Selling forms at a premium
An education ministry probe has found that four renowned city colleges violated a government order by not following the admission rules set by the ministry. The ministry probe team has also found that these colleges followed their own rules to admit students and sold admission forms at a much higher price than fixed by the ministry. The two-member ministry probe committee, formed on June 6, has recently submitted its report to the education secretary recommending punitive action against the corrupt authorities of the colleges.
The colleges are: Residential Model College at Mohammadpur, BAF Shaheen College, Ideal College at Dhanmondi and New Model Degree College at Dhanmondi.
An education ministry official said the probe committee was formed following a report published in The Independent on June 1 on the selling of high-priced admission forms by some colleges.
The committee was asked to verify the allegations against the colleges as published in the report.
On May 26, the ministry had come out with a guideline directing all colleges to charge Tk. 80 for an admission form for the higher secondary courses (Class XI) for the academic session 2011-2012. The guideline also made it clear that no extra charges should be collected while selling the forms and mentioned that a receipt should be given to every buyer of form.
It also warned the college authorities that anybody violating the rules would be severely penalised.
“The Residential Model college authorities formed a seven-member admission committee, headed by its principal, to fix the charges of admission forms and other admission rules. However, the authorities concerned did not take any approval from the college governing body for such a committee.
“The committee had frequently flouted the admission rules fixed by the government and the principal himself has admitted his fault in this regard to the probe committee,” the probe report said.
The report also observed that the probe team had found the allegations brought by The Independent against the college to be true.
“The college has sold 6,338 forms at Tk. 100 apiece,” it said.
Education secretary Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury is the chairman of the college governing body. Other members of the governing body are: director general of the directorate of secondary and higher education, Prof. Noman-Ru-Rashid and chairman of the board of intermediate and secondary education, Dhaka Prof Fahima Khatun. When asked about the probe report, education secretary told The Independent on Tuesday that he would look into the matter.
About Ideal College, the probe report says: “The chief of the admission committee of the college failed to supply necessary documents to the probe committee. The government should take legal action against the admission committee chief, Bhoktimoy Sarkar, who is head of the biology department of the college.” The report also stated that Ideal College had also flouted the government admission rules and sold admission forms at a premium.
“The principal of the college should be penalized,” it added.
The admission committee of BAF Shaheen College, headed by the principal, frequently flouted the admission rules. The college charged Tk. 120, and not Tk. 80, for an admission form, the report said.
Although New Model Degree College had a 16-member admission committee headed by vice-principal Azharul Islam, selling of forms was in a mess there, the report said adding, this college, too, sold admission forms at a premium.
-With The Independent input
