Appointing administrator for 7 colleges gains momentum, main office at Dhaka College

The activities of the seven large government colleges in Dhaka will continue under a unified framework to be supervised by the University Grants Commission (UGC) until a new university is established.

Under this interim arrangement, professor AKM Elius, the recently retired principal of Dhaka College, is set to be appointed as the administrator.

As his official term of service has ended, professor Elius is likely to be appointed as the administrator and principal of Dhaka College on a contractual basis.

The main office of this interim administration will be established at Dhaka College, the UGC and related sources said.

A gazette notification appointing the administrator may be issued within the next couple of days.

Such contractual appointments are usually formalised through a gazette notification from the public administration ministry.

The seven government colleges in Dhaka are - Dhaka College, Eden Mohila College, Government Shaheed Suhrawardy College, Kabi Nazrul Government College, Begum Badrunnessa Government Girls’ College, Government Bangla College, and Government Titumir College.

There are nearly 200,000 students studying in those seven colleges collectively. There are over 1,000 teachers in those colleges.

The colleges were under the National University earlier. But those were brought under the Dhaka University on 17 February 2017.

Since then the students of the colleges demonstrated at different times on demand of holding exams and publishing results on time and various other demands.

Their grievances accumulated over the years. Then the students of the seven colleges waged a movement. As a result the authorities in January announced to separate the colleges from Dhaka University.

The government has now decided to establish a new university for these seven colleges, which will be named “Dhaka Central University”.

This new university will operate under a “hybrid model” where approximately 40 per cent of classes will be conducted online and 60 per cent in-person.

Unlike the current system, where every subject is taught at each college, the new model will introduce faculty-based classes at the colleges. For example, business-related subjects might be taught at Government Titumir College, likewise other colleges will host classes for other faculties.

However, establishing a new university is a time-consuming process, which involves legislation, infrastructure, and other logistical considerations.

UGC sources said until the new university is formally established, the seven colleges will function under an interim administrative structure. A principal from one of the seven colleges will serve as the chief (administrator) of this temporary setup.

Representatives from Dhaka University’s exam controller’s office, admission office, registrar’s office, and accounts department will also be part of this transitional administration. Although discussions have been going on for some time, the appointment of the administrator has not yet been finalised.

In response to the situation, students from the seven colleges have once again threatened to launch a movement. On Saturday, representatives of the students announced that if the official notification regarding the formation of the interim administration is not issued by Sunday, they will be compelled to resume their protest programmes Monday.

Apart from this, the students demanded an announcement of an ordinance for the new university within 30 working days and unveiling a blueprint and monogram for the proposed Dhaka Central University within five working days.

In this context, the process of appointing an administrator for the interim administration of the seven colleges has reportedly gained momentum and is expected to be finalised within the next couple of days.