Right to Information Act 22 of 2005

RIGHT TO INFORMATION ACT 22 OF 2005
RIGHT TO INFORMATION AND OBLIGATION OF PUBLIC AUTHORITIES

(publish within one hundred and twenty days i.e. 22.09.2005)

Sl.No	SUBJECT	INFORMATION
1.	The particulars of its organization, functions and duties	Annexure – I
2.	The powers and duties of its officers and employees	Annexure – II
3.	The procedure followed in the decision making process, including channels of supervision and accountability	Annexure – III
4.	The norms set by it for the discharge of its functions	Annexure – IV
5.	The rules, regulations, instructions manuals and records, held by it or under its control or used by its employees for discharging its functions	Annexure – V
6.	A statement of the categories of documents that are held by it or under its control	Annexure – VI
7.	The particulars of any arrangements that exists for consultation with, or representation by the members of the public in relation to the formulation of its policy or implementation thereof	Annexure – VII
8.	A statement of the boards, councils, committees and other bodies consisting of two or more persons constituted as its part or for the purpose of its advice, and as to whether meetings of those boards, councils, committees and other bodies are open to the public, or the minutes of such meetings are accessible for public.	Annexure – VIII
9.	A directory of its officers and employees;	Annexure – IX
10.	The monthly remuneration received by each of its officers and employees, including the system of compensation' s provided in its regulations;	Annexure – X
11.	The budget allocated to each of its agency, indicating the particulars of all plans, proposed expenditures and reports on disbursements made;	Annexure – XI
12.	The manner of execution of subsidy programmes, including the amounts allocated and the details of beneficiaries of such programmes;	Annexure – XII
13.	Particulars of recipients of concessions, permits or authorizations granted by it	Annexure – XIII
14.	Details in respect of the information, available to or held by it, reduced in an electronic form;	Annexure – XIV
15.	The particulars of facilities available to citizens for obtaining information, including the working hours of a library or reading room, if maintained for public use;	Annexure – XV
16.	The names, designations and other particulars of the Public Information Officers.	Annexure – XVI
17.	Such other information as may be prescribed and thereafter update these publications every year;	Annexure – XVII

Annexure – I

THE PARTICULARS OF ITS ORGANIZATION, FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES

The Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education (APSCHE) came into existence on 20th May, 1988 through an Act (No. 16 of 1988) of the State Legislature to advise the Government in matters relating to Higher Education in the State and to oversee its development with perspective planning and for matters connected therewith.

The Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education, the first of its kind in the Country, set up as per the recommendations of the National Education Policy 1986, is primarily a coordinating body between the University Grants Commission, the State Government and the Universities.

It is the general duty of the Council to coordinate and determine standards in institutions of Higher Education or Research and Scientific and Technical Institutions in accordance with the guidelines issued by the University Grants Commission from time to time. Hence, the APSCHE Act envisages the following three distinct functions:

FUNCTIONS OF THE COUNCIL

Planning and Coordination:

To prepare consolidated programmes in the sphere of Higher Education in the State in accordance with the guidelines that may be issued by the University Grants Commission from time to time, and to assist in their implementation, keeping in view the over all priorities and perspectives of Higher Education in the State.
To assist the University Grants Commission in respect of determination and maintenance of standards and suggest remedial action where ever necessary.
To evolve perspective plans for development of Higher Education in the State.
To forward the Developmental programmes of Universities and Colleges in the State to the University Grants Commission along with its comments and re-commendations.
To monitor the progress of implementation of such developmental programmes.
To promote cooperation and coordination of the Educational Institutions among themselves and explore the scope for interaction with industry and other related establishments.
To formulate the principles as per the guidelines of the Government and to decide upon, approve and sanction New Educational Institutions by according permission keeping in view the various norms and requirements to be fulfilled.
To suggest ways and means of augmenting additional resources for Higher Education in the State.

Academic Functions:

To encourage and promote innovations in curricular development, restructuring of Courses and updating of syllabi in the University and the Colleges.
To promote and coordinate the programme of Autonomous Colleges and to monitor its implementation.
To devise steps to improve the standards of Examinations conducted by the Universities and suggest necessary reforms.
To facilitate training of teachers in Colleges and Universities.
To develop programmes for greater academic cooperation and inter-action between University teachers and College teachers and to facilitate mobility of students and teachers within and outside the State.
To conduct entrance examinations for admission to institutions of higher education and render advice on admissions.
To encourage sports, games, physical education and cultural activities in the universities and colleges.
To encourage extension activities and promote interaction with concerned agencies with regional planning and development.
To prepare an overview report on the working of the universities and the colleges in State and to furnish a copy of the report to the University Grants Commission.

Advisory Functions:To advise the Government

In determining the block maintenance grants and to lay down the basis for such grants.
On setting up a State Research Board so as to link research work of educational institutions with that of the research agencies and industry, keeping in view the overall research needs of the State.
On the statutes and Ordinances to various Universities in the State (excluding Central Universities) and on the statutes proposed by the Universities in the State.
To work in liaison with the Southern Regional Committee of the All India Council for Technical Education in the formulation of the schemes in the State.
To make new institutions self sufficient and viable.
On the policy of ‘earning while learning’.
To perform any other functions necessary for the furtherance of Higher Education in the State.

The following are the Duties of APSCHE

Sanction of new Private Unaided Degree Colleges, UG and PG Courses.
Undertakes restructuring of courses at UG and PG level.
Conduct of Common Entrance Tests for all professional courses like Engineering, Medical, Agricultural, Planning and Architecture, Physical Education, Bachelor of Education, MCA, MBA and Law courses. .
Supervises online admission process into Engineering, MCA, MBA and B.Ed. Courses through six centers in the State, viz., Hyderabad, Warangal, Visakhapatnam, Guntur, Tirupati and Kadapa.
Conduct of Vice-Chancellors meetings regularly to discuss academic issues.
Conduct of Vice-Chancellors meeting with the Governor.
Introduction of security features in Degree certificates for the degrees awarded by Universities..
Authentication of Degrees and Diplomas by developing Olive Data Base for US & Other Consulates.
Formation of A.P. Consortium of Universities.
Joint Academic Network based on collaboration with foreign universities.
Co-ordinating issues relating to block grants to the universities.
Introduction of e-Learning programme in Data Warehousing and Data Mining.
Re-examining and updating common core UG syllabus.
Restructuring the Course content by incorporating soft skills and personality development required for employability.
Promoting Teacher Training Programmes in core areas.
Conducting Seminars & Workshops on issues related to Higher Education.
Publication of ‘Profile of Higher Education : Andhra Pradesh’.
Encourage Youth Cultural Festivals in the universities.
Promoting expansion of Autonomous Colleges.
Conducting Academic Audit of select Engineering and Degree colleges.
Publication of ‘Profile of Higher Education : Andhra Pradesh’.
Conducting Academic Inspections of all Degree Colleges offering PG Courses
Promoting expansion of Autonomous Colleges.
Conducting Academic Audit of select Engineering and Degree colleges.
Conducting Academic Inspections of all Degree Colleges offering PG Courses
Conducting Baseline survey in the State for the purpose of identification of potential areas for establishment of New Degree Colleges
Establishment of Institute of Information Technology Enabled Services Training (IITEST) to train the students to enhance their communication skills and for placement in various Multi National Companies and conducting ‘Graduate Employability Test (GET)’ to train the qualified candidates to acquire skills of employability.
Entering into MOU with the companies for developing programmes useful to the students and teachers
Working in collaboration with Institute of Electronic Governance and IT & C Departments in establishing Knowledge Centres like JKC in order to provide & make engineering students employable in multinational companies.
Introduction of Communication Skill component in the syllabi of Degree programmes.
Accreditation of Institutes for promoting communication skills.
Establishment of Institute of Service Management (ISM).

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Annexure – II

POWERS AND DUTIES OF ITS OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES

Sl.No	DESIGNATION	DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
1.	Chairman	HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT Chairman shall, by virtue of his office be the Chairman of the Council. He shall have the power to convene meetings of the Council and of Vice-chancellors. All orders and decisions of the Council are authenticated by the signature of the Chairman. It shall be his duty to see that the provisions of APSCHE Act, the Statutes, the ordinances and Regulations are duly observed and he may exercise all powers necessary for this purpose. He shall have power to interpret the provisions of the Act. He shall assign any work to any of the employees of the Council.
2.	Vice-Chairman	Vice-Chairman shall, by virtue of his office be a member of the Council. Assists Chairman in all activities. Look after and guide all academic matters relating to the Council.
3.	Secretary	Secretary shall be the custodian of all reports and other properties the Council. He shall conduct official correspondence of the Council and responsible for the proper maintenance of all the records of the Council. He shall attend the meetings of the Council and record the Minutes of Proceedings. He shall be responsible for the preparation of the financial estimates and annual accounts. He operates all the accounts of the Council He performs such other work as may be desired by the Chairman, under whose direction and control, he shall function and assists the Chairman in all activities.
4.	Joint Director	Looks after all the Academic Matters and performs such other duties assigned by the Chairman.
5.	Asst. Director	Deals the academic matters assigned to him/her by the Chairman, such as: Processing of the proposals of for starting new degree colleges / new courses /PG Courses / shifting of colleges/law colleges etc., under private sector. Issues relating to Autonomous Colleges in the Sate. All academic matters relating to Universities in the State. Release of grants to Universities. Any other academic matter assigned by the authorities of the Council.
6.	Asst. Secretary	He is involved in the : Preparation of Budget proposals of APSCHE every year to submit the same to Government. Preparation of Annual Accounts of APSCHE. Maintenance of Cash Books/Registers of all Accounts wings in accordance with the norms prescribed by the Government / State Audit Department. Auditing of the Accounts by State Audit Department / Accountant General Other financial matters assigned by the Secretary and the Chairman.

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Annexure – III

THE PROCEDURE FOLLOWED IN THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS, INCLUDING CHANNELS OF SUPERVISION AND ACCOUNTABILITY

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Annexure – IV

NORMS SET BY APSCHE FOR THE DISCHARGE OF DUTIES

The AP State Council of Higher Education works as per norms prescribed by the Council and the Government from time to time.

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Annexure – V

THE RULES, REGULATIONS, INSTRUCTIONS MANUALS AND RECORDS, HELD BY IT OR UNDER ITS CONTROL OR USED BY ITS EMPLOYEES FOR DISCHARGING ITS FUNCTIONS

The following Rule – Books / Reports, Manuals are available in the office:

Rules for starting of New Private Unaided Degree Colleges
Rules for starting of New UG Unaided courses in existing Private Colleges
Rules for starting of New PG Courses in existing Private Degree Colleges
Rules for starting of New Private Unaided Law Colleges
Rules for starting of New Private Unaided Oriental Colleges
Rules for shifting of the Colleges, conversion of colleges from women to co-education and vice-versa, change of management and change of name.
Annual reports of the Council
APSCHE – Over a Decade
Profile of Higher Education book containing list of Engineering, MCA, MBA, Medical, Dental, Nursing, Pharmacy, B.Ed., Law, Post Graduate, Degree and Oriental Colleges, University profiles, fee structure of different courses – University wise, Approved combinations – University wise.
Course material of e-Learning programme in Data Warehousing and Data Mining
Book on ‘Communications-Proficiency Enhancement Programme (C-PEP)’
Soft skills course for 1st year Degree students

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Annexure – VI

A STATEMENT OF CATEGORIES OF DOCUMENTS THAT ARE HELD BY IT OR UNDER ITS CONTROL

A Book on ‘Profile of Higher Education in A.P.’
A Book on “Speaking and Listening Skills” by Foundation Books (P) Ltd.,
A Book on Last Rank of candidates admitted in Engineering and Pharmacy Colleges in AP.
Report of the High Power Committee on “The Pattern of EAMCET”
Report of the High Power Committee on “Rationalization of Staffing pattern in Universities of AP”
Report of the Committee on Preparation of Guidelines for “Standardized Curriculum at UG and PG levels”
Report of the Committee on “ Implementation on Environmental Studies Programme in the Colleges
Report of the Committee on “ Uniformity in Service Rules of Teachers working in the Universities of A.P.”
Annual Report of APSCHE – 2004
APSCHE ‘ OVER A DECADE’ (1988-1998)

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Annexure – VII

PARTICULARS OF ANY ARRANGEMENTS THAT EXISTS FOR CONSULTATION WITH, OR REPRESENTATION BY THE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IN RELATION TO THE FORMULATION OF ITS POLICY OR IMPLEMENTATION THEREOF

Representations from the public and other stakeholders shall be taken into consideration as and when necessary while formulating policies.

Annexure – VIII

A STATEMENT OF THE BOARDS, COUNCILS, COMMITTEES AND OTHER BODIES CONSISTING OF TWO OR MORE PERSONS CONSTITUTED AS ITS PART OR FOR THE PURPOSE OF ITS ADVICE, AND AS TO WHETHER MEETINGS OF THOSE BOARDS, COUNCILS, COMMITTEES AND OTHER BODIES ARE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, OR THE MINUTES OF SUCH
MEETINGS ARE ACCESSIBLE FOR PUBLIC.

AP State Council of Higher Education has appointed several committees to make reforms in Higher Education. The following are the committees and their terms of reference.

SCIENTIFIC STUDY ON RATIONALIZATION OF STAFFING PATTERN IN AP STATE UNIVERSITIES

The AP State Council of Higher Education has constituted a High Power Committee to conduct a scientific study on rationalization of staffing pattern in the AP State Universities. The Members of the Committee are :

1.	Dr. M. Ananda Krishnan Former Vice-Chancellor, Anna University	Chairman
2.	Prof. M.I. Savadatti Former Member, University Grants Commission Former Vice-Chancellor, Mangalore University	Member
3.	Prof. Jandyala B.G. Tilak Senior Fellow & Head, Educational Finance Unit, National Institute of Educational Planning & Administration, New Delhi – 110016	Member
4.	Prof. Bhanoji Rao Formerly Professor of University of Singapore	Member

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The objective of constituting this Committee is :

To assess the staff requirement.
To identify strengths and potential areas of excellence in each university.
To lay down the basis for fixing block maintenance grants.
To apportion appropriate resources for development expenditure.

Committee visited all Universities in the State and collected required data and submitted its report to the Council. The report of the Committee is beneficial in the allocation of block grants and in the recruitment of desired number of faculty and also useful to improve quality in teaching and to focus training and research towards the societal requirements.

The Report of the Committee was discussed in the meeting of the Vice-Chancellors and the final recommendations will be sent to the Government.

Study on the pattern of EAMCET

The AP State Council of Higher Education has constituted a High Power Committee to examine the pattern of existing system of EAMCET. The Members of the Committee are :

1.	Dr. P. Dayaratnam Former Vice-Chancellor, JNT University	Chairman
2.	Dr. G. Shamsunder Former Vice-Chancellor NTR University of Health Sciences	Member
3.	Dr. I. V Subba Rao Former Vice-Chancellor Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University	Member
4.	Sri T. Venka Reddy, IAS (Retd.) Former Director of Collegiate Education, Govt. of AP	Member
5.	Sister Romana Fernandes Former Principal, St. Francis College for Women	Member

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Terms of Reference of the EAMCET Committee :

To formulate procedure for conducting the Workshops in the identified cities in the State.
To obtain the views and to elicit the opinion from different cross sections of the public including parent associations and student bodies.
To suggest suitable criteria and formats for an appraisal and analysis of the views of the participants in Workshops.
To examine whether EAMCET be continued in the present form.
To suggest reforms to improve upon the existing EAMCET pattern.
To prepare a report with recommendations within six months.

Committee interacted with the Conveners, Regional Coordinators of EAMCET and the Vice-Chancellors, Officials of Board of Intermediate etc. Committee also Designed a questionnaire and kept in the Website and circulated at the work- shops to get opinion from the stakeholders.

The Committee conducted workshops at 6 places i.e. Vijayawada, Warangal, Tirupati, Anantapur, Vizag and Hyderabad to receive opinion from the stake holders and also examined the pattern of EAMCET system in other states. The Committee submitted its report to the State Council on 31st March, 2005.

The Recommendations of the Committee were placed before the stake holders through press with a view to receive valuable inputs from the stake holders and different sections of the society.

The AP State Council of Higher Education has conducted a feed back meeting with the eminent academicians, selected Managements of the Colleges, Selected Media Persons, Selected Political Leaders etc. and recorded their opinion.

Further, the Council also convened a round table meeting with the Teachers of Junior Colleges, Association of Junior Colleges and other eminent academicians and sought their opinion on “steps for improvement the Intermediate Education” in AP State. The Recommendations of the roundtable was intimated to the Government for constitution of a high level Committee.

Implementation of Environmental Studies program in the Colleges

The AP State Council of Higher Education has constituted an Expert Committee to examine the implementation of Environmental studies program in the colleges of AP State and its content. The Members of the Committee are :

1.	Prof. T. Shivaji Rao Prof. of Environmental Studies, Andhra Univ. (Retd.)	Chairman
2.	Prof. K. Purushotham Reddy Prof. of Environmental Studies, Osmania Univ. (Retd.)s	Member
3.	Prof. B. Sudhakar Reddy Professor in Environmental Studies & Dean of Research, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research Mumbai-400 065	Member
4.	Prof. U. Tataji Vice-Chairman, AP State Council of Higher Education.	Convener

Committee prepared separate syllabi for Engineering and Non-Engineering streams in Environmental Studies. Revised syllabi intimated to all universities for implementation w.e.f. 2005-2006. A two day workshop was convened with the Experts on the Course Material prepared by the Members of the Committee. The Council is planning to convene a training program in each university area to the Teachers teaching the subject of Environmental Studies.

Introduction of Communication skills (Oral and Aural skills) component into I & II year General English curriculum of UG Program with an aim .

The AP State Council of Higher Education has introduced Communication skills (Oral and Aural skills) component into I & II year General English curriculum of UG Program with an aim.

To train young graduates
To capture employment opportunities at global level.

Steps are taken to introduce the component from the ensuing academic year 2005-06 in all Colleges of the State.

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Preparation of guidelines for standardized curriculum at UG and PG level courses :

The AP State Council of Higher Education has constituted a High Power Committee to prepare standardized guidelines for updating syllabi at UG and PG level courses. The Members of the Committee are :

1.	Prof. R.V. R. Chandrasekhara Rao Former Vice-Chancellor, Dr. BR Ambedkar Open University	Chairman
2.	Prof. M. Malla Reddy Former Vice-Chancellor, Osmania University	Member
3.	Prof. P. R. Naidu Former Vice-Chancellor, Sri Krishnadevaraya University	Member
4.	Dr. I.V. Subba Rao Former Vice-Chancellor, Acharya NG Ranga Agrl. University	Member
5.	Prof. Rammohan Rao Dean, Indian School of Business	Member
6.	Prof. Govindarajulu Dean, Academic, International Institute of Information Technology	Member
7.	Prof. P. Reddanna Professor of Animal Sciences School of Life Sciences, University of Hyderabad	Member
8.	Prof. Ghanta Subba Rao State Chief Information Officer President, Institute of Electronic Governance Department of IT & C, Govt. of AP	Member
9.	Prof. U. Tataji Vice-Chairman, AP State Council of Higher Education	Convener

The objective for constituting the Committee is :

To examine the existing pattern of course structure

To suggest guidelines to prepare standardized curriculum at UG & PG level courses.

Committee met 3 times and reviewed the developments at National and Global levels. Recognized the importance to bring changes with an objective –

To introduce element of flexibility and lab/filed work into curriculum

To make soft skills, computer skills as an important part of curriculum.

Council is taking steps to constitute subject expert Committees with academia and industry and eminent persons in the public life.

To design job – industry oriented syllabi.

to incorporate Research component in the syllabi.

The Committee submitted its report to the Council and it will be discussed in the meeting of the Vice-Chancellors on 9.9.2005.

Study to bring uniformity in the service rules of the teachers working in the universities

The AP State Council of Higher Education has constituted an expert Committee

To examine the existing rules in each university.

To prepare common draft rules applicable to all teachers working in the universities to avoid anomalies .

To examine the implementation of academic calender etc.

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Expert Committee with the following Members :

1.	Prof. M. Gopalakrishna Reddy Former Vice-Chancellor, Andhra University 9-6-43, Shivaji Palem, Visakhapatnam - 530017	Chairman
2.	Prof. L. Venugopal Reddy Vice-Chancellor, Andhra University Visakhapatnam – 530003	Member
3.	Sri IYR Krishna Rao, IAS Principal Secretary to Govt. Finance Department, Govt. of AP	Member
4.	Dr. K. Laxminarayana, IAS Director of Collegiate Education Govt. of Andhra Pradesh	Member
5.	Prof. M. Mutha Reddy Registrar, Osmania University Hyderabad – 7	Member
6.	Prof. B.C. Jinaga Registrar, JNT University Kukatpally, Hyderabad	Member
7.	Prof. E. Satyannarayana Former Registrar, Professor of Statistics SV University, Tirupati	Member

The Committee met various times and also interacted with the Representatives of APFUTA. The Committee finalized and submitted Report to the Council. The Council will initiate action on the Recommendations of the Report.

Establishment of Private Universities in A.P. State

The Government has constituted an expert committee:

To examine the need and issues for establishment of new universities.
To evolve a regulatory mechanism on the Educational Institutions functioning in the State with a view to improve quality in Higher Education.
To obtain required information on the available facilities in the PG Centres. Committee examined the data on the available
Infrastructural and academic facilities in the PG centres of the Universities and functioning of study centres of other state universities located in AP.

Members of the Committee

Prof. K.C. Reddy
Chairman, AP State Council of Higher Education
Prof. A.Gnanam
Former Director, NAAC, 31-III Cross Sheet, Kaveri Nagar, Reddiar Palyam, PONDICHERY – 605 010
Dr.D.Swaminadham
Vice-Chairman, State Planning Board, Former VC, JNTU and Former Member, Planning Commission, Plot No.207, Shamkaram Road, Ameerpet, Hyderabad – 016.
Justice A. Gopala Rao
Retd., High Court Judge, Plot No.207, JB Apartment Gagan Mahal, Hyderabad – 029
Prof. C.Subba Rao
Former Chairman, APSCHE 502, Siva Sai Sannidhi, Hindinagar, Punjagutta Hyderabad – 034.
Dr.G. D. Sharma
Director, Consortium for Education Communications, PB No.10502, NSC Campus, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi – 67.
Prof. A.Prasanna Kumar
Former Rector, Andhra University 74/8, MVP Colony, Visakhapatnam – 22.

Committee is examining the need and feasibility of establishing universities in the State including private universities and to evolve a suitable and appropriate mechanism for all institutions of higher learning located in the State.

PROGRAMS IN THE PIPELINE

Review and Restructuring of Journalism, Communication and Public Relations Courses

The AP State Council of Higher Education has constituted an Expert Committee to review and restructuring of Journalism, Communication and Public Relations Courses and other issues related to.

1.	Sri Narendra Luther, IAS (Retd.) Former Chief Secretary to Govt. and Former Director, Dept. of I & PR, 8-2-697/6, Road No. 12, Banajara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034	Chairman
2.	Sri K.V. Ramanachari, IAS Commissioner & Ex-Officio Secretary Department of I & PR Govt. of AP, Samachar Bhavan, A.C. Guards, Hyderabad – 28	Member
3.	Sri Potturi Venkateswara Rao Former Chairman, Press Academy of Andhra Pradesh H.No. 330/2RT, P.S. Nagar, Hyderabad - 500 057	Member
4.	Dr. R. A. Padmanabha Rao Former Deputy Director General Doordarshan ( presently working as) Officer on Special Duty Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanam, Tirupati.	Member
5.	Sri R. Dilip Kumar Director, Bhavan’s College of Communication & Management, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 5-9-1105, King Koti Road, Bashirbagh, Hyderabad – 2	Member
6.	Dr. C. V. Narasimha Reddi Former Director , Dept. of I & PR Editor, Pubic Relations Voice, 8-3-978/4, Srinagar Colony, Hyderabad – 500 073	Special Invitee

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The following are the terms of reference of the Committee :

To review the whole gamut of existing Journalism and Public Relations Courses and their utility to meet the challenges of 21st century.
To visit or interact with the Representatives of the Universities, Colleges which offer Journalism and Pubic Relations Courses as to understand the problems and suggest measures to revamp them in tune with the global competitive environment.
To visit or interact with the Representatives of Public Sector and private Industrial Houses, Corporate Hospitals, Start Hotels, Central and State Government Information and Public Relations Departments to identify their requirements in relation to the practice of public relations communication.
To determine needs of public relations education as a multi-disciplinary academic branch in the present day multi-cultural, multi-racial, technological and global society.
To recommend market friendly and market acceptable curricula and content for undergraduate, graduate, M.Phil. and Doctoral PR Courses.
To recommend about the recruitment of public relations faculty with required professional qualifications and experience in the practice.
To examine the existing PR Course material of various universities, availability of text books and recommend measures for bringing out standard text books on public relations with the help of well-known publishing houses.
To identify the required financial, administrative and infrastructural resources for offering public relations courses.

The Committee of the Committee will be convened as and when the information received from the Universities on the Courses in respect of Journalism, Public Relations and their syllabi etc.

Committee suggested by His Excellency the Governor of AP and Hon’ble Chancellor of AP State Universities.

His Excellency the Governor of AP and Hon’ble Chancellor of AP State Universities has suggested to constitute a Committee of Vice-Chancellors on the following and submit a report for the next meeting of the Vice-Chancellors.

Creation of National Integration Quota for admission of students of other States in India into Professional and Non-Professional Courses
Award of Honorary Doctorates in the Universities
To establish a link between Intermediate Education and the State Council of Higher Education on academic matters

The Committee is consisting of :

1.	Prof. K.C. Reddy, Chairman, APSCHE	Chairman
2.	Prof. Suleman Siddiqui, Vice-Chancellor, Osmania University.	Member
3.	Prof. L. Venugopal Reddy, Vice-Chancellor, Andhra University.	Member
4.	Prof. S. Jayarama Reddy, Vice-Chancellor, S V University.	Member
5.	Prof. D. Ramachandram, Vice-Chancellor, DRBRA Open University	Member
6.	Prof. R. Sambasiva Rao, Vice-Chancellor, NTRUHS	Member

The first meeting of the Committee is yet to be convened due to non-receipt of information from the Universities.

OTHER PROGRAMMES UNDERTAKEN BY AP STATE COUNCIL OF HIGHER EDUCATION (APSCHE)

ISM

Training Institutes

Mentor Training

Student Registration

MoUs with APSCHE

Rennaisance

ATTEST

Foundation Books

CDEOU

ETS

GET- Professional

GET- Non- Professional

Communication Proficiency Enhancement Programme (CPEP)

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ISM
Need for ISM
In the current scenario, facilities to train the skilled manpower required by the IT, ITES and various other industries and to ensure quality in the manpower has been inadequate. Also a number of new market areas have been emerging within the IT/ ITES industry making the issue more complex.

Both industry representatives and the general public maintain that only a limited proportion of graduates are employable as they come from Universities and Colleges that provide a low level of skill content in the existing curriculum. The Government plans to take a long term structured approach towards the talent issue and it is proposed to launch an Institute of Service Management (ISM) under the aegis of APSCHE with a clear mandate and specific objective to improve the employability through appropriate skill enrichment.

The proposed institute shall focus on offering varied programmes related to different areas of ITES/BPO and other industry sectors by facilitating the designing of the curriculum, developing the content and conducting the training for the same. It shall be a nodal institution in terms of the training offered and activities undertaken by it.

Linkages with various stake holders
The Jawahar Knowledge Centres (JKCs) operating under the control of APSCHE and Institute of Electronic Governance (IEG), an enterprise of Govt., are the other training centers established mainly to cater to the needs of the IT industry will be brought under the administrative control of the proposed Institute of Service Management (ISM) in view of the commonality of the activities. The IT and Communication Department in Government, IEG, the ITES / BPO Industry and IT, ITES and other relevant industry Associations will also be associated with the activities of the proposed ISM. This step will also help to gain economy with the availability of their expertise on hand.

Focus and intensity
The programmes of the ISM are intended to train undergraduates, graduates and such of those candidates with higher qualifications. To start with the training programmes will be limited to certain areas but as the infrastructure of ISM gets more robust, training in new areas like animation etc., will be taken up considering the demand potential.

Starting with a modest enrollment of candidates for training in the 1st year, the scope for enlarging the number of trainees as well the programmes will be considered in a need-based formulation. Institutions and colleges with capability and interest will be identified and permitted to promote the various programmes of ISM.

Registration of ISM
ISM is registered under Societies of Registration Act on 18th August 2005 with the following as members and bylaws are as follows:

Location of ISM

ISM is located in the premises of Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education, Saifabad, Hyderabad-500 004.

Broad Areas of activity of ISM

Identification of areas of importance for training considering the market demand.
Designing curriculum and developing the content appropriate for the identified areas of training programs.
Facilitating implementation and delivery of training programs including training of trainers and being involved in the training activities.
Facilitating standardization and testing.
To promote ITES / BPO as a preferred career option.
Promoting campus recruitment

Programmes offered at ISM:
ISM will organize programmes which have a strong value proposition like job assurance from ITES/BPO,and other related companies, dynamic content related to changing events in the industry, career development opportunity and matching the bench mark of up to date skills laid by the industry.

ISM will undertake training in

Basic Service programmes
Domain Specific Programmes
Management Focused Training programmes
International Languages Training and
Certification Examination in consultation with the leading and reputed certification agencies in the country.
ISM will take up activities to promote ITES / BPO and other need based careers

For further details and online application forms please visit www.ieg.gov.in/ism

Training Institutes
Mentor Training
Student Registration

MoUs with APSCHE
The Council has entered into an understanding with the following.
Renaissance
The State Council intends to enhance the employability of graduate s in the coming years in a bi-fold fashion.

The Council has accredited 33 Training Institutes spreads across in 17 Districts to impart Speaking and Listening Skills to the students. The Council also accredits the mentors of these Training Institutes after conducting a 10 day training programme at Hydearbad.

In this connection conducting training programme to the Mentors of training Institutes is outsourced to M/S Reniassance Softlabs after following due procedure.
The Council in association with six universities has introduced the Oral (Speaking) Aural (Listening) Skills in the 1st year UG Programme from the current academic year i.e 2005-06 to create cofidence in the young minds to face the challenges in the employment hunt.

In this connection the Council started Train the Trainer Programmes in all six universities to the College Teachers on the new English language and communication skills component. This 5 day Programme is also outsourced to M/S Reniassance Softlabs following due procedure.

ATTEST
The Sate Council was asked to establish an Institute under its supervision i.e Institute of Information Technology Enabled Services and Training (IITEST) by a Government order.

The Institute took on the task of identifying potential candidates for entry-level positions in the ITES Industry and the task of providing value added courses for enhancing the language capabilities of the State’s graduate pool to better their prospectus of gaining employment in the ITES Industry.

To identify the potential candidates the Council conducts Periodical Screening Tests under the name Graduate Employability Test (GET) to asses the standard of a student.

The GET is outsourced to M/S ATTEST of Chennai to screen the Students for entry-level positions in the ITES Industry.

The agreement seizes by January 10th 2006.

Foundation Books Pvt. Ltd.
The Council in consultation with various academic bodies of six universities has designed the Curriculum on Speaking and Listening Skills. The new component is an integral part of 1st year UG Programme (Non-Professional)

The approved and accepted Curriculum is brought in the shape of Text Book Pvt. Ltd after following due government procedures.

To bring out the Text Book the Council entered into Memorandum of understanding with Foundation Books Pvt. Ltd of an organization of Cambridge University Press.

Memorandum of understanding with Prof: G.R.R Center for Distance Education . All the APSCHE accredited Training Institutes are top follow an uniform curriculum of 50 hours duration out of 50 hours 25 hours is multimedia courseware and rest is interactive mode.

To develop multimedia courseware the Council entered into an MOU with Prof: G.R.R.C.D. Education.

ETS
ITEST under the aegis of APSCHE was conducting Screening Test under the banner Graduate Employability Test (GET) for identifying the manpower requirement to ITES Sector the Test is confined to non Professional College Students

Similar test is also proposed for the Technical Students (B.Tech /BE/MCA) for IT and Hardware jobs. The test will be conducted by Educational testing Service (ETS) of New Jersey, USA. This is being done after the Council had elaborate interactive discussions with representatives of IT and related industry and basing on their suggestions GET with good standards as desired by the industry is being out sourced to ETS which has very good credentials across the world.

The Council yet to sign th MOU with ETS.

GET- Professional
Background:
The Andhra Pradesh Council for Higher Education (APSCHE) seeks to assess skill levels of undergraduate students who aspire to work in IT, in the outsourcing and Information Technology Enabled Service (IteS) industry and other industry outlets and to attract and encourage multinational corporations and technology companies to set up operations in the state.

The state has been very aggressive in building infrastructure over the past 10 years, encouraging technology companies to either move their operations to or to set up new operations in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh has been very successful in its efforts to meet this goal. However, as a result of the rapid influx of these technology companies, the state currently does not have enough qualified candidates to fill jobs.

As a result, the APSCHE has decided to revamp its undergraduate curriculum, based on input obtained from stakeholder industries, to ensure that the candidates graduating from its universities have the knowledge and skills necessary for success in IT, IteS and other industry careers.

In an effort to be proactive and responsive to the needs of local industries and to the Council’s interests, the APSCHE’s goal is to develop a Graduate Employability Test (GET), a low-stakes outcomes-based assessment that will provide information about the skills and abilities of students required for employment within these companies. This assessment will measure a student’s proficiency in communication skills and problem solving. This information can then be used as one important measure of an undergraduate student’s readiness to enter industry.

The outcomes of this assessment will help to establish an objective, reliable and valid way to measure student proficiencies. In addition, they will provide students with data that will help them understand how their proficiency levels compare with industry-defined standards of job readiness.

Finally, the assessment will help the Council make informed decisions relative to curriculum reform, education policy formulation and other interventions needed to meet industry standards.

Action Plan
To meet the needs of local and multinational corporations and technology companies, the APSCHE desires to have the Graduate Employability Test (GET) to measure a student’s proficiency in communication skills and problem solving, both analytically and quantitatively developed by Education Testing Services (ETS). ETS has agreed to develop the GET and make it for APSCHE use within the state of Andhra Pradesh.

ETS will endeavor to develop the GET and assist the APSCHE in administration of the GET. Students can opt to test for both skills – quantitative and computer science skills from the optional module for an additional fee.

All students registered for the GET will be required to test for the Base Module on their verbal, analytical, speaking and writing skills. In addition to the Base Module skill tests, students are required to test for at least one skill from the Optional Module, depending on their need.

GET (Professional)
Descriptions of the test sections are as follows:

The Verbal Reasoning section of the test will measure the test taker’s ability to analyze and evaluate written material and synthesize information obtained from it, to analyze relationships among component parts of sentences, and to recognize relationships between words and concepts.
The Analytical Reasoning section of the test will measure the test taker’s ability to understand structured sets of relationships, deduce new information from sets of relationships, analyze and evaluate arguments, identify central issues and hypotheses, draw sound inferences, and identify plausible causal explanations.
The Speaking section of the test will measure the ability of nonnative speakers of English to speak English in a professional environment.
The Writing section will measure the test taker’s ability to organize and support ideas and to use standard written English.
The Quantitative Analysis section of the test will measure the test taker’s basic mathematical skills, understanding of mathematical concepts, and ability to reason quantitatively and to solve problems in a quantitative setting.
The Computer Science section of the test will measure the test taker’s basic programming fundamental skills, and understanding of computer systems, structure and design.

The following is the proposed test design to represent the GET.

	Section	Number of Items	Duration
1.	Base Module
1.1	Verbal Reasoning	30 Multiple Choice Items	30 Minutes
1.2	Analytical Reasoning	30 Multiple Choice Items	30 Minutes
1.3	Speaking	9 Test Items	20 Minutes
1.4	Writing	20 Multiple Choice Items and 1 Writing Exercise	50 Minutes
2.	Optional Module
2.1	Quantitative Analysis	30 Multiple Choice Items	30 Minutes
2.2	Computer Science	30 Multiple Choice Items	60 Minutes

In addition to the test length duration, 10 minutes will be provided for preparation prior to the start of the test and 10 minutes will be added at the end of the test.

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Assessment Design Process :
Throughout the assessment process ETS will work in close consultation with the APSCHE and industry representatives to ensure a close alignment between the APSCHE’s established goals and the assessment instrument.

ETS assessment specialists and psychometricians will develop the test sections to fit the GET specifications so that the assessment will meet the needs of the APSCHE in terms of outcomes, test delivery, and administration.

Score Reporting :
ETS will provide the APSCHE with an electronic file containing proficiency levels for individuals on each of the test sections. For example:

Student Name:
Skill	Test Result
Verbal Reasoning	Advanced, Intermediate, or -Basic
Analytical Reasoning	Advanced, Intermediate, or -Basic
Speaking	Advanced, Intermediate, or -Basic
Writing	Advanced, Intermediate, or -Basic
Computer Science	Advanced, Intermediate, or -Basic
Quantitative Analysis	Advanced, Intermediate, or -Basic

The GET will determine three levels of achievement: Advanced, Intermediate, and Basic.

An Advanced-level student has sufficiently mastered the skills measured by that section and is considered ready for employment in the IT sector without additional training.
An Intermediate-level student has sufficient mastery of the skills measured by that section to be considered employable in the IT sector, but will need some additional training.
A Basic-level student has not yet achieved sufficient mastery of the skills measured by that section to be considered employable in the IT sector.

Each student taking the GET will achieve one of these three proficiency level scores for each section of the test. In order to determine which test score corresponds to each proficiency level, cut scores for each level will need to be determined by the APSCHE, based on the results of a standard-setting study that ETS will conduct after the first operational test. Combining individual skill scores to determine one composite score is not recommended because the design of the GET encompasses five diverse constructs. The standard-setting process will help ensure the appropriate and valid use of the assessment results.

GET- (Non-Professional)
Towards the end of the 2002, the Government of Andhra Pradesh began to study the potential of the ITES industry as a growth sector with considerable possibilities for employment generation for its educated manpower. This led to the announcement of the its IT Enabled Services Policy directed towards transforming Andhra pradesh into Worldwide hub for this industry sector.

The ITES policy had four thrust key areas:

Training manpower for the industry’s particular needs
Creating better infrastructure
Passing enabling regulations
Building a strong marketing campaign

Under the Government Order released in February 2002, the Government of Andhra Pradesh created a new institution named the Institute of IT Enabled Services Training (IITEST) to function under the Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education. This institute took on the task of identifying potential candidates for entry-level positions in the ITES industry, and the task of providing value-added courses for enhancing the language capabilities of the state’s graduate pool to better their prospectus of gaining employment in the ITES industry.

In terms of infrastructure, it was intended that the institute would function by leveraging the existing infrastructure of colleges in the state.

The State Council of Higher Education under IITEST conducted about XII Graduate Employability Tests and screened about 25,000 students. Graduate Employability Test consists of computer based multiple choice questions. The Test consists of three sections – with duration of 70 minutes.

a) Verbal Ability b) Quantitative, Analytical Ability c) Mental Ability
PC based Spoken English Communication- duration of 5 Minutes
PC based Computer/ Keyboard Familiarity - duration of 5 Minutes

Eligibility: Graduates, final year students and post graduates, age below 27 years

Sale of Application and Registration: Fee for application and registration is Rs.200/-

Examination Centers: At present APSCHE in association with the testing agency i.e ATTEST is organizing the examination in nine different centers i.e Hyderabad, Secundrabad, Guntur, Rajahmundry, Warangal, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, and Tirupati.

Results: with in 10days of the examination the results will be declared.

PI Round: The Council conducts Personal interview Round to the GET qualified candidates to check their voice and accent.

After PIR, the students will be categorized on the basis of their levels of communication and aptitude as.

Recruitable – those who have high level of communication levels

Trainable – Those who need training to enhance their communication levels.

Recruitment:
The database of the Recruitable candidates will be shared with the leading Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) firms like HSBC, DEL, ICICI Bank, Knoah Solutions, GE, Gecis, Satyam…etc. These companies will candidates for further screening as per their requirements. These interviews do not guarantee any employment with these firms.

Communication Proficiency Enhancement Programme (CPEP):
For Trainable candidates the IITEST offers the Communication Proficiency Enhancement Programme (CPEP).

The details are as follows..

Duration:	11 weeks- 165 hours spread over from Monday to Saturday @ 2 ½ hours per day
Course Content:	Linguaphone material developed by Lotus Consists of 16 Audio cassettes and 8 books
Fee:	Rs.5500/-
Centers:	In all testing centers, Programme will be conducted, provided if the batch strength doesn’t fall below 20
Faculty:	Highly qualified master trainers with ELT background.

Annexure – IX

A DIRECTORY OF OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES

Sl. No.	Designation	Name of the Officer	Directory
Sl. No.	Designation	Name of the Officer	Office	Residence
1.	Chairman	Prof. K.C. Reddy	040-23311879	040-23417030
2.	Vice-Chairman	Prof. U. Tataji	040-23311877	040-55532543
3.	Vice-Chairman	Prof. P. Jayaprakash Rao	040-23311593	040-27113089
4.	Secretary	Dr. M.D. Christopher	040-23311875 040-23311470 (F)	040-23224747
5.	Joint Director	Dr. N. Rajasekhar Reddy	040-23311469	040-23320248
6.	Director ISM	Dr. Bhanu	040-23242236
6.	Asst. Directors and Lecturers in Academic Cell	Sri T.V. Sri Krishna Murthy	040-23310395
		Dr. Md. Rashool Saheb	040-23300437
		Dr. K. Satya Parameswar	040-23300437
		Sri G. Ramdhan	040-23300437
		Sri Y. Chandrasekhar Reddy	040-23310395
7.	Asst. Secretary	Sri Ch. Surya Prakash	040-23311594
8.	Consultants	Sri S.P.V. Sarabhaiah (CETS)	040-23310395
		Sri K. Yada Reddy (F&A)	040-23300437
		Dr. L.V.K. Reddy (PR)	040-23311594
9.	Superintendent	Sri B. Rambabu	040-23311594

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Annexure – X

THE BUDGET ALLOCATED TO EACH OF ITS AGENCY, INDICATING THE PARTICULARS OF ALL PLANS, PROPOSED EXPENDITURES AND REPORTS ON DISBURSEMENTS MADE

Nil

Annexure – XI

THE BUDGET ALLOCATED TO EACH OF ITS AGENCY, INDICATING THE PARTICULARS OF ALL PLANS, PROPOSED EXPENDITURES AND REPORTS ON DISBURSEMENTS MADE

Budget allotted to AP State Council of Higher Education for the academic year 2005-2006

Plan : Rs.20.00 lakhs
Non-Plan : Rs.50.80 lakhs

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Annexure –XII

THE MANNER OF EXECUTION OF SUBSIDY PROGRAMMES, INCLUDING THE AMOUNTS ALLOCATED AND THE DETAILS OF BENEFICIARIES OF SUCH PROGRAMMES

Nil

Annexure –XIII

PARTICULARS OF RECIPIENTS OF CONCESSIONS, PERMITS OR AUTHORIZATIONS GRANTED BY IT

Nil

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Annexure –XIV

DETAILS IN RESPECT OF THE INFORMATION, AVAILABLE TO OR HELD BY IT, REDUCED IN AN ELECTRONIC FORM

Entire information available is in the form of hard copy and certain information in electronic form.

Annexure –XV

PARTICULARS OF FACILITIES AVAILABLE TO CITIZENS FOR OBTAINING INFORMATION, INCLUDING THE WORKING HOURS OF A LIBRARY OR READING ROOM, IF MAINTAINED FOR PUBLIC USE

Reception counter will be opened soon for the public to obtain information.

Annexure –XVI

THE NAMES, DESIGNATIONS AND OTHER PARTICULARS OF THE PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICERS.

1.	State Public Information Officer (Appellate authority)	Prof. K.C. Reddy (Chairman) AP State Council of Higher Education	Ph: 23311879
2.	Public Information Officer	Dr. M.D. Christopher(Secretary) AP State Council of Higher Education	Ph Office: 23311875 Ph Res: 23224747 Fax: 23311470

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Annexure –XVII

SUCH OTHER INFORMATION AS MAY BE PRESCRIBED AND THEREAFTER UPDATE THESE PUBLICATIONS EVERY YEAR

The information available with APSCHE will be updated every year.

PROCEDURE TO OBTAIN INFORMATION FROM THE AP STATE COUNCIL OF HIGHER EDUCATION

A person who desires to obtain any information under “Right to Information Act – 2005” shall make a request in writing or through electronic means in any official language of the area.

A .P. State Council of Higher Education has formulated the following norms to answer the representations received from different sections of the people. The representations are classified as follows based on the Information required by a person / association.

Service matters
Student Admission issues
Management issues
Legal matters
General issues

Disposal of the Representations:

The request for information by a person shall generally be answered as expeditiously as possible and in any case within 30 days of the receipt of the request, either to provide information or reject the request.
Where an application is made for an information

Which is held by another authority; or
The subject matter of which is more closely connected with the functions of another public authority,
the application shall be transferred to appropriate authority and inform the applicant as soon as practicable but in no case later than 5 days from the receipt of application .
Where a request has been rejected, the information officer shall communicate to the person (a) the reasons for such rejection (b) the period within which an appeal against such rejection may be preferred (c) the particulars of the appellate authority.

Fee Prescribed
As per section 7 (5) of “Right to Information Act-2005”, the applicant has to pay the prescribed fee along with the application. The fee prescribed varies with the type of information a person requires.

The A.P. State Council of Higher Education has prescribed the following fee based on the information required by the applicant. The fee is to be paid in the form of a Cheque / DD on any nationalize bank in the name of Secretary, APSCHE, payable at Hyderabad.

Sl. No.	Particulars	In Rs.
1.	General Information (Infor