UGC to develop 20 model colleges in State

MoU inked with Karnataka; Centre to bear one-third cost

 The MoU was signed for Kuniyoor Government College under Mangalore University to be set up as a model degree college.

The Karnataka government has to send a proposal to the UGC for other 19 colleges (one college in each district) in a revised format.

“The proposal will be sent within a fortnight and the UGC is likely to disburse the amount by end-December,” M Madan Gopal, Principal Secretary, Higher Education Department, Karnataka, told Deccan Herald.

 Bagalkot, Bangalore-Rural, Belgaum, Bellary, Bijapur, Chamarajanagar, Chikmagalur, Chitradurga, Dakshin Kannada, Gadag, Hassan, Haveri, Kodagu, Kolar, Koppal, Mandya, Raichur, Tumkur, Udupi and Uttar Kannada are the districts identified for the model colleges.

One notable exception is Gulbarga, which has not got a model college as it does not feature in the UGC list of educationally-backward areas. The UGC has provided that the Karnataka Government can also upgrade an existing college—which has been set up after January 1, 2008—as a model college.

The Centre will share one-third of the total budget of Rs 180 crore (Rs 9 crore for each college).

The model colleges are to be established in rural, hilly, forest or tribal areas of those backward districts and a minimum of 10 acres of land will be provided by the state.

Infrastructure

“The campus will have the administrative building with built-up area of at least 500 sq mt, academic building with built-up area of at least 3,000 sq mt to accommodate faculties, lecture/seminar rooms, library, labs, residences and hostels for at least 75 per cent of the students in the ratio of 40:60 for boys and girls and for 50 per cent of the faculty and staff,” the Karnataka Government proposal said.

Even in rural areas the teacher-student ratio will be around 1:20 and 1:1 teaching and non-teaching staff ratio.

A state-of-the-art computer centre will be set up with enough number of computers so that every student can use computer every day for one hour.

Allocation for lab equipment will be Rs 20 lakh for basic courses and Rs 10 lakh for innovative courses.

There should be at least 1,000 books, of 100 books in different titles on each subject and at least two journals per subject.  

“If the college is in non-metropolitan urban areas there should be at least 1,000 students and in case of non-urban backward area the number should be 500,” the document said.

In case the college is a women’s college in backward areas then there should be at least 150 students, it added.