In a significant but controversial step, the Delhi assembly today unanimously passed a resolution to reserve 85 per cent seats Delhi University colleges, funded by the NCT government, for local students.
The resolution, moved by Delhi Education Minister Manish Sisodia, read that there were over two lakh students who pass out from schools in the national capital and many of them struggle to get admission in higher education institutions affiliated to DU.
"Delhi government, fully or partially, funds 28 of the 110 affiliated institutes. The money of tax payers from Delhi is being used to fund these colleges... the House hereby resolves that 85 per cent seats should be reserved for students from Delhi, in the colleges that are funded by the Delhi government," the resolution said.
The House also passed another resolution to request the central government to amend sub-section 2 of section 5 of the Delhi University Act, 1922, which prohibits another state university to have affiliated colleges of its own.
While moving the proposal, Sisodia, who is also Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, said his government was of the view that to make a country capable, it is extremely necessary to make its people educated and that was the reasoning behind the Delhi government spending one fourth of its total budget on education.
"We may talk big about nationalism but if we are not able to provide good education to the students then our patriotism will remain incomplete and our nationalism will be fake," Sisodia said.
He said the government wanted to expand the number of institutions that provide higher education to students in the national capital. Therefore, to end the shortage of such institutions, "we would like to open a university which is authorised to affiliate colleges which can be only done by amending sub-section two of section five of the Delhi University Act, 1922".
Sisodia also said that his government opened about 13 new colleges imparting quality education in various streams across Delhi.
He added that he wrote to the then HRD Minister Smriti Irani and the present HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar and pushed for the demand to reserve 85 per cent seats in the Delhi government-funded colleges of Delhi University for the local students, but to no avail.
(With IANS inputs)
