The controversial four-year undergraduate programme does not feature in the agenda of the annual Delhi University Academic Council meeting to be held on June 21, despite the University Grants Commission asking the varsity to review it.
Under the FYUP umbrella, the university has instead sought introduction of new courses and modifications of existing courses.
A section of university officials say that the university is crossing its legal mandate to continue with the programme.
“It is alarming that DU is running FYUP since 2013 without any formal approval of the Union Human Resource Development Ministry and the UGC, as reported by none other than HRD Secretary Ashok Thakur in the meeting of the full commission of the UGC,” a member of DU court V K Agrawal said. The DU court is the supreme authority of the university and has the power to review the acts of the Executive Council and the Academic Council.
“We have received a letter from the UGC. The university will reply to it in due course of time,” DU media coordinator Malay Neerav said. “The university has not called an emergent meeting. It is a routine meet before colleges start their admission process,” he added.
The four-year courses, which DU claims are “trans-disciplinary and inter-disciplinary in nature”, were introduced from the academic session 2013-14 by making an addition to the university ordinance.
According to the Delhi University Teachers’ Association, the full commission of the UGC have declared the programme as “illegal” since it violates the National Policy of 10+2+3.
The teachers’ association has sought the intervention of the DU Visitor, President Pranab Mukherjee, to scrap FYUP. “The Visitor must exercise his power under Section 31(6) and annul the ordinances relating to FYUP without any further delay,” DUTA said in a statement. But DU claims its autonomy as it was set up by an act of Parliament. This has also led teachers to believe that an Academic Council meeting is important.