DU Rolls Out NEP 4th Year from August 1; 8 AM–8 PM Class Advisory Triggers Faculty Protests

Teachers call it unplanned, unsafe, and divisive; raise concerns over faculty workload and ad hoc exclusions

A University of Delhi notification dated July 31, 2025, regarding the commencement of the fourth year under the Undergraduate Curriculum Framework (UGCF) 2022 from August 1, 2025, has triggered strong criticism from faculty members and teacher bodies. The notification instructs colleges to function from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM, stagger faculty work hours, and deploy only senior regular teachers for fourth-year classes and supervision.

The notification further advises that the deployment of faculty for Generic Electives (GEs), Skill Enhancement Courses (SECs), and Value-Added Courses (VACs) should be calculated based on class sizes as per a May 16 circular, which also fixed UG and PG class sizes for lectures, tutorials, and practicals.

While the university claims these measures are in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and aim to optimize faculty utilization, many teachers say the university has shown poor planning and disregard for academic and infrastructural realities.

“Classes started on August 1, advisory came on the same day”

Faculty members argue that the university failed to prepare colleges for smooth implementation. “The order that units should work from 8 AM to 8 PM clearly shows that we are ill-prepared for the fourth year. Time-tables should have been ready during the summer break, not on the first day of the semester,” said Abha Dev Habib, Secretary, Democratic Teachers’ Front and Associate Professor at Miranda House.

She also pointed out that no workshops were conducted for teachers who are expected to teach new fourth-year courses under NEP, and accused the university of pushing first-year teaching to guest faculty, calling it an inappropriate way to welcome new students.

Safety, Infrastructure, and Workload Among Key Concerns

Several faculty members raised serious concerns about the 12-hour workday model, citing safety issues, lack of space, and impractical scheduling. “This 8 AM to 8 PM schedule is not just draconian, it’s anti-teacher and anti-student,” said Rudrashish Chakraborty, Associate Professor, Kirori Mal College, and elected DUTA Executive Member. “The University has stamped approval on something that makes no sense in terms of infrastructure or practicality.”

Chakraborty also questioned how this policy affects evening colleges, asking whether classes would now be pushed to night hours or if such institutions would be dismantled.

“There are no adequate seating or working spaces in most colleges. Yet the notification wants a 5-hour daily schedule per teacher and at least 2 hours per day for mentoring 15 students. This nullifies the purpose of mentoring and is a clear move to quantify teaching inappropriately,” he added.

Ad hoc Teachers and ‘Junior Faculty’ Left Out

The notification’s instruction to assign only senior regular faculty for fourth-year teaching and research supervision has also sparked outrage for being discriminatory. “It insults newly appointed teachers by implying that only senior teachers can teach the fourth year. Teaching should depend on subject expertise, not age,” said Dr. Mithuraaj Dhusiya, Executive Council Member, University of Delhi.

“In colleges funded by the Delhi Government, many teaching posts remain vacant and ad hoc teachers are not eligible to teach the fourth year. This makes it logistically impossible for some colleges to implement the new structure,” Chakraborty added.

The University cited Clause 15 of the UGC Regulation 2018, outlining that full-time teachers must work 40 hours per week for 30 weeks per academic year. The notification also reiterates minimum classroom workload of 16 hours for Assistant Professors and 14 hours for Associate Professors, excluding mentoring, research, and additional duties.