DU relents, goes back to three-year course (Roundup)

New Delhi, June 27 (IANS) Delhi University Friday gave in to the UGC diktat and scrapped the year-old four-year undergraduate programme (FYUP), bringing cheer to lakhs of DU aspirants who will now be admitted to the earlier three-year course.

Vice Chancellor Dinesh Singh said that the university had decided to roll back FYUP.

"The University of Delhi recognises the need of the hour. It is of paramount importance to protect the interest of the students by ensuring the start of the admission process," Singh, who was behind the FYUP programme, said in a statement.

"In line with the directive of the UGC, the university has decided to roll back the FYUP. Consequently the admission process shall be conducted under the scheme of courses that were in force in the academic session 2012-13 in all the colleges of the university of Delhi," he added.

The controversial programme had pitted the University Grants Commission (UGC) and DU against each other with the former asking the varsity to junk it.

The announcement ended the deadlock between the UGC and the DU over the FYUP which had led to the admission process to 64 of its 78 affiliated colleges being put on hold Tuesday. Around 2.7 lakh applicants have applied for admission to 54,000 seats this year in Delhi University, one of the oldest and the best in the country.

Singh also said it is expected that the college principals will "assist in devising and ensuring a speedy completion of admission process".

The VC's statement came Friday after DU registrar Alka Sharma wrote to the UGC, saying that they agreed to "the directive" of the commission in "spirit".

St. Stephen's College principal Valson Thampu said that now "peace will return" to the university campus.

"Nobody needs to have any worries about the students and surely the university is a body that will ensure to protect the interest of the student," Thampu said.

It was the UGC's directive to the varsity to admit students to the earlier three-year course which prompted the colleges to defer the admission process.

Expressing delight at the rollback, Bhumika Thukral, a student of B.Com (Hons) said: "One, two, three. And yes I am a graduate!"

"I am extremely delighted that the VC has rolled back the four-year degree course. I believe that the FYUP was useless," Mukund Sharma, 17, a DU aspirant told IANS.

Meanwhile, a 12-member committee of principals was set up to devise a strategy to restore the three-year course.

Students outfits like All India Students Association (AISA) and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) - against the FYUP - welcomed the move.

"This is one of the historic days for us. The unity across political lines helped us win. VC is responsible for the delay," AISA president Sunny told IANS.

The four-year course had run into major opposition from some student and teacher groups, including those affiliated to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

Speaking for the first time on the issue, Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Smriti Irani made it clear that student interests needed to be protected at all costs.

She asked all players not to stand on "prestige" and said: "This is the time for statesmanship."

"I respect autonomy of institutions. However institutions were created to serve people of the nation within ambit of law," she tweeted.

"This is the time for statesmanship which leads to resolution. Don't sacrifice interest of students at altar of prestige," she added.