BSMRAU top performer in UGC’s assessment

Gazipur-based Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University emerged as the top performing public university for the second straight year in the assessment of the University Grants Commission in the 2021-22 academic year.

The commission published the report on Monday evaluating the performance of the country’s 46 public universities as per the Annual Performance Agreement.

However, the country’s top public university – the University of Dhaka – stood second in the APA report and it has never achieved the top position since the assessment began in 2015-16.

The assessment is carried out on six points and 100 marks. Of them, 70 marks were for strategic purposes, 10 for fair practices, 10 for e-governance and innovative plan, 4 for resolving allegation plan, 3 for service plan, and 3 for information rights performance plan.

Jagannath University stood third in the report, Bangladesh Open University fourth, Bangladesh University of Professionals fifth, Khulna Agricultural University sixth, University of Chittagong seventh, Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology eighth, Jessore University of Science and Technology ninth and Chittagong Medical University tenth.

Bangladesh Agricultural University, Islamic University, and the University of Rajshahi got scores below 20.

BSMRAU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Md Giashuddin Miah said, “We are happy to get the appreciation from the UGC. We are always aware of our annual activities and we will try to continue the good work.”

Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Prof Md Akhtaruzzaman said that his university is still the biggest in the county in terms of overall activities. “But, we are trying to complete the annual works perfectly,” he said.

The UGC report shows in the 2021-22 academic year, 35 universities achieved scores above 50 and 13 got less than 50. But only 11 universities achieved scores above 80 and 4 above 90.

UGC officials said they will arrange a programme for providing awards for the top position holder.

The top position holder university will get a crest and a certificate from the commission as appreciation and recognition for their work.

The rest of the universities, especially those who got scores below 50 out of 100, will be asked to do better in the current academic year. There is no example of taking any action against bad-performing universities.

The APA started in the 2015-16 academic year under the supervision of the Education Ministry. But the responsibility was handed over to the UGC from the 2016-17 academic year.