As 13 student unions and the Ministry of Education (MoE) struck an eight-point pact on Friday following a series of talks, the last obstacle to TU´s decision to phase out PCL has been removed. "We have at last done away with PCL," TU Registrar Bhim Raj Adhikari told myrepublica.com. [break]
With grades XI and XII becoming an extended form of school education internationally, the country´s oldest university, with its resolve to devote much of its strength to university education and research, had decided in 1992 to phase out PCL.
However, the decision fell into limbo owing to government apathy toward building and upgrading infrastructure for community +2 schools, something essential for phasing out PCL.
In recent years, the government´s utter failure at upgrading community +2 schools had been a perfect excuse for student unions to obstruct the phasing out of PCL. Eventually last year, student unions agreed to let TU phase out PCL against a set of preconditions.
However, this year the unions again sprung into action, accusing the government of not addressing their demands.
The MoE-student unions agreement came in the face of the unions´ recent announcement to step up their agitations.
"We finally reached a conclusion," said Pradip Poudel, president of Nepal Students Union (NSU), one of the 13 agitating unions affiliated to different political parties. "There will be no more protest. TU will not face obstacles in the way ahead."
As per the new pact, MoE will construct community +2 schools with science faculties for students from all 240 electoral constituencies; provide a quota of three teachers to each school; fix monthly educational fees on par with TU´s fee structure; and provide subsidy to all community +2 schools.
Similarly, MoE will formulate a fee ceiling for all private +2 schools.
Only partial
TU´s much talked-about decision to phase out PCL is only partial, however. From this academic year, 60 constituent campuses of TU have stopped taking student admissions in the science, management, education and humanities faculties. However, TU will continue with the PCL in forestry, engineering and medicine.
"We have not phased out PCL in these three technical faculties since the government has not yet constructed enough infrastructure," TU Registrar Adhikari told myrepublica.com. "We will decide to phase out PCL from these faculties as well the moment the government fulfils its responsibility of upgrading infrastructure at community +2 schools."
Last year, of the total of 36,885 SLC (School Leaving Certificate) graduates who enrolled at TU´s constituent campuses for PCL, 3,089 students had chosen engineering, medicine and forestry.
Student unions have urged the government to build enough community +2 schools for students aspiring to study under these faculties as well before phasing out PCL completely.
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