secretary (Revenue) and present TS Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar as State government's nominee.

Thereafter, lull prevailed until the Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao directed the officials to expedite the process in February. The issue took a backseat after the imposition of coronavirus lockdown in March.

At a time when the varsity is grappling with staff crunch, especially teaching and non-teaching, the absence of VC has worsened the situation. Moreover, it's high time for the varsity administration to focus on online classes in the wake of Covid-19 lockdown.

According to sources, the in-charge VC B Janardhan Reddy who is preoccupied with State post had just visited the varsity twice in over one year. As a result, the onus of looking after the varsity affairs fell on Registrar K Purushotham. However, varsity officials have to make round trips to Hyderabad for the in-charge VC's approvals whenever necessary. "The inordinate delay in the appointment of full-time VC has been crippling the administration. It happened before Prof Sayanna's term and now the scenario is the same," a KU professor told The Hans India, on condition of anonymity. The absence of regular VC is not only affecting the functioning of the varsity but also allowing the complacency among the employees. These apart, there are allegations of scams in the institutions of the varsity, he added.

On the other hand, the Telangana State Council of Higher Education (TSCHE) has recently released the exam schedule for TS Common Entrance Tests (TS CETs) 2020. The admission process for the undergraduate courses for the new academic year had already started through DOST. Of late, the news is doing rounds that the government has stretched its eyes on the appointment of VC. Even though the government expedites the process, it will take at least a month for the search committee to screen the applications and shortlist three names before forwarding them to the governor, who in turn appoints one of them as the VC.