CU’s ID Hospital admission notice wrong-foots colleges
Times of India | 29 March 2024
Kolkata: Calcutta University has instructed its affiliated colleges that if any student, appearing for the UG first-semester exams, comes down with an infectious disease, he or she should be admitted to Beliaghata ID Hospital from where the candidate can write the papers in isolation. The notice was issued by CU ahead of the four-year degree course’s first-semester exams.
Recently, a college had advised a candidate, who had contracted chicken pox, to take the test from the ID Hospital but it had landed the student in trouble as the university initially refused to accept her paper. The issue was later resolved.
Several principals, however, questioned the logic of earmarking only one hospital in the fresh notice. CU Students’ Unity wrote to CU officials about the difficulties of students living far away from the ID Hospital, like in Howrah, Hooghly and South 24 Parganas. “We want CU to change this decision and make alternative arrangements...” said CUSU convener Anik Dey.
Uluberia College principal Debashish Paul said, “We are worried as it’s difficult for us to reach ID Hospital... .” AJC Bose College principal and All Bengal Principals’ Council president Purna Chandra Maity said, “We oppose the decision as it’s not possible for colleges far from the city. We will reach out to the university to withdraw this decision.” A CU official said, “This is an old instruction to get a clear idea about the action to be taken.”