Loreto College handover to govt issue

Darjeeling : The entire town is mulling alternatives that might stall the total takeover of Loreto College by the state government.

Academicians and common people alike feel that after the takeover, the institution will be run by bureaucrats and red tape will come in the way of quick decisions and appointments. Some of them had cited the example of Darjeeling Government College, which has till date 47 vacant teaching posts.

A group of “concerned citizens” today held an informal meeting and said they would request the Sisters to rethink the decision. Sujata Agarawal, secretary of Loreto College Alumni, who attended the meeting, said: “Once the government takes charge, it will be difficult for the college to uphold the standard of education it has been imparting so long. We will request the Sisters to carry on with the management of the college.”

Some academicians, however, feel that an amendment of the agreement between the Sisters and the state government can help.

“Earlier, when the college was founded, the nuns enjoyed more freedom. They could appoint teachers and it was not mandatory for the Sisters to be doctorate degree holders to be the principal,” said an academician.

But with the agreement, things changed. The Sisters can now appoint only two teachers and an honorary principal.

It is learnt that the Darjeeling Loreto Education Society, which runs the college, has only two nuns possessing doctorate degrees. This means that only the two of them are eligible to the post of principals. It comes as no surprise therefore, the academician said, that the Sisters “are running short of manpower”.

A more flexible agreement can solve the problem. “The nuns can then run the institutions like in the earlier days,” said the academician.

Even if the Sisters refuse, there were suggestions to hand over the college to other Christian missionaries. A Jesuit father said “such a proposal should first come from the state government”. Many are not averse to the idea of “at least going through the proposal”.

“Right now, teachers at the institution are appointed through the College Service Commission. Once the status becomes minority, the trust or society can appoint its own teachers and principal who fulfill basic UGC criteria,” another educationist said.

Source: The Telegraph