State universities have initiated steps to enrol students for their distance-education courses. The move brings to an end the uncertainty over the prospects of open and distance learning (ODL) this academic year and follows the government’s advice to gear up for the admission process.
The promulgation of the ordinance for the Sree Narayana Guru Open University (SNGOU) had virtually barred other universities from conducting distance education programmes and private registrations as such domains were brought under the purview of the SNGOU. However, the recent stay by the Kerala High Court of the ordinance provisions dealt a blow to the government’s hopes of fully operationalising the fledgling university.
Official sources now concede that the court order has made it unlikely for the SNGOU to start any academic programmes this year, and the turn of events has paved the way for other universities to continue with their distance education programmes for one more year. The developments have also stalled the necessity for existing students to migrate to the new university midway through their courses.
UGC node
Currently, only the University of Kerala has obtained recognition from the University Grants Commission to offer programmes under the ODL mode in the 2020-21 academic year.
R. Vasanthagopal, Director, School of Distance Education, Kerala University, said the admissions for UG and PG courses were under way. Registrations can be done online till October 31 and November 18 respectively. The university admits 10,500 students for its ODL courses on an average annually.
The University of Calicut, which attracts the highest number of distance education learners in the State, has sought the UGC nod for offering such programmes. The university recently submitted its application after the apex body had extended deadline for applications till October 31, Vice Chancellor M.K. Jayaraj said.
The university admits close to 40,000 students on an average to its ODL courses annually and currently has around 1.25 lakh students pursuing various programmes in the ODL mode.
