3.1 Curricular Aspects
Rajiv Gandhi University, which is primarily located in the tribal heartland of Northeast India, aims to provide a holistic evolution for all of its students by connecting the region to the rest of India and the world at large. The curriculum in each discipline has been designed with local ethnicity, diversity, socio-political issues, and the needs of all types of learners in mind, a sizable portion of whom are first-generation learners. The goals of the programmes and courses revolve around the fundamental aspect of knowledge sharing among the faculties of Science, Technology, Arts and Commerce. The curriculum, which is based on the methodology of cross-disciplinary practice, emphasizes the natural blending of various categories of knowledge. The UGC’s Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) and curriculum development guidelines and regulations are strictly followed. Courses are enriched by the addition of value-added courses and the options to choose from a variety of electives. Syllabus revisions are conducted on a three- to five-year cycle to ensure that they remain current and updated. Annually, around 25 % of the programmes change their syllabi. Additionally, the increasing number of newly introduced programmes may be interpreted as an indication of academic success. It is worth noting that in the last five years, 28 new programmes have been introduced. The adoption of the CBCS system has led to a significant overhaul of nearly 80 % of postgraduate courses, while 50 to 60 % of M.Phil. and Ph.D. classes have gained current status. More than half of the courses aim to improve employability in key areas across all disciplines. These courses are cutting-edge and ideal for increasing students’ employability. There are a variety of interdisciplinary courses that deal with gender, the environment and sustainability, human values, and professional ethics. All courses offer students with theoretical, practical, and life skills. Structured feedback on the curriculum is collected at regular intervals from students, parents, alumni, and other experts. The University analyzed the input on the curriculum and is regarded as an important component in the process of curricular design and development. Students must complete a dissertation or project work during their final semester. In some of the departments, students pursue internships in National Institutes, R&D Laboratories and Industries.
3.2 Teaching-Learning and Evaluation
The University ensures that its admission process is widely publicized through its website and national newspapers. The demand ratio for the University’s programmes is high and exceeds 1:5. Students are admitted through the Common Entrance Test, which is held at various locations throughout the State and other parts of the country, while maintaining the government’s reservation policy. The University provides a congenial environment for its students, who basically come from various parts of Arunachal Pradesh and other North-East states, including remote villages. A sizable proportion of them are first-generation learners, and the majority of them are from tribal societies. The University provides adequate support to meet their diverse educational needs. Academic departments assess students’ proficiency levels, and remedial classes and Guided self-study courses are offered to help slow learners. Advanced students are encouraged to participate in research activities. Outside of the classroom, teachers are easily accessible to students for clarifying doubts and providing career counselling. The Central Library is kept up-to-date with the most recent textbooks and reference materials, which are procured on a regular basis. The mentor-mentee approach is a prominent feature of the University’s overall work culture, ensuring that academic advancement is achieved and stress-related issues are addressed. To ensure student-centred learning, innovative teaching practises are implemented as continuous learning processes through the collaborative efforts of faculty members. The University’s regulations and curriculum are designed to support learning experiences. The overall teaching-learning process incorporates experimental and participatory learning and problem-solving methodologies. The learning outcomes of different departments are clearly reflected in terms of the impressive pass percentage of students. A large number of students are selected in national level competitive examinations such as UPSC, APPSCE, UGC-CSIR NET & JRF, GATE, SLET and others. Structured feedback of the teachers by the students is taken after each semester, analyzed, and appropriate corrective measures are taken. Prior to each academic year, a committee prepares a comprehensive Academic Calendar. The academic calendar details the duration of the admissions process, the beginning of classes, the number of teaching days, the schedule of extra-curricular and co-curricular activities, the schedule for mid- and end-semester examination, declaration of results and the vacation period. Academic calendars are posted on the University website well in advance. The University adheres strictly to the academic calendar when conducting academic activities. Internal examinations are conducted by the respective departments, while the University’s Examination branch conducts the end-semester examination. The University has a grievance redressal procedure to address grievances related to the examination in accordance with the University’s examination ordinance.
3.3 Research, Innovations and Extension
Rajiv Gandhi University has emphasized upon research since its inception. The University is dedicated to translating empirical knowledge into societal applications and substituting individual brilliance with collective, corroborative, societal utility. The University has identified the physical and intellectual resources required for Academic Research, Sponsored Research, Consultancy, and Extension. MPhil and PhD programmes offered are in high demand among the stakeholders, and admission is made through a common entrance test known as the RGUMPET. The core and thrust areas of research domains for each department have been identified separately. Individual domains of each faculty member in a department/center are also identified, and continuous and systematic research activities are carried out. Faculty members publish research articles in a number of different national and international journals of repute on a regular basis. The University actively and consciously promotes students’ participation in Research and Innovation projects to improve scientific temper and exposure to the nitty-gritty of conducting ground-based research. Faculty members also work on minor and major research projects/consultant projects from various funding agencies as part of their research activities. The university faculty members were awarded 83 sponsored projects worth more than Rs 20.90 crore from different national and international funding agencies during the assessment period. The faculty members received 17 national/international fellowships during this period. The University has conducted 57 national/international workshops/seminars/FDP during this period. The faculty members have published more than 759 research papers in various national and international journals of repute during the assessment period. In the period, 162 PhD have been produced. The RGU Community Development Cell was established to integrate various community engagement efforts undertaken by different Departments and Centres. The Community development Cell has adopted five villages namely, Poma, Disi, Lazu, Lachum Patey and Chiputa under Unnat Bharat Abhiyan. The University NSS unit has also adopted Tomru village and University Workers’ Colony. Awareness programs on health & hygiene, environment conservation, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (girl education), Vittiya Shaksharta Abhiyan (financial literacy) etc., are also being organized for the benefit of the community.
3.4 Infrastructure and Learning Resources
The University fosters a suitable physical environment by offering physical and IT infrastructure and library resources. The University’s Departments/Institutes feature well-equipped classrooms with ancillary amenities such as computers, projectors, and Wi-Fi. The University has more than 90 classrooms equipped with ICT. There are several supporting facilities at the University, including hostels for both men and women, health centre, day care centre, staff and faculty housing, post office, bank, canteens and coffee shops. The University has a well-equipped Sports Centre, Playgrounds, an athletic track, and a Gymnasium to provide sports facilities for recognizing and nurturing sporting talents. The University has a power substation that provides an uninterrupted power supply to the campus. As a part of its green initiatives, the University meets 25% of the daily electricity requirements through solar energy. The Library uses open source library management software KOHA and has implemented RIFD technology for its smooth functioning of circulation operations . Students have remote access to all online databases subscribed to by the University and Shodhganga. Presently, the Library holds 64,400 books and subscribes to various national and international journals. The library also provides access to different online journals under various consortiums from which more than 10,000 e-journals, full-text articles may be browsed and downloaded. The Library also subscribes to 17 daily newspapers and 10 reputed magazines. Through library orientation programmes, the library strongly promotes the use of open access among students, faculty, and staff. It encourages further use of India’s National Digital Library for effective teaching and learning. The University fosters socio-cultural values among students to instil a rich sense of ethnic and Indian heritage and diversity through the organization of various cultural events throughout the year. The University has a well-defined policy for the maintenance of physical and academic facilities. The Development branch of the University is responsible for the maintenance of its Civil and Electrical infrastructures. The Vehicle branch is entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining its vehicles. The IT infrastructure of the University is maintained by Computer Centre. There are respective faculty-in-charge of laboratories with technical assistants who look after and maintain the equipment and instruments. In case of major repairs of equipment, external agencies are hired to solve the problems. There is an in-house Sanitary Branch that maintains cleanliness and sanitation in the institute. In case of emergency, services are taken from external service providers. The academic support facilities like the library, sports, gymnasia and other platforms supporting the overall development of the students are open for the entire University community.
3.5 Student Support and Progression
To carry out its social mission of helping the underprivileged society through education, the University assists students in obtaining financial assistance from the state government and the Government of India. More than 90 % of its students benefit from Government Scholarships due to the diligent efforts of the University. Additionally, the University provides financial support to some eligible disadvantaged students through its resources. The University organizes capacity building programmes, such as bridge courses, soft skill programmes, and remedial coaching. Sports and Yoga activities for the students and employees are the regular features of the University calendar to achieve the Fit India goals. The University takes care of the students’ emotional well-being through its Counseling Cell. Statutory committees, including ICC, Anti-Ragging etc., are in place. The University makes every effort to ensure that students are placed, continue to higher education, and pass competitive examinations. The University conducts cultural and sports events regularly. It is worth noting that 36 students received medals and awards at Natonal as well as State level in various sports and cultural competitions during the assessment period. The grievances of students are discussed in the appropriate forum and addressed duly in a time-bound manner. Through the alumni association, alumni support the University in all of its noble endeavours. Through well-established rules and procedures, the University has opened its doors to International Students. However, due to the restricted area permit provisions imposed on Arunachal Pradesh, international students are still very few. The Student Council of the University is constituted by elected members from the students strictly following the Lyngdoh Commission guidelines. The President of the Student Council is a member of the University Court. In addition, the students participate in various academic and administrative bodies like Hostel Management Committee, Anti-ragging committee, Internal Complain Committee, organization of various events, etc. Various co-curricular, extracurricular and cultural activities are organized by the student council members along with the faculty coordinators throughout the year. The University has an NSS unit through which students actively participate in various social activities. The University also has an NCC unit.
3.6 Governance, Leadership and Management
The University has a well-defined hierarchical organizational structure with the President of India as the Visitor of the University at the apex. The Vice Chancellor is the executive Head of the University and takes policy guidance from the Executive Council on development and administration matters and Academic Council on academic, research and extension related matters. Both these statutory bodies report to the University Court. Under the guidance of the Vice Chancellor, the Office of the Registrar implements relevant decisions. The Deans of various Faculties, the Controller of Examinations, the Finance Officer, and the Director of the College Development Council provide support in their respective domains. The Executive Engineer executes civil, electrical and related work. Dean, Students Welfare looks after various welfare measures for the students. The academic departments are governed by the Departmental Advisory Committee, Departmental Research Committee and various committees as per the provisions of the University ordinances. The Departments are clustered into Faculties with separate Deans for each Faculty. Matters related to the affiliated colleges are managed by the College Development Council. The Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) plays a key role in reviewing, assisting, and monitoring faculty members on a regular basis and conducting self-appraisals using Performance Indicators as directed by the UGC and other regulatory bodies. Faculty empowerment is ensured through Faculty Development Programs, Faculty Induction Programs for new faculty members, and Refresher Courses for currently employed teachers. The University has provisions in place to provide financial assistance to faculty members to attend national and international seminars/conferences. Furthermore, the University encourages new faculty members to conduct research by providing Seed Money. The University has a well-defined process of financial regulation. All payments of the University are made after the Internal audit. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India also conducts periodical audits as per the provisions of the Rajiv Gandhi University Act, 2006. The University makes full efforts to ensure that all audit objections are cleared timely.
3.7 Institutional Values and Best Practices
In conformity with the democratic culture of Northeast India, Rajiv Gandhi University has made a concerted effort to maintain a gender-neutral academic and work atmosphere on campus, allowing all stakeholders to feel comfortable and secure. The women to men ratio among students has consistently remained close to 50 % over the years, exhibiting the rationality of its efforts. As an institute of higher learning in the remote part of the country, the University sees its larger role as instilling moral values, a spirit of tolerance, and a feeling of obligation in its students as a means of building an inclusive, harmonious, and peaceful society. The University is situated atop Rono Hills, on a picturesque tableland of 306.6 acres overlooking the river Dikrong. Plants and floras cover eighty percent of the campus. The University has undertaken a green audit of the campus to determine its carbon footprint. The natural and beautiful atmosphere of the campus astounds visitors. The University celebrates national festivals, organizes various events to commemorate the prominent Indian personalities on their birth/death anniversary to honour their achievements and sacrifices toward the creation of modern India and motivate the young minds to follow in their footsteps towards nation-building. To honour the sacrifices made by the Indian armed forces in maintaining India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and to inspire students to work for national integrity, the institution has erected a ‘Wall of Heroes’. The University campus is entirely free of plastic and cigarettes. The stakeholders are encouraged to use bicycles on the campus. The University has made measures to use green energy by installing solar panels on the roofs of some buildings. Additionally, the University has six water harvesting plants to utilize rainwater for small irrigation and replenish groundwater levels. Two best practices of the University are:
- The University has put conscious efforts into devising a dedicated helpline for counselling and guidance. The departments of Psychology and Social Work monitored the functioning of the helpline during the lockdown period. Further, multiple online capacity building and counselling programmes were organized, inviting renowned psychiatrists and experts to help and assist needy students and employees.
- Apart from teaching and research, the University has also been organizing multiple events like Youth Festivals, Solidarity Sporting events (VC Trophy), Unifest, University Panorama, Arunachal Panorama, Foundation Day events etc. on a regular basis paving the way for students’ participation leading to honing of their leadership qualities and enhancing their creativity. The University has an open gymnasium and a huge boxing ring in which a good number of students practice. The University organizes extension and outreach activities like Swachhta Hi Sewa, etc and short-term training programmes for the holistic development of the students with the NSS, the NCC and departmental participation.
Rajiv Gandhi University has put in place the mentor-mentee counselling system to facilitate holistic experience in teaching-learning and research. Mentoring is another important practice of the University conducted systematically to guide the students on academic matters and other broad areas of their lives and activities. The students are divided into groups, and each group is placed under a teacher who discharges the responsibilities of the Mentor of that group.
