Tribhuvan University ( TU ) is planning to host convocation ceremony of its students at the Tripureshwor-based Dasharath Stadium as its central office has been padlocked for the past one month.

Around 6,000 students who graduated from various faculties, including humanities and social sciences, education, science and technology and forestry, in 2011 have applied for the convocation to be held on January 8 next month.

The TU senate meet on June 28 had endorsed the grace list from 54,406 students for the ceremony. “The convocation won’t be postponed but will be held at the stadium if the padlock continues,” said Chandra Mani Poudel, the university’s registrar. The oldest university of the country has been padlocked for the past one month crippling the varsity’s administration. Over 300 staffers at the vice-chancellor’s and dean’s, registrar’s offices, among others, have become jobless due to the padlock.

The CPN-Maoist-aligned National Professors’ Association (NPA), that had been padlocking the offices since November 20, shifted its lock to the main gate saying that the authorities concerned took no step to address its demands.

The NPA has demanded proportional representation in all mechanisms and blamed TU authorities for listening only to the unions close to three major political parties. It has been learnt that the NPA has been demanding the post of examination controller that is lying vacant for the past one month. Though various rounds of meetings between the TU authorities and NPA members have been held, no agreement has been reached yet. “We are for settling the issue through consensus but the NPA is not ready to remove the padlock unless their demands are met,” Poudel said.

Owing to the padlock, the university has been facing problems in releasing salary, announcing new vacancies and awarding appointment letters to those promoted recently.

source: The Kathmandu Post,29 Dec 2012