THENJIPPALAM (MALAPPURAM): Communal forces are getting space in the present higher education system instead of academically brilliant people, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan opined. Criticising the recent trends in the country, he said, “Instead of thinking about improving the academics and facilities in the institutions, such forces want to bring tanks to the universities.” Mr Vijayan, who inaugurated the Calicut University golden jubilee celebrations on the university campus here on Saturday, was referring to the request made by Jawaharlal Nehru University Vice-Chancellor M. Jagadesh Kumar to the Union government to deploy Army tanks to instil nationalism among students.
He lauded the growth achieved by the Calicut University which now serves over 3.5 lakh students. However, the university’s present ranking needed to be improved significantly to achieve the status of a centre of academic excellence. The accreditation process should also consider the effective social interventions of varsities for popularising higher education among masses as a criterion for grading, he said. Those universities which submit detailed project report would get aid through the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB).
“The state government‘s policy is to raise the universities and certain colleges in the state to international level,” he said. Lauding the university’s academic master plan projects, he said that it is the standard of academics that actually matters in a varsity and not the buildings and beautification projects, though they are also important. “Universities hold an important position in creating and dispensing knowledge in society. Strong leadership of academically excellent people, proper academic policy, freedom for research and basic facilities should together achieve this,” he said. Education minister Prof C. Raveendranath presided over the function. Malappuaram MP P.K. Kunhalikutty and Vice-Chancellor Dr K. Mohammed Basheer among others were present at the function.
