Guwahati, Sept. 5: The University Grants Commission (UGC) will give a one-time “out-of-turn” financial assistance to 282 non-affiliated colleges among 552 degree ones in the region to help them become permanent affiliates of the commission.

Sources in the ministry of human resource development said the idea behind the out-of-turn incentive was to help these institutions of higher education meet their mandate of providing quality education smoothly and effectively instead of going around mobilising funds.

The assistance by the UGC, which acts as the co-ordinate, determines and maintains standards of university education, could be in the vicinity of Rs 15 lakh to Rs 25 lakh with a request to the respective state governments to contribute another 40 per cent and the respective colleges 10 per cent to ensure that the funds are put to good use.

“The one-time grant is to help the colleges meet all the criteria to get permanent affiliation which will subsequently help them get UGC funds just like the affiliated colleges,” the source said.

They said the assistance was agreed to in principle by UGC chairman Sukhadeo Thorat during his recent interaction with the senior officials of the universities of the region, including vice-chancellors and education department officials of the state governments in Guwahati.

The trigger for the unexpected windfall was a meeting the same day with representatives of the Bodoland Territorial Council who were seeking special development assistance from the Centre for the 15 colleges in the BTAD.

“Two meetings were held that day and the decision to help the BTC colleges eventually led to similar demands from the other universities which could not be ignored given the bigger picture. But our chairman has said the BTC colleges would get more than what the others will,” the source said.

The 15 colleges in the BTC area are Girls' College, Commerce College, Science College, Fakiragram College (all Kokrajhar), Swami Jagananda College, Basugaon College, Bengtal College, Salbari College, Gyanpith College, Khoirabari College, Majbaat Colege, Barama College, Tangla College, Bijni College and Gossaigaon College.

How much each college will get will be decided on the location and student intake and student-teacher ratio.

The respective universities have also been asked to assist the college. “The universities have been asked to send a report on why the colleges have missed the UGC affiliation bus. The colleges, too, have been asked to send a report. The two will be examined to initiate a remedy,” the source said.