The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Intake limits in minority colleges opposed

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Sep 08, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Intake limits in minority colleges opposed

Staff Reporter

`Population of community, local needs should be considered'

Hyderabad: Making intake of certain percentage of minority students compulsory for issue of minority status certificate amounts to taking away the rights guaranteed by the Constitution to minorities to establish institutions of their choice. The National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI) will take up the matter with the State Governments, Chairman M.S.A. Siddiqui has said.

He was addressing a meeting convened by the Andhra Pradesh Minorities Educational Institutions Society to highlight their problems on Thursday. It was unfortunate that some officers wanted to exercise control over minority institutions and prescribed 70 per cent intake. The actual population of the community and local needs should be taken into account, Justice Siddiqui said.

Action against officials

Referring to issues raised by representatives of the minority institutions, he said if the application seeking grant of minority status certificate was unduly delayed, the management could approach the commission with documentary evidence. Appropriate action would be taken against the official concerned. The minority institutions, he said, were free to appoint their principal. But since the matter was pending before the High Court, the commission wouldn't interfere.

Justice Siddiqui deplored that education had been elevated to the status of an industry resulting in it inheriting all the ill effects of industry.R. Renganath, Secretary, NCMEI, said last year the commission had received 373 petitions and till date 89 per cent had been disposed of. He asked the minority institutions to segregate issues before sending them to the commission. K.C. Reddy, chairman, State Council of Higher Education, said a meeting would be convened in the next fortnight with managements of minority educational institutions to evolve a holistic policy.

Permanent certificate

Earlier, in a memorandum, Sajid Pasha, president, Minorities Educational Institutions Society, urged the commission to ensure that the minority certificate was a permanent one and for the institution as a whole and not for different courses. He also wanted appointment of the head of institutions to be the choice of the governing body of the institution.

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Andhra Pradesh