Panjab University’s dental college faces disaffiliation

CHANDIGARH - Panjab University’s Dr. Harvansh Singh Judge Institute of Dental Sciences will no longer be able to admit new students as its affiliation has been cancelled for failing to meet guidelines.

The Dental Council of India (DCI) decided to cancel the affiliation on the grounds that the four-year-old dental college had failed to meet the prescribed conditions and guidelines pertaining to faculty members, infrastructure, hostels and other facilities.

Currently nearly 240 students are studying at the dental college. It was constructed with financial aid from NRI Harvansh Singh Judge. Thereafter the university authorities were to run the institute and hire an appropriate number of faculty.

The director of the institute, however, said they had fulfilled all requirements and were very optimistic about renewal of affiliation.

“We had fulfilled all the conditions of DCI and accordingly informed them. The last date of meeting all deficiencies was July 15 whereas we had corrected them before July 9. We have already written to the DCI to reconsider their decision and we are very hopeful that they will renew the affiliation,” said Krishan Gauba, director of this institute, here Monday.

“We have no faculty crunch in our institute and our hostel and other infrastructure are at par with any other leading institute of the country,” he added.

Dr. Harvansh Singh Judge Institute of Dental Sciences, which has a student intake capacity of 100 every year, is located in Panjab University’s south campus in Sector 25. The disaffiliation will not affect the future of 240 students who are currently studying here and they will be allowed to complete the course.

However, the college authorities cannot admit new students from this academic session.

Students of Panjab University, which boasts of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh among its alumni, are quite upset with the disaffiliation.

“It is a big shame for the university authorities. On one side, we claim to have world-class infrastructure and on the other, such things happen here. This is very disturbing,” Harmanjit Singh Deol, a research scholar at the varsity, told IANS.