Calcutta University has increased the number of seats in the four-year BTech programme but has yet to appoint additional teachers or provide adequate classrooms, said teachers, accusing the authorities of lack of planning.
The university increased the student count of the four-year BTech programme from 253 to 414 this year.
However, the teachers said the absence of enough faculty members was affecting
classes.
The crisis of teachers has become so acute that the theory and practical classes are being held in two shifts each day.
The university has yet to provide the engineering and technology faculty with a new building on the technology campus in Salt Lake to accommodate the additional students.
The registrar of the university, Debasish Das, said they had called a meeting of the syndicate (CU’s highest decision-making body) on December 4 to discuss the issues being faced by the faculty. He also said they are planning to appoint more contractual teachers to meet the crisis.
The first-year classes of the four-year BTech programme are taken by contractual teachers. But the number of such teachers has not increased despite the rise in the number of seats.
The university is not in a position to appoint permanent teachers as it does not have a full-term vice-chancellor.
The registrar said they would discuss the space constraint at the syndicate meeting.
“The syndicate will meet on December 4 to discuss the appointment of contractual teachers. More rooms have to be allotted for those studying the BTech programme. The issue will be raised at the syndicate meeting,” Das told Metro.
A CU official said there are seven contractual teachers for first-year students.
Although the university engages guest teachers, they are not allowed to take more than 20 theory classes in a semester. So the university relies on the contractual teachers.
“Many contractual teachers have left as the university has not increased their remuneration over the past 10 years,” said a CU official.
The university had in June asked teachers in the science faculty to take classes in the four-year BTech programme because there are not enough teachers in the engineering faculty.
“But that has not helped much as science teachers have their own classes. Besides, teaching positions are vacant in the science faculty as well,” said a CU official.
The first-year BTech students are taught fundamental courses allied to physics, chemistry and mathematics.
A teacher of the information and technology department said: “We have informed the university about the shortage of teachers and space constraints. They will hopefully look into the problems and resolve them.”
The dean of engineering, Debotosh Guha, said such constraints arise during a transition period and there is not much to worry about.
Sankhayan Choudhury, a professor in the computer science department, said they are worried about the impact on the students in their second year, when specialisations start.
“Our department has 16 full-time teaching posts. We have only eight full-time teachers. Two of them
will retire in January. The
university should have spoken to the state government
about creating additional posts and filling the vacant ones before raising the number of BTech seats. There should have been proper planning (before the increasing the seat count),” Choudhury
said.