After opposing the Centre’s New Education Policy for months, the Mamata Banerjee Government has, in a sudden move, announced that colleges in West Bengal will have to start the four-year Undergraduate course from this academic year itself, replacing the existing three-year course. The sudden move comes at a time when the admission season is about to kick off after the Class XII results of all boards have been announced. It has also caught the colleges off-guard since they do not have the infrastructure required to implement the four-year course in place of the three-year course. The state universities and colleges have flagged infrastructural shortcomings in terms of human resources, which include teachers and support staff, and physical infrastructure in terms of building space. The move, announced through a statement by the Higher Education Department, said the decision has been taken after holding talks with all stakeholders and on the recommendation of a state-appointed expert panel that had suggested rolling out a four-year UG course in the 2023–24 academic year.
Noting that the new policy, recommended by the UGC, would be advantageous for the students as they would now require only one year to complete their Masters degree, Mamata Banerjee said today that her government had to accept it because other states were adapting to it. “Earlier, we used to see that three years were needed to complete graduation. Now, a change has been brought in. Those pursuing graduation in a “pass course’ will need three years to complete the course, while those in honours courses will require four years, as suggested by the UGC. There is an advantage. You will need only one year to complete your master’s degree. So the matter remains the same,” Banerjee said at a programme to felicitate Class XII toppers.
However, the State Education Minister, Bratya Basu, said the decision to implement four-year UG courses this year was in no way an acceptance of the NEP, which the “Trinamool is opposed to”. One of the key features of the National Education Policy, 2020, is the introduction of a four-year honours course at the UG level in place of the existing three years and a one-year postgraduate course instead of two years, or the 4+1 format in place of the erstwhile 3+2 format.
While three teachers’ bodies slammed the decision, a pro-Trinamool Congress professors’ body said the state should not lag behind when the same 4+1 formula (four-year UG and one-year PG) is being rolled out in the rest of the country from this academic year.
The West Bengal College and University Teachers’ Association (WBCUTA), the All Bengal University Teachers’ Association (ABUTA), and the Jadavpur University Teachers’ Association (JUTA) decried the announcement made by the State Higher Education Department, describing it as “ill-conceived with an eye on corporatizing the education sector”.