Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary on Monday met the Governor of Bihar Lieutenant General (Retd) Shri Syed Ata Hasnain, who is also the chancellor of state universities, at the Lok BhavanBihar chief minister Samrat Choudhary. (HT Photo)“We had a meaningful discussion on higher education in the state,” he said, triggering speculations about his consultations with the Governor over the appointment of vice chancellors in three universities, the process for which had been completed and panel of shortlisted names submitted.The CM’s meeting with the Governor is also significant, as he is set to hold the review of the newly created higher education department on Tuesday, with focus on the preparations for the start of 208 degree colleges in uncovered blocks, development of “centres of excellence” and policy changes required for course correction in view of lingering problems, corruption issues and appointment controversy.According to officials familiar with the matter, the issue of unending controversies on the ongoing recruitment of assistant professors by the Bihar State University Service Commission (BSUSC) also figured during the discussions between the Governor and the CM.“There is a definite concern on BSUSC matters, as the issue has snowballed and caused a lot of embarrassment to the government and the use of forged documents have now been established after the sacking of many teachers, while several others have been prevented from joining. The growing number of litigations in the court is also causing alarm and some action would follow in the weeks to come,” said a senior Raj Bhawan official.The appointment of VCs is due in three universities - Veer Kuer Singh University (Ara), TM Bhagalpur University and Maulana Mazharul Haq Arabic and Persian University- while the scrutiny process for Magadh University is yet to be completed.The appointment of VCs in the state universities is a crucial issue, as the Governor has been quite particular about the much-needed and belated improvement in the higher education in a time-bound manner with a string of recent initiatives, which need to be translated into reality.“It is a fact that the Governor wants Bihar institutions to catch up with reforms, which unfortunately bypassed it in the past and that would require competent leadership. The Governor wants system to be developed, not individual branding and he has been reiterating it in every review meeting with universities. The CM also wants reforms and improvement and the meeting must have revolved around a whole range of issues concerning higher education,” said another senior Raj Bhawan official.The emphasis of the Governor on adoption of Samarth portal of the union ministry of education, to digitise, automate, and bring transparency to the day-to-day operations of academic institutions, is also aimed at making the system accountable.“He has been holding separate review meetings with the universities to have an understanding of the challenges. Even on Monday, he held review meeting with officials of the LNMU. He wants solutions from the universities to the problems they cite, as he also has feedback about missing campus ambiance and erratic classes,” said the official.