Haryana: MDU deploys staff to ensure security on campus during evening hours

MDU proctor Randeep Rana issued a notice on September 25 and formed seven committees to take rounds on the campus from 5.30 pm to 7 pm

More than a week after two students of the Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU) in Rohtak were arrested on charges of trespassing for storming the vice chancellor’s (VC) official residence accusing him of running an illegal “flowerpot factory”, the varsity proctor has divided varsity in seven zones and assigned duties to teaching and non-teaching staff to maintain discipline on the campus and take rounds during evening hours from 5.30 pm to 7 pm.

As per notice, as many as 33 faculty members, including both teaching and non-teaching staff have been assigned duties from September 26 to October 13.

MDU proctor Randeep Rana issued a notice on September 25 and formed seven committees to take rounds on the campus from 5.30 pm to 7 pm to ensure no untoward incident, especially with girls, takes place on the campus.

As per notice, as many as 33 faculty members, including both teaching and non-teaching staff have been assigned duties from September 26 to October 13. The university authorities said the new measures aimed at “enhancing the safety and welfare of students”, the varsity teacher association president Vikas Siwach downplayed the order saying “varsity staff has become security guards” and the proctor can’t take such a decision.

Siwach said that instead of hiring new security guards, the university’s staff has been assigned a new task of patrolling the campus.

“During a meeting, I suggested to the vice-chancellor Rajbir Singh to implement the use of bicycles on the campus and park vehicles in the parking lots near the entrance gates. If any person tries to harass any student or indulge in any wrongdoing, he/she can be caught immediately as they can’t flee on bicycle. The VC should reduce security cover outside his residence instead of asking staff to patrol the campus,” he added.

He further said that if a gate near the VC’s residence is opened, no one will go in front of girls’ hostels.

Dr Ambedkar Missionaries Vidhyarthi Association president Vikram Singh Dumolia said that the varsity administration is trying to make this campus an army cantonment.

“The teaching and non-teaching staff should do their respective jobs and leave the security arrangement for security personnel. Huge money was spent on security arrangements but we don’t know where the security guards are deployed. Why has the vice-chancellor not implemented such orders in the last five years. The varsity administration is so cowardly that they removed chairs from canteens and the identity cards of regular girl students are also being checked several times in a day,” he alleged.

Proctor Randeep Rana told HT that the staff was deployed to take rounds on the campus to ensure safety, particularly of girls as most of the people are either outdoors or on the playground from 5.30 pm to 7 pm.

“In future, we will assign duties to research scholars too because we want to ensure 100% security to students and families of staff living on the campus. Some miscreants try to enter the varsity and later they engage in hooliganism and our staff can easily identify whether they are our students or outsiders. Every person wants security of their family and girls and we are trying to ensure the same,” he added.

He said that nearly 6,000 students and 200 families of employees are living on the campus and this decision was taken due to shortage of security personnel.