M. Jagadesh Kumar, former vice-chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University and ex-chairman of the University Grants Commission, has been appointed chairperson of IIM Calcutta.

The Union ministry of education on Thursday issued the order about President Droupadi Murmu recommending Kumar for the post.

“In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 10(2)(a) and 10A(1) of the Indian Institutes of Management Act, 2017 the Hon’ble President of India, in her capacity as Visitor of IIM Calcutta has nominated Prof. (Retd.) M Jagadesh Kumar, former Chairman, UGC, New Delhi, as Chairperson, Board of Governors, IIM Calcutta,” said the order.

Kumar will have a tenure of four years or till he turns 74, whichever is earlier, the order stated.

The post had been vacant after Shrikrishna G. Kulkarni resigned on December 8 last year.

Kumar’s tenure as vice-chancellor at JNU had been marked by controversies since he took charge in January 2016. After he assumed the position, JNU discontinued the deprivation policy for MPhil and PhD courses. JNU is the country’s only central university to have a deprivation policy, under which it awarded extra weightage points to students coming from backward regions of the country for admission.

In 2018, JNU outsourced the conduct of the entrance exam to the National Testing Agency (NTA), spending ₹9 crore — a cost much higher than what it spent conducting the test itself.

Allegations of irregularities in the appointments of faculty members at JNU
also surfaced during Kumar’s tenure as vice-chancellor.

As chairperson of UGC, Kumar in 2022 rolled out the controversial Common University Entrance Test (CUET) as a single entrance test for undergraduate admission to central universities. Delays in holding the CUET have led to alleged delays in admissions and seats remaining vacant in universities.