UGC Chairman meets Irani over DU admission row

A day after issuing an order to Delhi University to roll back its four-year undergraduate programme, University Grants Commission Chairman Ved Prakash today met HRD Minister Smriti Irani who is understood to have intervened to end the stand-off.

Irani is also understood to have expressed her displeasure over the delay in solving the matter with the DU authorities as the admission process to the undergraduate programme kicks off from tomorrow.

UGC had yesterday issued directions both to DU and all 64 colleges under it to conduct admission under the three-year under-graduate programme and not under the controversial four-year UG programme implemented by the varsity last year.

Commission has warned both DU as well as the colleges of "consequences" if they failed to implement UGC direction by this forenoon.

After meeting HRD Minister, the UGC chairman also met Higher Education Secretary Ashok Thakur to discuss the development.

The meeting came even as various student bodies demonstrated in front of the Ministry here demanding roll back of the programme.

On the other hand, a ten-member committee, set up by UGC, headed by Prakash, is meeting for the first time today at 4 pm to discuss the smooth transition of the under graduate programme from four years to three years.