More than three lakh teachers, who have completed their BEd course, have been waiting for their degree certificates for the past three years. Reason? The Tamil Nadu Teachers Education University (TNTEU) does not have a printer to print their certificates!
According to sources, the TNTEU did not give convocation certificates to students of 650 colleges belonging to 2018-19, 2019-2020, 2020-2021 batches as it could not take printouts of certificates. "TNTEU recently purchased printers at a cost of Rs 30 lakh. The certificates will be issued soon,” sources said, stated a report in The New Indian Express.
But the delay has cost the students dearly as they could not find jobs without their credentials. C Vidhya, a student, said, "I completed BEd in 2019-2020 from a private college in Coimbatore. Though I got the provisional certificate, I faced difficulty during job interviews in schools."
“One school rejected me because I did not have BEd degree certificate. Several private schools pay only 50% salary to teachers who do not have certificates,” she said.
P Roslin, who completed B.Ed in 2020-2021, said graduates faced difficulty in attending certificate verification for government jobs after clearing competitive exams. "The TNTEU should issue degree certificates without further delay," she said.
An assistant professor in a government BEd college told The New Indian Express, "In 2022, UGC (University Grants Commission) instructed all higher education institutions to award degrees within 180 days of declaring the result. However, TNTEU delayed it by more than three years. This shows TNTEU's lethargic attitude and inefficient administration." The university’s vice-chancellor post has been vacant for the past two years, he said.
The principal of a private BEd college said graduates have been calling institutions almost on a daily basis asking for degree certificates. "Only now TNTEU has taken steps to award the certificates. On Wednesday evening, the university sent a letter to colleges directing principals to submit authorisation letters and collect degree certificates," she said.
When asked about it, TNTEU VC committee member P Natesan said, "A few months ago, we had taken steps to purchase printers. Work of taking printouts of degree certificates has been completed. The certificate will reach 650 colleges, including government and aided institutions, by October 31. "
