Funds to a tune of Rs 2.55 crore are likely to get lapsed in the directorate of Distance Education, Kashmir University. Reason, the department is headless since February when its director retired on superannuation.
As per the official document, the university (budget and creation section) had sanctioned Rs 2.55 crore to the directorate for 2017-18. “However, the funds remained unutilized as the department had no signatory authority,” a source said.
“The last director retired in February but prior to her retirement she was on leave on health grounds,” a top official in KU informed on the condition of anonymity.
The official said the funds will get lapsed if the directorate couldn’t utilize it up to March 31.
“It will be a huge loss for the directorate which has almost 7000 students enrolled under various streams,” the official said.
The official said out of Rs 2.55 crore, “purchase orders have been issued for just Rs 1 lakh. Ironically, even the payment of this amount is pending,” the official said, adding that the remuneration bills of hundreds of resource persons were pending for past six months.
Given the “lethargic approach” of the university authorities to appoint the new head of the department, the students enrolled in 2016 for two-year master’s degree, have yet to appear in their first semester examination.
“Had the head of the department been in place, the matter would have been taken up seriously with the controller examination,” the official said.
Registrar Kashmir University, Prof Khurshid Ahmad Bhat said the appointment of “the new director for the department has been approved by the vice-chancellor.”
“After the approval of the VC, I passed the file to the section concerned, and perhaps the order has been issued,” he said.