The Jadavpur University Teachers’ Association (Juta) on Tuesday demanded the installation of CCTV cameras at “strategic locations” in hostels for “safety reasons” and suggested the introduction of identity cards for students who enter the campus in the evening.
“We are not in favour of any form of surveillance but for the sake of safety and security of students, we demand installation of CCTVs at the strategic locations like the main gate, entry-exit points and in the hostel,” says a press statement issued by Juta on Independence Day.
The statement mentions that people use several parts of the university, including the playground, for the consumption of alcohol. Entry to these areas should be banned after evening and, if need be, students should be issued identity cards for evening entry.
Students have been opposed to both the idea of having CCTV cameras and also any form of access control on the campus. A section of teachers, too, had been opposed to such measures.
Juta’s statement came days after a 17-year-old first-year student of the university was allegedly killed in the hostel. Two JU students and a former student who had continued to live in the hostel have been charged with his murder.
The teachers’ association demanded a separate hostel for undergraduate first-year students and said that former students who are still in the hostel should be asked to leave. They also demanded that senior students should not have access to the hostel for undergraduate first-year students.
The teachers’ body said they feel that the student who died last week was not only subjected to ragging but also to sexual harassment.
They suggested posting a warden in addition to a superintendent in the hostel.
They also suggested that the first-year students should be informed about the anti-ragging committee and the names and phone numbers of the members of the committee should be displayed on notice boards. The association blamed the JU authorities for failing to ensure the safety and security of students.
Sources said the UGC team that was to visit the university on Wednesday has cancelled their visit.
