Haladi was our unanimous choice: Srinivas Poojary

[email protected] (CD Network, Photos by Suresh Vamanjoor)

July 15, 2012

Bangalore, July 15: Haladi Srinivas Shetty was the unanimous choice of BJP?leaders in Udupi for the ministerial berth, but the party changed its decision, said Kota Srinivas Poojary, who was sworn in as minister on Thursday instead of Shetty.

The last-minute change has led to Shetty's resignation as a Member of the Legislative Assembly. Shetty has said that he felt humiliated with the party denying him a ministerial berth, especially after inviting him to the swearing-in ceremony in Bangalore. The resignation has not been accepted by the Speaker.

Meanwhile, protests have continued in the Kundapur Assembly constituency over the “injustice” meted out to Shetty, but no one is questioning as to why Poojary was preferred over Shetty.

Poojary said he does not foresee any immediate solution to the problem being faced in the district unit of the party. State-level leaders should intervene to find a solution, he said.

Poojary maintained that he did not dream of becoming a minister. The district unit of the party was in favour of a Cabinet berth for Shetty.

“When Jagadish Shettar called me on Wednesday to inform me that I will be a minister, I told my colleagues. They advised me not to accept it as Shetty should be the natural choice. Accordingly, I decided against going to Raj Bhavan. But later, I received calls from Eshwarappa and Ananth Kumar. I could not refuse the offer then because I have no courage to go against the party direction. I had never lobbied for ministership because I have no contacts in Delhi,” he said.

Poojary added that his family members were also not in Bangalore to witness the swearing-in ceremony as he was in the City to see Shetty take oath as minister.

When asked if he was ready to resign to accommodate Shetty, he said: “The party, keeping social justice in view, has taken some decision and made me the minister. If it wants me to resign, I will do so.”

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Karnataka to scrap separate entrance exams for private universities from 2025

News Network

September 20,2024

Starting in the 2025-26 academic year, private universities in Karnataka offering professional courses will no longer conduct separate entrance exams. This decision follows a directive from the state’s Higher Education Department, prompting private universities to form an association and agree to this significant change.

In a recent meeting with Higher Education Minister Dr. M. C. Sudhakar, representatives from 17 private universities confirmed their decision to discontinue individual entrance tests. Of the 27 private universities in the state, 17 offer professional courses, and they have collectively agreed to accept scores from existing national or state-level entrance exams.

“Some universities will consider JEE scores, others will rely on KCET, and a few are inclined towards COMEDK,” Dr. Sudhakar stated, leaving the choice of examination to the universities themselves. However, the department has also suggested that the universities consider a unified entrance test for admissions.

Looking ahead, Dr. Sudhakar hinted that the government may introduce a common entrance test for general degree courses at private universities as well. "As government colleges and universities currently don’t require entrance exams for general degree courses, we haven’t made any decisions on this yet," he explained.

The meeting also addressed concerns over the high fees charged by private universities. To regulate this, the universities were instructed to establish fee fixation committees, headed by retired judges, as required by law. These committees will be responsible for determining tuition fees. Additionally, the government will continue to regulate fees for 40% of seats in professional courses that are filled through KCET.

In an effort to bring greater uniformity among private institutions, the government is considering enacting a common law for all private universities, which would replace the individual acts currently governing each university. This would place all private universities under a single regulatory framework.

This move is expected to streamline the admissions process and create a more standardized system for both professional and general degree programs across Karnataka's private universities.

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