State government to introduce 264 new courses in colleges

Accordingly, the higher education department will be introducing 61 new courses in government arts and science colleges. Similarly, the department also decided to implement 75 undergraduate courses, 53 postgraduate courses, 85 MPhil and 71 PhD courses during this year. A total of 270 assistant professors will also be appointed to handle the courses.

The appointment of assistant professors would cost the exchequer to the tune of about Rs 26 crore per year.

A senior government official from the Higher Education department on Monday said that the new courses are being introduced to enable the students to pursue higher education in the field of their choice.

“The new courses will not only give more options to students but also help in improving their employability”, he added.

The official said that in 2017-18, the government had introduced 271 new courses in various grades and for that purpose, 533 assistant professor’s posts were sanctioned during the same period.

“This year, apart from the new appointment of professors, existing staff in various government colleges will also be re-deployed on an agreement basis,” the official said.

The official said assistance professors and non-teaching staff will be recruited through Teachers Recruitment Board and Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission respectively. Since shift system exists in some of the colleges, guest lecturers will also be appointed to handle the different shifts in the institutions, he added.