Srinagar, Sep 16: A team from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) Thursday wrapped up its two-day inspection at Government Degree College (GDC) Baramulla.
The NAAC team arrived in the college on September 15 (Wednesday) to inspect and review the teaching, research and infrastructural facilities at the college and subsequently renew the NAAC grading of the college.
The NAAC peer team was headed by its chairman Prof Abdul Kabeer Khan, who is former vice chancellor of Kannur University Kerela while the other members of the team were Prof MadhulikaDubey of Lucknow University and Principal PG DAV College (Evening) Delhi, Ravinder Kumar Gupta.
“The team visited all the departments, laboratories, conference halls and hostels to inspect the facilities and research work going on in the department,” Principal GDC Baramulla Prof Mushtaq Ahmad Lone told Greater Kashmir.
The NAAC team also visited the History and Anthropology Museum established by the college besides visiting the classrooms to assess the availability of ICT facilities.
“The team inspected skills centres, botanical gardens and hostels of the college. The team also inspected the facility of a daycare centre available at the girls’ hostel for babies,” the principal said.
Notably, the last NAAC inspection of GDC Baramulla was done in 2015 and the institution was given ‘A’ grade.
This year the college would get a fresh grading from NAAC.
The NAAC ranking is given on the basis of achievements in academics as well as in infrastructural standards.
Besides, research work and exchange programmes would also be counted while evaluating the college for NAAC ranking.
The NAAC is a UGC-funded autonomous body that assesses and accredits higher education institutions -degree colleges and universities in the country.
“The NAAC team also inspected the media study centre and took a review of the e-content studio. They also held interactions with the college alumni, heads of the departments and other staff members during the two-day inspection,” the principal said.
A college being accredited signifies that it has met certain standards of excellence across its operations. Apart from making an educational institution eligible for grants from the union government there are major benefits for students if a college has an accreditation.
“The NAAC team held an exit meeting on September 16 before concluding their two-day visit at the college,” Prof Lone said.
GDC Baramulla has also applied to the University Grants Commission (UGC) for autonomous status of the college.
“The tentative dates fixed for the visit of the UGC team is the first week of October,” the Principal said.
On account of this, GDC Baramulla has maintained good standards in terms of academics and infrastructure upgradation.
“In 2015 we were offering PG courses only in one subject but now the college offers PG admissions in three subjects,” he said.
Apart from PG Mathematics, the college offers PG courses in Psychology and MCA.
The institution has already been granted the status of a College with Potential Excellence (CPE) by the UGC in 2015.
Being CPE, the college gets special grants from the UGC.
GDC Baramulla is one of the oldest colleges in J&K which was founded by the Catholic Missionaries at Baramulla, by Father Ignatius Brower and Rev Father Simmons in 1905 as an English medium school.
It was upgraded to high school in 1913 and then gradually upgraded to the status of intermediate college in 1938 and eventually to degree college in 1943. GDC Baramulla was affiliated to Punjab University Lahore. It was closed on 27 October 1947 and reopened on 28 June 1954 as an intermediate college affiliated to the then University of Jammu and Kashmir. It was further upgraded to a degree college in 1956 and was subsequently taken over by the State government on 1st April 1963.