By Special Correspondent
The new Minster of Tertiary Education and Training has called for a report from the University Grants Commission " detailing projects needing top priority and urgent implementation within the University Sector" (Ceylon Daily News of 31/12/2001) .

Surely this is like asking "pena from the thief’s mother." The Government must be aware of what has happened, and what has been done and proposed, in the name of university education, in the past seven years. The UNF maintained in its election campaign that the university education is in a mess and needs urgent reforms. How can a Minister of the UNF Government then ask these very people who are also party to this mess, for a list of top priority projects needing immediate attention.

Before the PA Government took over in 1994, there was some planning of University Education. When Dr. Stanley Kalpage was the Chairman , planning was placed on a firm footing. The UGC under the stewardship of Dr. Kalpage established the Division of Planning and Research in 1980 with a Director as its Head supported by a Statistician , Research Officer, Research Assistants and other supporting staff. Three Five-Year Corporate Plans were brought out by the UGC upto 1994. There were also implementation Plans in between. Universities worked more or less on the basis of these plans.

Annually, a Statistical Handbook was published containing all the relevant Statistics pertaining to University and Higher education. This publication was highly rated and was well received by planners, academics and researchers alike. There was also the UGC Handbook containing particulars of the University System. The Division also engaged in considerable research on higher education problems, several national and regional seminars were organised, and a significant number of very important publications were brought out.

The Division of Planning came directly under the Chairman and enjoyed so much autonomy that it was the envy of the rest of the Administration.. But as long as Dr. Kalpage was the Chairman and Professor Indraratna was the Director of Planning and research of the UGC, the Administration could not dismantle it.

Dr. Kalpage left in 1990 for another assignment of the Government. Professor Indraratna continued until he was due to retire in 1994. When the new PA Government took over, it was possible to get Professor Indraratna also out of the way, by not recommending his extension, despite his 12 year pioneering service as the Founder Director of the Division. .With Professor Indraratna out of the way, it was not difficult to dismantle the Division of Planning.

How was this done? First, the post of Director on B-1 Academic (professorial) salary was removed from the cadre and the Division was renamed as the Research and Statistics Division, completely dropping planning out of the picture which was so vital to the system. In 1997-1998. However, it was brought back on A-1 Administrative salary scale presumably to accommodate someone in view. For it was subsequently, in 1999, filled by a person on contract basis with an MBA from PIM who, it is reported, did not even appear at the interview. Strangely, he was the Managing Director of SPC when Mr. Fowsie was the Minister of Health. The Government Audit has queried this appointment, but the UGC does not seem to have taken any action regarding it so far.

Next, the Division was broken into two separate units, Planning, Management and Information, and Research and Documentation on some unknown basis. Dr. (Mrs.) Kottachchi, the most qualified of the lot in the UGC, with an M Sc in Statistics with Computer Science (London) and a Ph D in Educational Statistics, who had experience in corporate university planning for more than 10 years, was removed from planning and put in charge of the latter unit. MR.S A C M Zuhyle who has had no experience in university corporate planning, became Director/Consultant in planning.

Personal vendetta against Dr. Kottaachchi did not stop there. In the guise of reorganisation of UGC activities a decision was made that there was no need for a

Statistician/Econometrician at the UGC and she was transferred to the Library of the UGC. Soon after that, although her services could have been most valuable at the UGC, she was transferred to the University of Colombo with the cadre post, contrary to all administrative procedure. Strangely, so called reorganisation did not affect any other staff officer in the UGC Secretariat. She filed a case against the University and the UGC for this mala fide act in July 2001. Two institutions were asked to settle this while the hearing was postponed until 15 January 2002.

Although there have been two "ad hoc" consultants in the Planning, Management Information Division for the last several years, there has not been any corporate plan put out so far. The publication of the detailed Statistical Hand Book on Higher Education, which was an EMIS, was abandoned since 1997. In its place came a pamphlet in 2000, containing a Summary of University Statistics. Former Chairman Professor Tilakaratna calls it an improved version in presentation, content, and quality of the data". It is, however, obvious to anyone who compares the two publications, what a come-down the latter is. It is understood that this publication was criticised by the Parliamentary Consultative Committee for not containing adequate information. Incidentally, if Prof Tilakaratna did his job well, what was the need for the same Government to replace him with Prof. Mendis. The Secretary, of course, has survived upto this day, because she knows how to get round any new chairman, or for that matter new secretary or new Minister!

Prof. Mendis has not proved any better than his immediate predecessor. A few instances during his tenure would amply demonstrate this. General English Language Teaching programme (GELT) which was conducted annually since 1986 was abandoned in 2001,

with an adverse effect on undergraduates. No Standing Committee meeting regarding this matter was conducted in 2001 even though the money was allocated for the GELT programme by the Government.

Professor Mendis has also been very lax in allowing foreign tours to staff officers of the UGC with foreign funds transferred from the Ruhuna University. Some beneficiaries were officers on extension like the Secretary, Mrs Karunaratna and Additional Secretary Mr.Munidasa. Ruhuna Academic Staff who could have better utilised these funds were thereby denied the benefit of these funds.

Is it because of the lack of confidence in one’s own self. that Prof. Mendis became the first signatory to a Newspaper advertisement supporting the PA at the December 5 Election presumably believing that the PA which appointed him as the Chairman would be reelected to power?

All in all, nothing worthy of note has happened with the UGC initiative during the last seven years. Professor Patil in his convocation address at the South Eastern University has already highlighted even the outdatedness of the curricula of our universities and that they need urgent revision and reform to face the challenges of the modern globalised world.

There have been several cases of mishandling of admissions going before courts and losing. In the name of reforms much has been talked of, but nothing significant has been achieved except for establishing several campuses/universities without any planning with due academic consideration for the lack of teacher and other resources, etc, but purely on political pressure.

If the new Minister desires to make a headway and institute a system of university education geared to long-term sustainable growth, which is one of the major objectives of the new Government, the first thing he must do is to reform the administration of the UGC, have a new Commission of members with deep interest in higher education and who have a grasp of the University System and who are dedicated and committed, and then ask them to prepare a short-term plan highlighting the immediate priorities in the backdrop of a long-term comprehensive corporate plan. Instead, asking the present Commission and the present Administration headed by Mrs Karunaratna for a list of priority projects will be only allowing them to lead the Minister up the garden path.