West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu has said the state government will not abide by the decision of the University Grants Commission (UGC) to universities to stop admission to MPhil programmes for the 2023-24 academic year.

UGC Secretary Manish Joshi on December 27 said, "It has come to the notice of the UGC that a few universities are inviting fresh applications for MPhil (Master of Philosophy) programmes. In this regard, it is to bring to the notice that MPhil is not a recognised degree.

"Regulation number 14 of the UGC (Minimum Standards and Procedures for Award of PhD Degree) Regulations, 2022 clearly states that higher educational institutions shall not offer an MPhil programme".

Asked if West Bengal will also go by the UGC decision, Basu told reporters on the sidelines of a programme on Thursday, "We will not follow the diktat of UGC".

Emphasising that the state higher education department will go by the guidelines earlier framed by the expert committee of academics, Basu said MPhil courses will continue to be run in state universities.

"The state has its own policies with regard to MPhil courses in state universities and there is no reason to tinker with that," Basu said.

UGC in its recent communique to universities in the country against offering MPhil courses, maintained it is not a recognised degree and cautioned students against taking admission in such programme. The MPhil programme was discontinued by UGC in November 2022.

The UGC also advised students not to take admission in any MPhil course.

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