CJ recommends UGC’s new proposal to hike intake by 4928 

By S.S. Selvanayagam

The Supreme Court yesterday recommended the third proposal out of four proposals submitted by the University Grants Commission which facilitated the accommodation of approximate number of additional 4928 students to the State universities over and above the already proposed numbers by the universities.

The Bench comprised Chief Justice Shirani A. Bandaranayake, Justices N.G. Amaratunga and K. Sripavan.

Chief Justice Bandaranayake on 30 August advised the University Grants Commission (UGC) to take more number of students to the university admission and increase the infrastructure to accommodate them. She had also recollected a similar situation that arose in 1991 and pointed out that it was resolved by the intake of more students.

Chief Justice yesterday advised the UGC to take steps to release the new ranking both national merit list and district merit level separately taking into consideration the new syllabus and old syllabus students are different and distinct two separate populations.

She told the UGC to direct the Commissioner General of Examinations to release the ranking on or before September 10 without any undue delay.

Attorney General told Court that his will instruct the Commissioner General of Examinations to assist the UGC to release the ranking without undue delay.  Counsel Faisz Musthapha PC appearing for the UGC told Court that the UGC is having four methods.

In the proposals, under the first method of calculating the ranking, approximate number of additional 3675 students would be admitted;

Under the second method, approximate number of additional 3048 students would be admitted while under the third method, approximate number of additional 4928 students would be admitted whereas under the fourth method, approximate number of additional 4457 students would be admitted.

The third method facilitates more number of students than the other three methods. Chief Justice recommended the third method.  Chief Justice also suggested to take extra intake of 25% to each faculties of the normal admission of 21,000 for the current academic year of 2011/2012.  Court fixed the matter to be mentioned on 12 September before the same Bench.

Attorney General and the Counsel for the UGC took undertakings to release without any undue delay the ranking in terms of the Supreme Court judgment delivered on 25 June.

Inundated with fundamental rights petitions of several hundred of G.C.E advanced level students in respect of Z-Score calculation, the Supreme Court has granted leave to proceed with another set of six petitions for the alleged infringement of their fundamental right to equality and fixed the matter for argument on 3 September.

 The Petitioners are students who sat for the G.C.E (Advanced Level) Examination held in August 2011 under old syllabus and new syllabus in different streams.