The All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) has issued a showcause notice to Padmabhushan Vasantdada College of Engineering at Sion for not adhering to the norms pertaining to academic and infrastructural requirements and offering courses that do not have the approval of the council.
The notice has pointed out that based on complaints received by the council, as well as the report of an expert committee that visited the college in April, it was found that the college had flouted many rules and norms and had been offering courses that did not have the approval of the concerned authorities. The authorities include the AICTE, the University of Mumbai and the Directorate of Technical Education (DTE).
Some of the problems mentioned in the showcause notice are regarding conducting of post-graduate courses that require the approval of MU; shortfall of land for infrastructure by 80 acres; expiration of the playground’s lease; absence of occupation certificate for floors above the second floor in the six-storey building; absence of board displaying anti-ragging rules; lack of fire-fighting equipment and that the laboratories have not been maintained.
However, one of the more shocking observations in the notice points to the absence of faculty and professors in courses that are already being offered. The notice mentions that the posts of professors are vacant in all departments, indicating that the college may be offering spurious courses.
Recently, on the orders of the collector, the BMC had demolished two floors of the college in April as they had been built without proper permissions. Additionally, the college had failed to pay the penalty of `18 crore for constructing illegal floors.
Dr K.T.V. Reddy, principal of the college admitted to the receipt of the notice and said that the college had already replied to the council. “The management realises that this is an effort by some vested interests to malign the college and is planning to take steps to put an end to such malicious activities. The management will be baring all the facts very soon,” said Dr Reddy.