University seeks additional faculty members ahead of rolling out new courses

The university currently offers 13 courses such as tribal-studies, bio-technology, business management, botany, chemistry, geography and sociology. Over the past several years, the 18 teaching and 12 non-teaching staff have been finding it hard to handle all the current 13 departments. The university, which is planning to introduce 11 new courses, needs 77 additional teaching posts and 48 non-teaching posts, according to the university management.

Vice-Chancellor (V-C) T.V. Kattimani hoped that the government would accept the request for additional posts for the optimum utilisation of the university’s resources. Mr. Kattimani, who was instrumental in the establishment of India’s first Central Tribal University at Amarkantak in Madhya Pradesh, exuded confidence that he would overcome all initial challenges in running the institution.

Mr. Kattimani, who was also the drafting committee member of National Education Policy-2020, said the university would grow soon into one of the premier higher educational institutions in the country. “Apart from youth from tribal communities, those from all other sections of society can join the postgraduate, undergraduate and diploma courses here. Their strength would go up to 2,000 if the government sanctions additional faculty member posts to the university. Fortunately, the co-operation is good from both Union and State governments,” he told The Hindu.

Mr. Kattimani said he would meet Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Minister for Human Resources Development Nara Lokesh to seek their help in getting the additional faculty members and wide approach roads to all the routes connected to the university. “Mr. Chandrababu Naidu’s Vision-2047 planning is going to benefit the university, which would become a great research centre on tribal knowledge systems,” he added.