UGC to relocate Jaffna’s Agriculture, Engineering faculties to Kilinochchi

January 9, 2012, 10:23 pm , The Island.

by Dasun Edirisinghe

The University Grants Commission plans to relocate the Jaffna University’s Agriculture faculty and the new Engineering faculty to Kilinochchi in order to enhance postwar education opportunities in the Northern Province.

UGC Chairman Prof. Gamini Samaranayake told The Island that a special team from the UGC and Higher Education Ministry would discuss the issues with Jaffna University’s Vice Chancellor, Director of the University’s Vavuniya Campus, lecturers and students during a four-day visit to the peninsula yesterday.

"We would discuss academic and welfare problems too while searching for new opportunities to expand higher education in the war affected area," he said.

Prof. Samaranayake said that at present the Agriculture Faculty of the university is located in the university’s main block in Jaffna where there was no engineering faculty.

The UGC enrolled students from the South to the Jaffna University from 2010 after the war ended in 2009, he said adding at present there are Sinhala students too receiving their education in the Management, Science and Medical faculties.

"There are around 150 Sinhala students in the Jaffna University at present," Prof. Samaranayake said adding it was unable to enroll students to the university’s Arts faculty as they were conducting academic lessons only in the Tamil medium so far.

This time too, he said, the UGC expects to admit more students to the Jaffna University as infrastructure facilities are being upgraded.

Prof. Samaranayake added that they would visit the Jaffna University’s Vavuniya campus too to discuss their problems.