Degrees of disillusionment in Tamil Nadu’s government colleges, universities

These are worrying times for higher education in Tamil Nadu. First of all, 12 universities in the state do not have a Vice Rector. Besides the iconic University of Madras, the list of ‘headless institutions’ includes Periyar University, Anna University, Bharathiar University, Madurai Kamaraj University, Bharathidasan University, Tamil Nadu University of Teacher Education, Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Tamil University and Tamil Nadu University of Physical Education and Sports.

Many of them have been operating without a VC for at least two years, depriving them not only of administrative leadership but also of representation in the upper echelons of the Ministry of Education. For the past two to three years, the Governor’s usual process of selecting a VC, in his capacity as Chancellor, from among three possible candidates recommended by a search committee has been bogged down.

Governor RN Ravi insisted that the University Grants Commission (UGC) 2018 regulations should be followed in the appointment of V-Cs, especially the clause that one member of the search committee must be a UGC candidate. However, the State government said that since it did not accept the UGC clause in question, it did not implement it. Tamil Nadu would prefer the process to be guided by State legislation rather than Central rules. The resulting impasse affected the normal functioning of 12 institutions.

Pending decisions

It has been 10 months since the last VC M. Selvam was removed from Bharathidasan University and the delay in appointing a new VC has created concern in academic circles. Mr. Selvam, who served as VC for four years after a one-year extension, resigned from his post on February 5. A three-member Vice-Chancellor Meeting Committee was subsequently constituted to perform the duties of the VC until an appointment to the post was made.

According to information obtained from university sources, daily work has slowed down due to the absence of VC in the university. Senior officials said many decisions were kept pending and consensus on some issues was delayed simply because committee members were in different locations.

The university, which has 38 departments and about 153 affiliated colleges, has reached an impasse over the renewal of its National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) certification and the annual meeting has been postponed. “With a regular VC present on the campus, the files and affairs of the university will continue without delay instead of being sent to higher officials for sanction. Even though video conferencing meetings are held, important matters are delayed. The physical presence of the VC is crucial for the improvement of administration,” said David Livingstone, State President, University Teachers’ Association, Government of Tamil Nadu.

Reputation affected

The absence of a VC at Madurai Kamaraj University for over a year has badly affected the reputation of the decades-old institution, a senior professor said. “Once MKU was producing world-class research papers and studies, but now mismanagement and infighting between the State and the Governor [Chancellor] “I pushed everything else to the backseat,” he said.

At Periyar University, Salem, the position of V-C remained vacant since May. Since 2018, the posts of Registrar, Controller of Examinations (CoE) and Distance Education Manager have remained vacant. The university administration has called for applications for these positions four times in the last seven years.

Filling up of important posts like Registrar and CoE in recent months after years has been welcomed at the Bharathiar University in Coimbatore. But in the absence of a full-time VC, important files continue to be sent to the Higher Education Secretary, who is the Convener of the Vice-Chancellor’s Search Committee, for approval.

T. Veeramani, former Principal of Government College for Women, Coimbatore, who had earlier served as the State president of the University Teachers’ Association of the Government of Tamil Nadu, said, “There can never be quick resolution to the problems related to teaching, research and extension activities at Bharathiar University without the appointment of a full-time VC.”

There are reportedly at least 9,000 vacancies in government colleges in Tamil Nadu. “About 96 colleges have no principals. Without new appointments, staff who have served 10 to 20 years will not be able to progress to senior positions. Once they reach retirement age, they are not eligible for promotion,” Mr Livingstone said.

State arts and science colleges were opened in 15 districts in May. However, sources said most of them were operating without proper infrastructure and personnel. On October 15, an announcement was made for the recruitment of 2 thousand 708 assistant professors through the Teacher Recruitment Board (TRB). However, the online application procedure was rife with technical glitches. Tamil Nadu All Government College UGC Qualified Guest Lecturers Association recently said that more than 400 candidates could not register for the vacant seats despite appearing for the TRB exam held in 2024. The association also alleged that the colleges where they had previously worked were further compounding the problem by delaying the issuance of service/experience certificates by 10-20 days and some of them were demanding a fee of 100 TL. ₹2,000-₹10,000 from applicants.

Earlier this year, the body called on the Ministry of Higher Education to transfer guest lecturers who are being replaced by permanent staff to fill vacancies at other institutions, rather than leaving them in limbo. The affected guest lecturers had served for five to eight years and earned a monthly salary of only ₹25,000. A total of 7,360 visiting professors are working in 164 government arts and science colleges in Tamil Nadu. Unlike full-time appointees, visiting professors receive only 11 months’ salary with no service benefits.

‘Renew the courses’

A former VC, who requested anonymity, said universities that are truly short on manpower have the opportunity to exercise autonomy and revamp courses to increase students’ enrollment by offering interdisciplinary programmes. “There is no point in teachers continuing private lessons in single faculty departments with a handful of students. The ideal approach would be to combine such departments and offer interdisciplinary programs that suit the needs of the market.”

Be it Bharathiar University or government colleges, dependence on visiting faculty is increasing. However, at several long-standing public arts and sciences colleges, visiting faculty members far outnumber regular faculty members. “The government, while approving new programmes, should also issue orders for appointment of regular faculty members. University heads are trying to optimize the available manpower to ensure prescribed teaching-learning days in an academic year,” said a senior faculty member of a government college in Coimbatore district.

Teachers of government-aided colleges in Tamil Nadu have been demanding immediate release of revised salaries under the Career Development Scheme (CAS), which has been pending for years. In 2021, a Government Order was issued stating that monetary benefits under CAS to teachers in aided colleges would be paid from 2018, but the revision proposed by the Seventh Pay Commission came into force in 2016.

Association of University Teachers (AUT) president J. Gandhiraj said that in the current situation, salary fixation has been made for only 300 teachers in Thanjavur and a few teachers in Coimbatore and Tiruchi in March 2024. “We have met at least six Higher Education Secretaries and two Ministers in the last four years. All we received was ‘reassurance’,” he continued. He pointed out that there are at least 4,000 CAS-eligible teachers in 163 government-aided colleges across the state.

Professor Gandhiraj added that government officials had said off the record that the State government was weighed down by a huge loan burden. “They have even stopped issuing CAS orders in the last six months. We are helpless.”

AUT and Madurai Kamaraj, Manonmaniam Sundaranar, Mother Teresa and Alagappa Universities Teachers Association (MUTA) staged at least 40 protests, including a one-day fast at the University Education Directorate.

Temporary staff appointments

There has been no direct recruitment in Tamil Nadu government and aided colleges for the last 10 years. “The state is just getting by through redeployment and ad hoc staff appointments. A PhD holder who passes all the exams and gets a regular teaching job will get only INR 25,000. There is another category of teachers who work for INR 10,000 or INR 8,000. Bureaucratic arrogance is hindering the careers of many teachers,” said PB Prince Gajendra Babu, General Secretary, State Joint Platform. School System-Tamil Nadu (SPCSS-TN).

Added to this is administrative bookkeeping, which has been created by launching initiatives such as: Naan Mudalvan, Pudhumai PennAnd Tamil Pudhalvan. “While these programs are an excellent opportunity for young people, especially students in rural areas, the government should also have planned a separate organization to coordinate the data collection required for these programmes. As of now, this is all done by teachers, whether it is student orientation or collecting data to upload to the system. This is affecting their routine classroom work and many teachers are doing the work of upper division clerks,” Mr Livingstone said.

weaken the system

Interestingly, Tamil Nadu topped the National Institutional Rankings Framework (NIRF) Rankings 2024 with 18 institutions in the top 100 Overall Rankings. According to the Policy Note 2025-26 released by the Department of Higher Education, “The State has a rich history of educational institutions and continues to thrive in the field of higher education. With an ever-expanding infrastructure, rigorous academic programs and commitment to improving quality standards, Tamil Nadu has established itself as the country’s leading State in higher education with its staggering Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER).”

This has created a gap between the ground reality and the idealistic standards promoted by policy makers at the State and Central levels. Many educators also see a move to replace the current system with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. “Tamil Nadu is known for social justice, where all sections of society have access to higher education. It is sad to see the educational structure being systematically destroyed,” Mr. Babu said. “When the Center implements NEP 2020 without the concurrence of States, it wants to ensure the collapse of the existing university system.”

Academics, Higher Education Commission of India Bill, 2025 (Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025) can increase the central government’s role in the sector. “This is no ordinary bill introduced in Parliament. It will sabotage the entire system and allow foreign actors to enter the field, affecting vulnerable sections of students. The main objective of NEP 2020 is to promote privatization and commercialization of education,” Mr. Babu said.

Essentially, Tamil Nadu’s education framework is weakening and this is an issue that will have a ripple effect on the next generation of students.

(Contributed by Saptarshi Bhattacharya in Chennai, R. Krishnamoorthy in Coimbatore, C. Palanivel Rajan in Madurai and M. Sabari in Salem)