North Bengal University - Strike hampers PG admissions - NBU shut down to protest poll scrap

Siliguri, Dec. 8: An indefinite strike called by the Chhatra Parishad from today at North Bengal University stalled the admission of around 130 students to post-graduate courses.

The CP shut down the varsity to protest the cancellation of elections to students’ union allegedly under pressure from the Trinamul Chhatra Parishad yesterday.

The applicants for the PG courses are likely to miss the last date of admissions, that is December 12, if the strike continues. Their names figured in the third list of candidates issued by the varsity for the PG courses that started in September. The third list is issued for those students who apply for reassessment of under-graduate results.

The varsity reserves 10 per cent of seats in each subject to admit students after reassessment results are published.

“After the reassessment results had been published, we worked throughout last week to bring out the third list of candidates for the PG courses. We took the pressure just to ensure that the students were able to join classes as soon as possible and cover the lessons they had missed. But the indefinite strike has jeopardised the whole process,” said a varsity official.

Many students had come today for completing the admission formalities, but they had to return because of the shutdown.

This year, the PG courses had begun in September, though the classes usually start in August. The delay was attributed to the late publication of UG results.

The strike paralysed the campus. Emergency services like ambulance, security and water supply were, however, exempted from the strike.

The NBU cancelled the polls scheduled for December 15 following a gherao of the varsity registrar and election committee convener by TMCP supporters yesterday. The TMCP alleged that the university had issued the election notification without following rules.

However, a varsity official said the notification had to be withdrawn as all three members of the election committee had resigned. “They quit yesterday citing personal reasons. We are waiting for the vice-chancellor, who is currently out-of-station, to come back and take necessary steps.”

-The Telegraph