Kolkata: Jadavpur University is facing a problem in finding teacher wardens for its hostels as professors are not interested to take this responsibility, in spite of a rise in the allowance from Rs 2,500 to Rs 6,000.
JU decided to appoint teachers as wardens of hostels in May in addition to the hostel supers to curb ragging. JU invited responses from teachers who were residing in quarters or within two kilometres from the campus to be teacher wardens at hostels.
Sources said that teachers, who were approached by the authorities, had flatly refused to be the wardens at hostels. A teacher said, “We do not want to take this responsibility because it is frustrating to see that the authority is not capable of taking any action in previous incidents. Provision for implementation of discipline without any scope of punishment is a misnomer.”
Another teacher, who has also refused to take the charge, feels, “Why we are refusing to take this additional responsibility will be clear if one reads the internal probe panel’s report on the fresher’s death at the Main Hostel last Aug.”
The report states that the hostel superintendents were “accused of stealing mobile phones and were forced to sign fake confession statements of theft”. They were forced to stand for hours in the garden, which is tantamount to ragging, it stated.
Jadavpur University Teachers’ Association general secretary Partha Pratim Ray said, “One of the main reasons of teachers avoiding to take this charge is the behaviour of a section of students and the disrespect they show towards professors. Another reason is obviously the incapability of authority to take any action.”
The university has also decided to segregate the UG1 and UG2 students in separate hostels from this year. A teacher said, “We are hopeful that at least for the freshers’ hostels, we will be able to arrange for teacher wardens as it is a necessity.”
Registrar Snehamanju Basu said, “We have increased the allowance but still no teacher is showing interest to be wardens at hostels. It is imperative that we appoint teachers as wardens at our hostels as per the UGC guidelines.”
The UGC expert committee, which was probing the death of the fresher, mentioned in its report that JU has “no concept of wardens” and has employed contractual individuals as whole-time hostel superintendents. UGC had written a letter to JU seeking response on the status of implementing the measures for appointing teachers as wardens to hostels.