Iran Consul General complains of middlemen in BU

MoU for academic collaboration and a Persian language chair on the cards

Currently there are over 3,000 Iranian students pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate courses at the varsity as well as colleges affiliated to the varsity.
Speaking to Deccan Herald, after the meeting with the Consul General, Prabhu Dev maintained that he could only act if the agents and middle-men operated within the ambit of the varsity.

“The University cannot really control private institutions employing agents to attract students from abroad as there is seldom any evidence. Therefore, I asked the Consul General to take it up with the State government,” he said.  
He added that the question of agents interfering in admissions for postgraduate courses did not arise after the Central Admissions and counselling procedure had been put in place.

Pact

Also on the agenda is a potential academic collaboration between BU and universities in Iran. Mahmoud Safari Fardhok, who heads Iran’s consulate in Hyderabad expressed his interest in setting up faculty and student exchange initiatives with the University in the areas of basic sciences and bio-technology.

A faculty exchange programme with the Tehran University figured very highly in the discussions with both parties coming to an understanding. Prabhu Dev said that an MoU between the two varsities was on the cards.

“We will soon work on the terms of the programme and will sign the MoU in a month’s time,” he said.

Persian Chair

The interaction between the two also led to an agreement to set up a Chair for Persian language at the University.

The Vice-Chancellor said, “The foreign languages department at the Bangalore University currently offers 10 languages and Persian will soon be an addition. The Consul General has agreed to depute a Professor of Persian in a month’s time to start the Chair.”