Date: 21/04/2016
Dr. Sunita Siwach
Deputy Secretary, SA-III
University Grants Commission (UGC)
Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi – 110002
Sub: Rule Regarding the Gap Period in Between M. Phil and PhD: Request to Scrap It
Dear Madam,
My name is Abu Saleh. I am a research scholar at the University of Hyderabad. I am writing to you about the Rule Regarding the Gap Period in between M. Phil and PhD for the researchers. It has been in practice throughout last few years. On 08th January 2015, you have issued a fresh circular for the same (No. 17-1/2011(SA-III/Policy/Pt. File). Even though the notice indicates that the rule is for RGNF SC/ST, it has been applied to scholars of many other schemes funded by different funding bodies. This is quite surprising.
Anyway, I would like to inform you that this particular rule is very much problematic since it is exclusionary. Many scholars are victim of this because getting PhD admission within one academic year after M. Phil is quite challenging. Some universities ask for M. Phil result to get into PhD. In such scenario it becomes pathetic. I know many scholars who are facing this problem and losing their fellowship since they are not able to join PhD within the stipulated time. For the sake of admission, many students move to state and small universities or even private universities to save their fellowship. So they are forced to compromise with their choice of workplace and quality education.
Moreover, I found that women scholars are the main victim of this problematic rule. By the time of M. Phil many get married. Many families do not allow their daughters/daughters in-laws/ wives to move to another place to do research. Many become mother by this age. They keep waiting to get into their nearby institution and lose their fellowship because of this rule. The recent announcement by the HRM regarding flexibility towards women and differently abled candidates contradicts this rule.
In these contexts, I request you to please take back the rule since it is exclusionary in nature and also against the objectives of these fellowship schemes. Securing a PhD seat for a SC, ST, Minority or a disabled student is not an easy task.
Please give enough time to the scholars, at least 2 to 3 years minimum in between M. Phil and PhD. Please don't compel them to compromise in their choices of workplace. Please do not deduct the gap period time from the total fellowship time of 5 years. Please make sure that they do not lose their fellowship which they got in much difficulty.
I hope you keep getting requests for the gap extensions and know all these problems well. I am hopeful that a person like you will surely do something positive regarding this.
Eagerly waiting for a fresh notice for the same.
Thank you.
Abu Saleh
CCL, University of Hyderabad
Gachibowli, Hyderabad – 500046
abusaleh@uohyd.ac.in/ 09494242645
Mobile: +91 94 94 24 26 45
This information is very usefull... thanks for sharing....
ReplyDeleteEngineering College Admissions 2016
Very useful information. They should rethink it and extend the gap period to at least 2 years.
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