Trichy: Despite stiff resistance from teachers of affiliated colleges, Bharathidasan University has decided to go with the University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations, 2016 to reduce the number of research scholars to be guided by a research supervisor.However, what has come as a relief for the college teachers is that the PhD thesis of research scholars need no more be sent to a foreign examiner for evaluation. Instead, an external examiner within the country would evaluate the research work. The research committee of the university that met on Friday gave final shape to the revised PhD regulations that the university would adopt in line with the UGC regulations of 2016. The draft PhD regulations prepared by the research committee will be tabled at the next meeting of the syndicate for approval following which they will be notified.While the UGC introduced regulations for minimum standards and procedure for award of M.Phil./PhD Degrees in 2016, every university has been adopting it after making minor changes. On Friday, amidst resistance from representatives of college teachers, the vice-chancellor refused to make any changes to the 2016 regulations in terms of increasing the number of research scholars a research supervisor can guide.So far, an assistant professor as a research superior was guiding eight research scholars, equal to a professor as research supervisor. While associate professors were also guiding a maximum of eight research scholars, UGC regulations 2016 had put a cap on the number of research scholars to be guided by associate and assistant professors. An assistant professor can guide a maximum of four research scholars and an associate professor six. Also, an assistant professor could guide only one MPhil scholar, associate professor two and professor one.However, the Tamil Nadu Government College Teachers Association (TNGCTA) has strongly opposed the new policy saying that it was against the welfare of the teaching and student communities. Saying that the move would curtail the progress of first generation graduates and students from rural areas who were making use of the facilities at government colleges for research, zonal secretary of TNGCTA, P David Livingstone, said that assistant professors should not be deemed inferior to professors when their service was cherished for evaluation of examination papers.However, the vice-chancellor accepted the request for not sending the research thesis to foreign examiners. While a PhD thesis submitted to the university had to mandatorily be sent to an examiner outside the country for evaluation, the university has now decided to abolish the rule. “Vice-chancellor P Manisankar agreed to the demands of college teachers while observing that faculty members within the country are in no way inferior to those in other universities,” said a senior faculty member at the university.David Livingstone questioned the 200 per cent increase in PhD submission fee and sought its rollback. “While the PhD course fee has been increased from Rs 4,000 to Rs 6,000, research scholars who were paying Rs 5,000 as submission fee have to pay Rs 15,000 henceforth, which is exorbitant and we seek its rollback,” he said.

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