The top decision-making body of Delhi University (DU) on Saturday dropped a proposal to allow private individuals to donate over ₹5 crore for the creation of an infrastructural facility and get it named after anyone they want.

The DU’s executive council (EC) met here and decided to scrap the proposal after some members argued that such a move amounted to selling the university to donors.

The proposal, if adopted, would have enabled DU to accept donations from corporate houses and philanthropists to create state-of-the-art infrastructure in laboratories, libraries, academic blocks, students’ recreation centres, hostels and auditoriums.

“It is proposed that where a donor desires to contribute an amount exceeding ₹5 crore in a specified name for any new building/part of new building/addition in the existing structures such as hostel, laboratory, teaching blocks, library, auditorium etc, the donor may apply for renaming/naming of the structure,” the proposal stated.

Members of the Academics for Action and Development Teachers Association (ADTA) protested saying the move would hand over the institution to private individuals.

“We protested this move, which means selling the university space to private individuals. The EC decided to drop it,” said Seema Das, a member of the ADTA.

Admission delay

The admission to undergraduate courses in the DU was supposed to be completed by the third week of July. However, the National Testing Agency (NTA) has not declared the results of the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) based on which the DU and other central universities admit students.

Das said that a few members raised concerns in the EC meeting over the delay in admission that would disrupt the academic calendar for first-year UG students. They demanded that the university should go back to the earlier mark-based system of admission or hold its own entrance test. Vice-chancellor Yogesh Singh said this year’s delay should be considered an exceptional case.

In a media release, the university said three projects would be funded by the Higher Education Funding Authority (HEFA) loans. Accordingly, a proposal has been drawn up to construct a new academic building at Surajmal Vihar for ₹373 crore; a college/academic building at Roshanpura Najafgarh for ₹140.10 crore; and a new academic building on a vacant plot at Dwarka for ₹107.18 crore.