TN scores high in college education but fund, faculty challenges remain
CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu is a top performer in higher education as validated by its Gross Enrolment Ratio of 47%, which is nearly twice the national average, and in number of higher education institutions proportionate to the population.
Such figures, however, mask some crucial issues ailing the sector like the financial situation of state-run universities, faculty vacancies, and quality of education and research.
To its credit, the DMK government led by Chief Minister M K Stalin has introduced impactful schemes like Naan Mudhalvan, Tamil Pudhalvan and Pudhumai Penn to encourage more students to enrol in higher education and upskill themselves.
For instance, Pudhumai Penn scheme which offers monthly scholarship of Rs 1,000 to women students has helped double the number of girl students in higher education from 2.09 lakh in 2022-23 to 4.06 lakh in 2024-25. Naan Mudhalvan, an upskilling initiative, is being implemented in 353 engineering colleges and 827 arts and science colleges.
The effective functioning of state-run universities, however, has been severely affected in the past few years due to the tussle between Governor R N Ravi and the TN government.
With the Supreme Court resolving this issue to a large extent through a landmark verdict last month, academicians expect the state to address the issues troubling higher education expeditiously.
Of the 22 state universities, 12 are functioning without a Vice-Chancellor and educationists say that it is imperative for the government to swiftly appoint persons of high academic and administrative repute to these posts at the earliest.
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27 minutes ago
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Granting interim bail to Sharmishta Panoli, HC directs West Bengal cops to give her protection
She later deleted the video and issued an apology on 15 May, but the Kolkata Police took her into custody, saying she and her family 'absconded,' and attempts to serve notices to appear for questioning were not successful. On Saturday, Sharmishta was produced before the Alipore Court in Kolkata, which remanded her in judicial custody for 14 days. Panoli was arrested by Kolkata police from Gurugram, Haryana, last week in connection with an FIR filed at Kolkata's Garden Reach police station over an Instagram video on Operation Sindoor in which she allegedly made controversial remarks about Prophet Muhammed. New Delhi: Calcutta High Court Thursday granted interim bail to 22-year-old law student and influencer Sharmishta Panoli. The court directed Panoli to furnish a bail bond of Rs 10,000 while instructing the police to provide her with protection if she faces any threats. The arrest had triggered a political fallout with leaders from both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress accusing the West Bengal police and the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) of overreach and stifling freedom of speech. Before the court directed the state police to ensure her safety if she were to face any potential threats, Advocate General Kishore Datta, representing the state, argued in front of Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury that Panoli evaded police and was arrested outside West Bengal; hence, regular bail had not been granted earlier, reported Live Law. The state contended that the appropriate course of action was to apply for regular bail, not to move the high court under Article 226 of the Constitution. In response, the high court sought details of the FIR from the case diary. The Advocate General contended that Panoli's remarks led to public disturbances and also urged that the case be transferred to a regular bench. At this point, the judge noted that simply because a different judge was hearing the matter did not invalidate prior observations by a coordinated bench. Challenging the state's argument, Senior Advocate D.P. Singh, appearing for Panoli, argued that the arrest was improper as no prior notice had been served. He said Panoli had approached the high court instead of seeking regular bail because her fundamental rights were at stake. Drawing comparisons with the Supreme Court's grant of interim bail to Ashoka University Professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad on 21 May in an FIR lodged by Haryana Police over his social media post on 'Operation Sindoor', Singh argued that the FIR did not disclose a cognizable offence, submitting that 'blasphemy is not part of Indian law'. He also argued that Panoli had deleted the controversial video the very next day and issued an apology. The court took into account that her college details were revealed in the complaint, which allegedly led to threats against her. Considering these factors, the court held that custodial interrogation was not necessary any longer and granted Panoli interim bail. This is an updated version of the report (Edited by Amrtansh Arora) Also Read: Sharmishta Panoli arrest brings Congress's Karti, BJP's Suvendu on same page; Dutch MP also chimes in
