Mumbai : Though Anna Hazare did not succeed in getting a Lokpal (Ombudsman) for the country, he can at least be satisfied with the thought that the higher education in the country will now have an ombudsman.
University Grants Commission (UGC) has recently issued an order to appoint Ombudsman for redressal of grievances of students. This will be an effective measure as students can register complaints against fees and admission process, besides ensuring good quality education infrastructure.
Many times students face problems as there is nobody to heed to their complaints against University or even the Vice Chancellor. Now, Ombudsman will prove to be an independent and effective step to improve quality of education and administration. Now, students can personally or electronically represent themselves and use another person as their representative.
The Ombudsman can hear any grievances of any student against the university or institution or institute affiliated to it after the student has availed of remedies available in such institution for redressal of grievances and any applicant for admission as student to such institution.
The Ombudsman will have power to seek the assistance of any person, belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, socially and economically backward classes, minority or disabled category, as amicus curiae, for hearing complaints of alleged discrimination.
The Ombudsman can be a person who has been a judge not below the rank of a district judge or a retired professor who has at least ten years’ experience as a professor.
But he/she should not, at the time of appointment,
during one year before such an appointment, or in the course of his tenure as Ombudsman, be in a conflict of interest with the university where his personal relationship, professional affiliation or financial interest may compromise or reasonably appear to compromise, the independence of judgement toward the university. The Ombudsman in a state university will be appointed by the university on part-time basis from a panel of three names recommended by the search committee consisting of members- nominee of the Governor of the State will be chairman of the search committee, two vice-chancellors by rotation from public universities of the State to be nominated by the State government ; one vice-chancellor by rotation from a private university of the State to be nominated by the State government and Secretary (Higher Education) of the State will be convenor of the committee.
The deemed and central university will appoint ombudsman by selecting three names recommended by search committee having nominees of UGC chairman and Joint Secretary of UGC will be convenor of such committees.
Pramod Chunchuwar
