Utkal University Civil Service Exam Coaching Scheme flops!

Bhubaneswar, Sep 9: The training programme introduced by Utkal University during 2017-18 to improve the performance of students in civil services examination has flopped due to lack of proper guidance. This was revealed from the audit report on Outcomes on Higher Education in the state tabled in the Odisha Assembly on Thursday. The report said, for improving the performance of the students in Civil services examinations, it was decided to set up coaching facilities in universities. Accordingly,Utkal University conducted training for two batches comprising 60 students each in 2017-18. ''However, none of them qualified in the civil services examination.'' Explaining the cause of the failure, the audit report observed that the scheme was initiated without a detailed implementation plan as the University had neither appointed a course coordinator for the coaching center nor engaged professional trainers. The  audit report also said that the percentage of students of Utkal University ranged between 2.23 and 27.10 percent during 2014-19, except in 2015-16 when it was 40.19 percent. In North Odisha University, the percentage of students who qualified in competitive exam was between 3.50 and 7.72 percent only during the said period. The Utkal and The North Odisha universities had facilitated placements of 1089 and 70 students respectively through job fairs. Out of 32 test checked colleges job fairs were not organized in 28 colleges(88 percent) which was a constraining  factor in providing due exposure to students to their potential employers, said the audit report. Utkal University had received Rs 41.50 lakh from the state government for establishment of Career Counselling Cells (CCC).It could spend only Rs 0.29 lakh of Rs 17 lakh received for inaugural function. Thereafter the CCC was not made functional.