Jadavpur University has restructured its anti-ragging committee in adherence to a UGC directive over a month after a first-year student died because of alleged ragging in the university’s main hostel.
Registrar Snehamanju Basu said the university had inducted two first-year students, a guardian and a media representative into the restructured committee.
Basu signed a circular announcing the composition of the restructured anti-ragging committee on Thursday.
“The previous committee had no representative from among first-year students and guardians. Now, we have restructured the committee following the UGC directive,” said Basu.
The UGC directive on the composition of the anti-ragging committee issued in April 2009 says: “The committee shall consist of representatives of faculty members, parents, students belonging to the freshers category as well as seniors and non-teaching staff. It shall monitor the anti-ragging activities on the campus.”
An official of the state higher education department said since first-year students are most vulnerable to ragging, the UGC had recommended way back in 2009 that freshers be included in the committee.
“The purpose was allow them take up their grievances to a statutory forum. The guardians were inducted for the same reason. We don’t know why the anti-ragging committee did not have such representatives for so many years,” said the official.
The student who died during the early hours of August 10 was a first-year student. He was allegedly thrown off the balcony of the main hostel by senior students who lived in the same block as the newcomers.
JU decided to follow the UGC directive on segregating the hostel for first-year undergraduate students only after the death of the student.
The Telegraph reported earlier that the university had constituted a committee to reallocate students in the university’s hostels so a separate hostel could be created for first-year students in keeping with UGC directives.
A hostel that was earmarked for first-year students after the death of the seventeen-year-old boy could not be provided to the freshers as some senior students residing there refused to vacate it.
Calcutta University’s registrar Debasis Das said their anti-ragging committee follows the UGC recommendations.
“There is no need to restructure the committee,” said Das.
CCTVs are likely to be installed at the gates of the CU hostels and the campuses, said an official.
Presidency University registrar Debajyoti Konar said their anti-ragging committee, too, follows the UGC norms.
The Thursday’s circular urged the university’s anti-ragging squad to maintain vigil and oversight and conduct surprise visits and patrolling.
JU officiating VC Buddhadeb Sau said last month he was surprised that the squad was not active.
