West Bengal state university VCs to submit weekly reports to Governor

The Vice-Chancellors of all state-run universities in West Bengal have been directed to submit a weekly activity report to the Governor C V Ananda Bose and keep the Chancellor informed about any significant issues.

This announcement was made in a letter sent by a joint secretary level officer of Governor's Secretariat on April 4. The Governor, who is also the Chancellor of all state-run universities, has requested that the weekly activity report be submitted via email on the last working day of the week. The letter also stated that any decision with financial implications must receive prior approval from the Hon'ble Chancellor.

In addition, the Vice-Chancellors have been given the contact information of Major Nikhil Kumar, who will serve as the liaison between them and the Hon'ble Chancellor. The letter further stated that Debasis Ghosh, Senior Special Secretary to the Governor, will coordinate university matters at the Raj Bhavan.

While a Vice-Chancellor of a state-run university confirmed the receipt of the letter, they requested anonymity. However, they acknowledged that the communique from the Hon'ble Chancellor's office is an official request for weekly updates on the functioning of educational institutions. The Vice-Chancellor assured that they will comply with the directive and do not foresee any issues arising.

The announcement comes after the West Bengal government reversed its earlier decision to make Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee the Chancellor of state universities during Jagdeep Dhankhar's tenure. The state government objected to his alleged meddling in the autonomy of state universities through various unilateral actions, such as convening meetings with Vice-Chancellors and going against government-recommended names for new Vice-Chancellors.

Recently, West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu announced that Governor C V Ananda Bose would continue to be the Chancellor of state universities, and the state foresaw no problems working with him on university matters. However, Basu was not available for comment on the recent directive from the Raj Bhavan.

In early March, Governor C V Ananda Bose held a meeting with Vice-Chancellors of all state universities and the Education Minister to discuss better synergy and coordination in running academic-administrative affairs. The weekly activity report directive appears to be a continuation of those efforts.