DU teachers, students urge Smriti Irani to scrap 4-year programme

A delegation of teachers and students from the Delhi University submitted a memorandum to HRD Minister Smriti Irani urging her to scrap the four-year undergraduate programme and sack vice chancellor Dinesh Singh.

New Delhi: A delegation of teachers and students from the Delhi University (DU) on Friday submitted a memorandum to HRD Minister Smriti Irani urging her to scrap the four-year undergraduate programme and sack vice chancellor Dinesh Singh.

Student bodies like All India Students Association, DU`s All India Democratic Students Organisation and Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union with Delhi University Teachers Association (DUTA) and Democratic Teachers` Front protested outside the ministry and demanded the return of previous three-year course structure. "All the seven parliamentarians from Delhi have already met Irani and asked her to roll back the four-year undergraduate programme (FYUP)," Saikat Ghosh, executive member, DUTA told a news agency. The protesting students and teachers while criticising the FYUP, also raised slogans against the vice-chancellor, accusing him trying to imitate foreign universities. "He (Dinesh Singh) is the man who implemented this programme forcefully despite protest from several quarters. His goal is to promote foreign style of education here which will not work," said Hansraj Suman, convener, DU SC/ST forum. Delhi University upgraded its three-year undergraduate programme to four years from the academic session in 2013. The brainchild of Dinesh Singh, the move had drawn flak from the teachers fraternity and students.