New Delhi: Fifteen Colleges of Delhi University have decided to launch a Discipline I (honours or major) course in economics from session 2013. According the list issued by the university, 10 colleges are introducing Mathematics, eight introducing Computer Science, and seven will introduce English and history subjects each.
As per sources, after transformation of BA, B Sc and B Com Programmes under the four-year undergraduate programme, 33 Delhi University Colleges have offered one or more Discipline I courses. After being approved from the dean of colleges, many of these colleges will begin recruitment.
The highest number of Discipline I launches were in Sri Aurobindo, with seven new courses in Botany, Chemistry, Economics, History, Mathematics, Physics and Zoology subjects. Aditi Mahavidyalaya, Bhagini Nivedita, Ramanujan, Bhim Rao Ambedkar and Swami Shraddhanand share second place with five courses each. Bhagini Nivedita, which was offering only Hindi as honours course before FYUP, now has added Discipline I in Commerce, History, Home Science, Physics and Political Science.
As per sources, this expansion in Discipline I portfolio, in most colleges, has been necessitated by the two major problems of inadequate number of honours courses to absorb the newly-freed seats and of securing workload of teachers who taught BA, B Sc or B Com Programme courses. Colleges are offering Discipline I in subjects they may have taught as part of the programme courses and for which they may already have some resources. Many colleges, with single-teacher, had small departments that were adequate for teaching the programme courses. Therefore, these departments are being upgraded to honours-level ones.
Purabi Saikia, Principal, Bhagini Nivedita, stated at the launch of five courses, that we have sent a copy of the advertisement for recruitment to DU for approval. She also said that we have ad hoc teachers now but we hope to make permanent appointments.
