Karnataka: Minister M C Sudhakar moots panel to regulate honorary doctorates

Bengaluru: Minister for Higher Education Dr M C Sudhakar has proposed the constitution of an expert panel to regulate honorary doctorates.

In a letter to Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot, also the chancellor of universities, Dr Sudhakar mentioned about the lack of standards in awarding honorary doctorates. 

It said due to the lack of standard uniform norms, multiple universities were awarding honorary doctorates to same persons. In the letter, the minister sought approval to constitute the panel.

The move comes in the wake of Congress member Ramesh Babu raising the issue in the Legislative Council recently, urging the government to set up a regulatory mechanism. 

According to the letter, provisions under the Karnataka State Universities Act, 2000, empower universities to confer honorary doctorates on distinguished individuals for their contributions.

However, the absence of clear guidelines has led to instances of multiple universities honouring the same person, raising questions about credibility and standardisation.

Uniform guidelines

“To preserve the dignity, credibility and sanctity of honorary degrees, it has become necessary to evolve uniform regulatory guidelines,” the minister’s letter said.

The matter was not addressed during the vice-chancellors’ conference held on February 21, where discussions were limited to convocation procedures and academic calendars.

So, the government has now proposed the formation of a a dedicated expert committee. 

To ensure transparency 

It will review current norms and recommend new ones to ensure transparency and uniformity across all public, private and deemed-to-be universities in the state in conferring honorary doctorates. 

In the current system, public universities shortlist names in the syndicate and submit the same to the governor. The committee constituted by the governor does the final recommendation.