Delhi has called on the Center to remove certain provisions from the Delhi University Law as they act as an obstacle to starting new universities in the capital, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Friday.
He said he has written to the Union’s education minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal, in this regard, adding that his government is ready to start new colleges and universities if legal provisions are relaxed.
In its 2019 Lok Sabha election campaign, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had promised that it would open new colleges and universities in the capital and offer reservations to students who are residents of Delhi.
“Students face a difficult time enrolling in colleges due to high cut scores. If the limits touch 100%, what will happen to the students who score 70%, 80%, 85%, 90%? The problem is that the number of vacancies in Delhi’s colleges and universities has not been able to keep up with the increase in the number of applicants, ”Kejriwal said at a video press conference on Friday.
He added: “Every year Delhi has around 250,000 students graduating from the school, but around 125,000 of them manage to get admitted to the Delhi-based universities. What will happen to the remaining 125,000? Currently, Delhi University has 91 affiliated colleges, Indraprastha University has 127, there are nine universities under state government, and then there is Jawaharlal Nehru University. We need to start more colleges and universities in Delhi. The Delhi government is ready. But there is a legal problem that we face. “
“There is the Delhi University Law which was enacted by the British. Section 5 (2) of the law says that any new university in Delhi must be affiliated with the University of Delhi. At the University of Delhi, no new university joined in the last 30 years. In 1998, an amendment to the law was introduced and the PI University accommodated professional courses. But that has also reached a saturation point, ”Kejriwal said.
“It is important to change the law. Today, I have written to the Union education minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal, urging him to remove Section 5 (ii) of the Delhi University Law so that new universities can be started in Delhi. It will benefit the students. The students are immensely stressed due to the high limit that has reached 100%. “
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