Bhubaneswar, Jan. 20: The state government has written to the University Grants Commission asking it to restrain deemed universities from conducting entrance tests of their own.

“The credibility of such entrance tests is doubtful and cannot be termed as all-India tests. It violates the University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations,” said the state technical education department in a letter to the grants commission.

The department also said that the fee structure of the deemed varsities must be regulated by the fee structure committee constituted by the UGC or by the state government to ensure that they were not collecting capitation fee from the students. The department suggested these measures while submitting its views on the draft regulation on technical and professional education solicited by the UGC. The department suggested that not less than 50 per cent of seats of deemed universities functioning in the state be filled up through the merit list generated for the state candidates through counselling conducted by the state government.

“The remaining seats of the deemed universities should be filled up through central counselling conducted by the CBSE at all-India level,” the government suggested.

Observing that deemed universities are admitting a large number of students in different disciplines, the department said that the varsities should apply to the UGC for obtaining approval of the commission in respect of various disciplines and courses. The government further proposed that like the practice followed by the Medical Council of India, the UGC should also seek a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the state government from the deemed-to-be universities every year when it came to the running of higher technical programmes.

“If such NOC will be called from the state government by the UGC, there will be some check and balance in their functioning and effective control of the state government to curb the erratic functioning and the whimsical steps taken by the deemed to be universities in respect of admission of students, fixation of intake in each branch, collection of fees and conduct of courses,” the letter from the state government read, adding that it would then be in a position to oversee the overall functioning of these institutes.