UGC gets time for affidavit on distance engineering, tech courses

PUNE: The Bombay high court has granted the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) plea for some more time to file an affidavit on the issue of offering of engineering and technology courses through distance learning mode.
The high court bench of chief justice Mohit Shah and justice A K Menon directed the UGC to file the affidavit by August 7 after Rui Rodrigues, who is representing the commission, mentioned the matter for extension of deadline.
Amol N Shinde and three other students, who obtained BTech qualification offered by the Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University (YCMOU) have filed a petition in the high court against the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) on the issue of allowing them to pursue their postgraduate studies.
The All India Council for Technical Education and the UGC and the HRD Ministry have taken a stance that an open university imparting education through distance learning mode cannot conduct any course or award a degree in engineering and technology studies. As such the SPPU does not recognize the BTech course offered by the YCMOU.
Shinde and other petitioners have argued that they have attended practical sessions and lectures at study centres recognised by the YCMOU and that their course was offered in a blended mode and hence did not fall within the definition of distance learning mode.
On June 8, the high court had directed the UGC, AICTE and the YCMOU to file affidavits clarifying their position on the issue. At the last hearing on July 6, the high court had given three weeks time to the AICTE and the UGC to file their affidavits within three weeks and also take into consideration the position taken by the YCMOU which filed its affidavit on July 1. The YCMOU has claimed that it was imparting education through blended mode and not merely through distance learning.