Karnataka government plans to scrap annual LIC visits to colleges

The state government is thinking of scrapping Local Inquiry Committee (LIC) visits to colleges every year. Universities constitute LICs that visit colleges to decide on affiliation.

The plan is to give affiliation to colleges for a three-year period, renewable by asking institutions to mandatorily file self-disclosures that will be made public.

Principal Secretary (Higher Education) Rashmi V Mahesh said the plan is in the preliminary stage.

“Our idea is to avoid repeated visits by LICs to colleges. Instead, colleges can make self-disclosures, which can be verified by anybody,” she said.

She further added that the department is also thinking of restricting the government’s say in the renewal of affiliation.

“It is not necessary that all applications should come to the government for approval. Only applications seeking fresh affiliation can be submitted to the government and the rest can be decided by the universities,” Rashmi explained.

According to sources from the department, the government is tweaking the process mainly following complaints from some of the college managements about the delay in getting renewal of affiliation and having to do the same exercise every year. Also, over the years, LIC visits have become notorious for all the wrong reasons.

Recently, the government asked state-run universities to stop appointing Syndicate members in LICs.

That the same Syndicate members will decide on the LIC reports was the reason for the government’s directive.