Thiruvananthapuram: The pro-LDF teachers organisations have opposed the proposal to start private universities in the state. The All-Kerala Private College Teachers’ Association (AKPCTA) said that private universities should be established only after proper consultations with all concerned.
AKPTCA general secretary K.L. Vivekanandan said in a statement here that 209 private universities were functioning in different states as on June 2015. This included the Sikkim-Manipal University of Sikkim established in 1995 and the JSS University in West Bengal established in March, 2015.
There are two types of private universities—those sponsored by corporates as part of their social responsibility and those functioning with only profit motive. The majority are the second type, the AKPCTA said.
Many of such universities were functioning violating the UGC regulations issued in 2003. The Supreme Court had ordered the closure of private universities functioning in Chhattisgarh in 2005 after a case filed by former UGC chairman Professor Yashpal.
Recently, the Himachal Pradesh High Court had also come down heavily on private universities, Mr Vivekanandan said. Mr K.K. Damodaran, general secretary, Association of Kerala Government College Teachers (AKGCT), said in a statement.
