November 11, 2018
Higher Education: Excellence in administration
The State Higher Education Department has taken initiatives for achieving excellence in several areas of administration, including e-governance and welfare of teaching and non-teaching staff.
E-governance initiatives
· Admission process for all undergraduate and postgraduate courses made online in all Government and Government-aided higher education institutions (HEI)
· E-pension implemented by Higher Education Department
· E-office implemented in Higher Education Department
· Applications for, and verification of applications under, Swami Vivekananda Merit-cum-Means Scholarship and K3 segment of Kanyashree Scheme made online
· E-billing and e-salary through Human Resource Management System (HRMS) introduced in all Government and Government-aided colleges
· Fund allocation from Government done through e-bantan and e-pradaan software under the Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS)
· E-tendering and e-procurement made mandatory in HEIs for procurements beyond Rs 5 lakh
· Admission process for teacher education programmes made online
· Provisions made for e-selling of books across disciplines and courses under West Bengal State Book Board
· GIS mapping has completed for HEIs, which provides for an effective planning and monitoring tool
Exemplary measures for the welfare of teaching and non-teaching staff
· Sikhsha Ratna Samman awards introduced for outstanding teachers from HEIs, given on Teachers’ Day
· Retirement age of teachers of universities and colleges increased from 60 to 62 years Government-approved part time teachers (PTT), contractual whole time teachers (CWTT) and casual non-teaching staff brought under Swasthya Sathi Scheme
· Leave travel concession (LTC) granted to university and college teachers
· University and college teachers brought under West Bengal Health Scheme (WBHS)
· Child care leave introduced for female university and college teachers
· Paternity leave introduced for male university and college teachers
· Status of teacher conferred on librarians, deputy librarians and assistant librarians, and graduate laboratory instructors in Government-aided colleges, along with all attendant financial and service benefits including Career Advancement Scheme and leave encashment of 300 days
· College teachers allowed to act as guide for MPhil and PhD students
· ‘Study Leave with Pay’ allowed for Government-approved PTTs and CWTTs for acquiring higher degrees such as PhD
· Transfers of teachers of State-aided colleges, including mutual transfers, introduced through West Bengal Colleges (Transfer of Employees) Rule, 2017
