Ranchi, Dec. 19: Raj Bhavan wants public participation to improve the financial health of colleges and universities.

At a meeting with principals of 40 colleges under Ranchi University to get acquainted with their problems, Governor Syed Sibtey Razi suggested a slew of measures for improvement that includes conducting classes in double shifts and ensuring regular interaction between guardians and teachers.

Some principals suggested revival of tutorials to curb private tuition and appointment of teachers at the earliest.

The meeting at Raj Bhavan, aimed at making the governor aware of the burning problems of colleges, started at 11 am and continued till 5 in the evening.

Most principals lamented the acute shortage of teachers and infrastructure that prompted Razi to assure he will personally talk to the Jharkhand Public Service Commission to expedite the appointment process.

Razi said serious discussions should be held for increasing public participation in colleges that will solve many of its problems. Public participation and support from distinguished people from cities and towns will improve the financial status of colleges, he said.

“The form of higher education is changing and new need-based courses are being introduced. Competition is on the rise and many foreign universities want to come to India. Therefore, we need to keep our centres of higher education strong. These give direction to the future of the country and this makes it more important for our colleges to be forward looking,” Razi said.

The governor said admission was a major problem in colleges mainly because of the limited number of seats, inadequate infrastructure and shortage of space and building. “We could think of holding colleges in double shifts. This will help accommodate the maximum number of students,” he said.

Razi said private tuition had eroded the ethical values of education. Teachers, he said, should devote the maximum time to colleges and help students study.

The governor heard the problems of every college principal. Coming to know that Marwari College has been writing to the university for two years to allow it to transfer Rs 2 crore from the current account that generates no interest to a savings account which offers interest, Razi lost his cool and admonished the Ranchi University finance officer. The finance officer pleaded he was new, but the governor asked him to grant permission within a week.

The principal of K.C. College, Bero, was not present in the meeting, which forced Razi to ask the VC to probe the reason for his absence.

Tomorrow Raj Bhavan has convened a meeting with VCs of all five state universities.