At last the admission that the University of Dhaka granted affiliation to seven government colleges in the city without any preparation comes. After what has happened over the mess, there is no way even to say, "It's better late than never". Students of the so-hastily-affiliated seven colleges suffered beyond measure. One student had lost his eyesight due to a direct strike by a teargas canister from the police during a student demonstration demanding holding of examination and publication of results. Since that student demonstration on July 20, 2017, two more student sit-in strikes were held in Nilkhet area. In all such protest rallies, frustrated students had similar agendas to put forward in order to draw the attention of Dhaka University (DU) authorities. By no means, their demonstrations can be called negative because they did not ask for postponement of exams. Instead of retrogressive, theirs has been a constructive and progressive campaign; for they were in favour of studies.
Clearly, soured relations between the authorities of the DU and the National University (NU) were largely to blame for the administrative hotchpotch that vitiated the academic environment of the colleges. The students became the sacrificial cows. Uncertainty over the academic and post-academic life of students is yet to be cleared. Loss of academic years, along with delay in holding examinations and publication of results for no fault of students, cannot be accepted. Had they been affiliated with the NU, at least they would not have to face this kind of hassles and uncertainty. At individual levels of students, the impact can be more than tragic. For example, the student who lost his eyesight dreamt of becoming a public servant and thus helping his parents who have none but their only son to fall back upon. Now that he has become blind, their long cherished hope has evaporated. Who will compensate for his loss?
The affiliation of the seven colleges has received yet another twist with Dhaka University students now protesting the induction. They indeed have reasons to fear that their academic life will be disturbed by repeated demonstrations brought out by the affected students of the seven colleges. Already they have suffered on account of the demonstrations near their campuses. So the DU authority had to assure its students through its public relations department that the academic and social activities of the university would not be hampered by the academic activities and management of affiliated educational institutions. All student activities for the affiliated colleges would be organised on their respective campuses. Students of the colleges will not be entitled to DU-issued ID cards, transport, library and other facilities.
Assurances are one thing but when it comes to the most crucial issue of exam and results, students of the seven colleges will have no obligation to respect such restrictions. If the DU has started chewing more than it can swallow, better it should stop completing the process of full affiliation of those colleges. The NU managed the affairs well after the initial jitteriness. If it can look after hundreds of colleges, it can do so with the seven more.
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