DU-UGC standoff: Teachers, students on hunger strike

The Four Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUP), introduced last year, has drawn flak from both students and teachers but the Delhi University has held that it will not be scrapped.

With admission to the undergraduate programme beginning on Tuesday, hassled students are hoping for clarity and a quick end to the UGC-DU row.

The standoff affects nearly 3 lakh students waiting to enroll in college this year.

Major colleges have held their cut-off lists for now.

Earlier on Monday, principals of 36 colleges held a meeting and decided to hold admissions till the dispute was resolved.

Student organisations protested before the office of the HRD ministry in New Delhi, however the ministry said it wouldn’t interfere in the matter.

Protests by teachers and students who want the 4-year-old course are likely to escalate today.

Teachers who favour the system also plan to sit on hunger strike for 24 hours.

Colleges have also been directed by the UGC to stop admitting students under the FYUP and take fees only for the three years programme.

The university's Vice Chancellor Dinesh Singh may provoke the UGC to take legal action to remove him, according to sources.

The UGC has also appointed a 10-member committee to oversee the transition into the old system. This means that the courses of over 60,000 students would have to be restructured who had enrolled last year under the 4-year format.