Central varsity circular causes a
flutter
A
March 13 circular issued by the Vice-Chancellor of the Central University of
Kerala (CUK) that was circulated among the deans and heads of departments of
the university has caused a flutter after it was posted on social media.
It
exhorted the faculty to discourage research in irrelevant areas and ensure that
topics for theses should be in accordance with national priorities.
It
referred to a tripartite MoU between the Ministry of Human Resource
Development, the University Grants Commission and the Central University of
Kerala, which was discussed at a meeting of VCs held in Delhi in December 2018.
Girish
Hosur, Joint Secretary for Higher Education (Central Universities), said this
was not a directive or part of the MoU but an advisory given to all Central Universities.
“Some
VCs raised the question of irrelevant research being carried out, so this was
added,” he said.
‘Repeated
topics’
It
appears that only the CUK has issued the advisory to its faculty. G. Gopakumar,
V-C of CUK, said, “In many State Universities, and even Central Universities,
research topics are often repeated. Of the entire GDP, less than 3% is spent on
higher education, and less than 1.5% on research. We need to take up research
in topics like nanotechnology, Pharma, IT, Engineering, Nuclear Science, etc.
where we have the potential to grow.”
He
said basic and pure research were also very important, but even in theory
building, we should work on new theories instead of old theories, and that the
advisory which led to his issuing the circular was aimed at stopping
duplication, prioritising, being scientific and progressive.
‘Up
to scholars to decide’
He
said it was up to the faculty and scholars to decide what was relevant and
needed.
A
senior academician who has served as a vice-chancellor of a central university
said, “It is rather disingenuous to say that this is a mere advisory given to
universities, especially as it bestows a lot of power on people at different
levels. For instance, the researcher and her mentor may have no say in deciding
whether the problem is relevant or irrelevant.”
He
added that in the absence of a clear indication of what constitutes national
priority, this merely bureaucratises a creative process.
K.
Vijay Raghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the government, said in an
email, “The notice from the Registrar, Central University, Kerala, could have
been worded slightly better to capture the spirit and purpose on this matter.”
According
to him, a significant number of the PhD topics tended towards the pedestrian rather
than an attempt to answer important basic questions in the field or developing
important applications, and the purpose of a research effort is to address such
questions.
