The country’s oldest university commemorated its 52nd anniversary on Saturday without its vice-chancellor.

The post of Tribhuvan University vice-chancellor is lying vacant the past three months. A meeting of TU Senate couldn’t held prior to the anniversary celebration owing to the non-appointment of a VC.

According to TU rules, a meeting of the Senate should take place before preparing the graduation list of students for the convocation and formulating the budget for next one year. The Senate also prepares the academic calendar.

Speaking at a function organised to mark TU’s 52nd anniversary, Education Minister Ganga Lal Tuladhar said political pressure was to blame for the failure to appoint vice chancellors in various universities. Tuladhar, who also is the Co-Chancellor of the university, said he couldn’t appoint vice chancellors as some parties have been objecting to his proposal.

Stating that names of new vice chancellors cannot be picked unless consensus is forged among parties, he said the appointment process was unlikely to complete soon. He also urged TU officials to introduce new courses and enhance quality to meet the international standard. “TU should now look forward in producing technical and quality human resources so that they can compete in the global market.”

TU Rector Surya Lal Amatya said the government hasn’t been prioritising higher education.

source: The Kathmandu Post(2011),"Headless TU marks 52nd anniversary", The Kathmandu Post,10 July 2011