Student unions and university lecturers have strongly objected to a recent circular issued by the University Grants Commission (UGC) requiring all student-organised events in State universities to be conducted under the supervision of a designated university officer.
Commission Circular No. 02/2026, dated 6 February and addressed to vice chancellors, rectors, and directors of State institutions, directs that all student-organised events be held under the supervision of a responsible university staff member until further notice. The directive was issued following concerns raised by the UGC’s Centre for Gender Equity/Equality (CGEE), which received numerous complaints about unsupervised student events. The circular states that such events pose risks to student safety and well-being and compromise the universities’ responsibility to maintain a secure learning environment.
Under the circular, a staff member must be present during rehearsals, preparations, decorations, the event itself, and until all students have dispersed. Events failing to comply “should not be held under any circumstances,” according to the document. The decision was made at the UGC’s 1,162nd meeting on 7 January.
Responding to the circular, the Federation of University Teachers’ Associations (FUTA) strongly rejected the directive. FUTA General Secretary and Senior Lecturer Charudatta Illangasinghe said the circular imposes an unreasonable legal burden on academic staff. He argued that university students are adults and that applying supervision rules to all student programmes is problematic. Illangasinghe warned that making supervision a legal requirement could expose lecturers to personal liability.
He noted that while lecturers often engage informally with student activities, formalising this involvement legally changes the nature of their role, placing full responsibility for any incidents on one person. “That is a very serious situation, and it is not a role we are willing to take on,” he said.
The Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF) also criticised the circular, describing it as an attempt to curtail democratic space within universities. IUSF Convenor Madushan Chandrajith said the requirement amounts to excessive control over student activities, noting that continuous supervision could make organising events impossible in certain locations.
Multiple attempts to contact UGC Chairman Senior Professor Kapila Seneviratne for comment were unsuccessful.
