BSAEU: No affiliation for 250 pvt teachers’ training colleges failing NCTE norms

Kolkata: A good number of private teachers training colleges in the state are staring at a bleak future as they are yet to get affiliation from Baba Saheb Ambedkar Education University (BSAEU).

Around 250 colleges are on this list due to their inability to abide by the norms set by NCTE (National Council for Teachers Education) with the last date for such exercise expiring on Monday.

“We have been very strict in granting affiliation and any deficiency in fulfilment of NCTE norms has been strictly dealt with. Only if the state Higher Education department extends the date for granting affiliation, further consideration can be made on the part of the university,” Registrar of BSAEU, Maitreyee Bhattacharya said.

University sources said that 350 colleges out of 600 private colleges received affiliation till reports last came in. There are 624 colleges across the state under BSAEU among which 23 are government, government-aided or sponsored.

A senior university official admitted that the intake of students this year may fall drastically with so many colleges yet to get affiliation but reiterated that the quality of education cannot be compromised with. Last year, around 53000 students got admission to colleges under BSAEU. The university had started pushing for affiliation in strict adherence to NCTE norms from August 2023.

The three main criteria for affiliation include fire safety certificate, faculty list and DBT (direct benefit transfer). As per NCTE norms, for 50 students in a teachers’ training institution, there should be seven teachers and one principal. In the case of DBT, the university has come across a number of cases with problems pertaining to payment of salary for teachers and cases of fake beneficiary transfers.

The varsity, in a notification, stated it came to their notice that some “ill-motivated” persons are jeopardising the interest of the students, colleges in general, and the university in particular, by maligning them on social media.

“Rumours of getting affiliation against monetary consideration are being spread to create an environment to stall the academic operations. All the colleges are again cautioned to disassociate themselves from these ill-motivated people and all kind of illegal activities, including payment of any kind of money in any form to any agent or agency in the name of obtaining affiliation,” Soma Bandyopadhyay, vice-chancellor of BSAEU said.