Patna, March 10: D.Y. Patil will have his work cut out when he takes charge as the new governor of Bihar.

First and foremost, the 77-year-old Congressman from Maharashtra has to restore trust between the governor’s office and the state government.

Second, the government will expect him to act on five key bills pertaining to education that are waiting for the governor’s approval. They are:

Bihar University Service Commission Bill 2011

Bihar University Tribunal Bill 2011

Bihar State School Teachers and Employees Dispute Redressal Tribunal Bill 2011

Bihar State University (Amendment) Bill 2010

Patna University (Amendment) Bill 2010

The outgoing governor, Devanand Konwar, didn’t endear himself to the ruling NDA because of his decisions related to education. The governor is the ex officio chancellor of the state’s universities.

“The governor destroyed the educational environment of the state. We expect the new governor to undo the wrongs,” said JD(U) MP Shivanand Tiwari.

However, the government is treading cautiously. “Let him (Patil) first join. I will apprise him of the condition of education in Bihar. We will act in accordance with the direction given by him,” said education minister P.K. Shahi, who had less than three days ago aired his frustration inside the Assembly over the appointment of vice-chancellors by Konwar.

“The caution is understandable. A man like Konwar had made the government realise how helpless it can become while making key decisions on universities,” said an academician.

The new governor has several options to choose from. “As far as the pending bills are concerned, he can examine them and sign them under the normal process. The new governor may examine the files related to the appointment of the VCs and he is entitled to recall the appointments,” said lawyer Y.V. Giri.

The distrust was so high that the government did not send recommendations for the 12 members of the Legislative Council who are nominated by the governor.

The government hopes that Patil would be more understanding on education. An agriculturalist, Patil was among three educationists invited by then Maharashtra chief minister Vasantdada Patil in the early 1980s to start private higher education colleges which transformed the educational sector in Maharashtra.

Patil founded a cluster of educational institutions, which offer a large number of courses in almost every discipline. The DY Patil Group now runs 16 different colleges across its Mumbai and Navi Mumbai campuses, 30 institutions at its Pune campus and 16 institutions at its Kolhapur campus.