Anti-ragging committees to be set up in institutions

PANJIM, APRIL 16
Responding to the Supreme Court directives to curb ragging in educational institutions all over the country, the newly formed South Goa Anti-Ragging Committee (SGARC) has been interacting with heads of educational institutions in the district.
Two such meetings were conducted with heads of educational institutions in Salcete taluka and Canacona taluka on Thursday and Friday respectively, while meetings with heads of educational institutions in Mormugao, Sanguem and Quepem districts will be convened later in the month.
In both these meetings, the heads of institutions were asked to set up an anti-ragging committee and an anti-ragging squad in their educational institution.
As part of the apex court’s directive, the anti-ragging committee in each educational institution would comprise representatives of the civil and police, local media, non-governmental institutions involved in youth activities, faculty members, non-teaching staff, senior and junior students, parents and should be headed by the head of the institution.
The anti-ragging squad, in contrast, would be a body nominated by the head of the institution, to undertake checks on hostels and other places of potential ragging activities. The anti-ragging-squad should not have any outside representation and should only consist of members belonging to various sections of the education institution. This squad is to work under the overall guidance of the anti-ragging committee.
Heads of 17 educational institutions in Salcete taluka and six educational institutions in Canacona taluka who attended the meetings were asked to submit a compliance report to the SGARC on the setting up of the anti-ragging committees in their institutions within two weeks.
The SGARC was recently set up by the State government following directives of the Supreme Court to ensure that the “ugly scar of ragging is obliterated from the face of educational institutions.”
The SGARC, which is headed by district collector G P Naik, consists of heads of higher educational institutions, superintendent of police, local media, non-government organizations, representatives of student organisations and the additional district magistrate (member secretary).
The SGARC is expected to hold preparatory meetings during the summer vacations to take stock of the state of preparedness of each institution and their compliance with the policies and directives of various bodies.
In its judgment, the apex court had accepted all recommendations of the Raghavan Committee report on ragging in educational institutions and had asked all State governments to implement the report.
The Raghavan Committee report had recommended that educational institutions engage professional counselors in educational institutions at the time of admissions to counsel ‘freshers’ and conduct interactive programmes between seniors and juniors.
Other recommendations include the setting up of a toll-free helpline for students in distress, dividing freshers into groups and assigning each batch to a staff member.