Exams delayed at North Bengal University amid absence of permanent VC

Sanchita Aich Bag, MP, SILIGURI, JULY 7, 2026: The prolonged absence of a permanent Vice-Chancellor (VC) at the University of North Bengal has triggered a serious administrative crisis, with university examinations being postponed due to pending payments to an examination management agency.

Teachers, students and university employees have urged the state government to appoint a permanent VC, Registrar and Finance Officer at the earliest to prevent further disruption.

According to the university's Teachers' Council, the roots of the problem date back to the tenure of former Vice-Chancellor Dr Subires Bhattacharyya, during which an all-India agency was appointed to conduct university examinations without an e-tendering process.

The agency allegedly charged significantly higher fees than the standard rate for examination management.

Dr Subires Bhattacharyya had earlier been arrested in connection with the state's teacher recruitment corruption case.

Since his removal, no permanent Vice-Chancellor has been appointed despite repeated demands from the university community. Although interim Vice-Chancellors were appointed on a few occasions, the institution is currently functioning without one.

Samar Kumar Biswas, President of the Teachers' Council, alleged that while such agencies generally charge around Rs 70-80 per student, the cost during Dr Bhattacharyya's tenure rose to nearly Rs 1,000-1,100 per student.

As a result, the university now has outstanding dues exceeding Rs 1 crore to the agency.

With the payments still pending, examinations have reportedly been postponed twice, and the examinations scheduled for this month have been delayed by ten days.

"We have been paying the agency, but sometimes, due to the absence of a Vice-Chancellor, Registrar, and Finance Officer, the payments get delayed. As a result, the agency has threatened to delay the examinations. We want a permanent VC to be appointed at the earliest," said Biswas.

The financial strain has been further compounded by the salaries of nearly 500 contractual employees.

According to the Teachers' Council, after the state government stopped funding their wages, the university has been paying them from its own resources, placing additional pressure on its finances.

In this regard, Minister Anandamay Barman said: "I have already discussed the matter with the Higher Education Minister Jagannath Chatterjee. We will not only push for the appointment of a permanent Vice-Chancellor but also request recruitment to other vacant posts."

State Tourism Minister Shankar Ghosh had also recently assured that the government is aware of the issue and that steps would be taken to resolve the university's administrative problems.

Despite these assurances, uncertainty remains over when the appointments will actually be made.

Courtesy & source- Millennium Post