SRFTI VC says academic future of students cannot be held hostage to demands of few

Kolkata, Nov 6 (PTI) The SRFTI administration on Friday defended its handling of the ongoing student agitation, with vice-chancellor Santosh Ajmera saying academic standards and students' future cannot be held hostage to the demands or actions of a few.

    Responding to allegations that the VC was attempting to "dictate the conscience of the institution", Ajmera said his primary concern was academics and the future of students, claiming that he had held several rounds of discussions with students, teachers, officers and employees since the developments of September 27 to restore normalcy.

    He said sustained efforts were made even before the Durga Puja vacation to persuade students to resume classes, but a section of them had boycotted academic activities and allegedly persuaded others to join the protest.

    The VC said the 2026 batch, which joined the institute in August, should not suffer because of the disruption.

    Pointing out that Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) attained deemed-to-be-university status last year and transitioned from postgraduate diploma programmes to postgraduate degree courses, he said the institute now had greater academic responsibilities and must ensure that programmes were completed within their prescribed duration.

    "Courses designed for two or three years are taking five to six years to complete. This is detrimental to the students' own future and cannot be allowed to continue," he said.

    He also raised concerns over prolonged occupation of hostel accommodation by some students, saying facilities meant for the prescribed duration of courses were being occupied for five to six years, thereby depriving incoming students of accommodation and imposing an avoidable financial burden on the institute.

    On allegations regarding the termination of two contractual faculty members and six resource persons, registrar Deepak Kumar said contractual faculty members were governed by specific terms and conditions of engagement and applicable institutional rules.

    "Any decision regarding their continuation or termination was taken in accordance with these provisions," he said.

    Explaining the discontinuation of assignments for resource persons, the registrar said they were engaged on a day-to-day basis against actual academic requirements.

    "Since a section of students initiated and continues to sustain the academic disruption, and regular classes remain suspended, there is presently no academic justification for calling resource persons," he said.

    He added that engaging them without actual academic work would entail avoidable expenditure and that they would resume assignments once academic activities and classes recommenced.

    On allegations that disciplinary proceedings had been initiated against professors for standing by students during the agitation, the registrar said such proceedings related to specific alleged violations of institutional rules.

    "Such matters will be dealt with strictly in accordance with the prescribed procedure," he said.

    The institute has been witnessing prolonged unrest since September 27 following allegations of attacks on students during an Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat programme at the auditorium and subsequent confrontations between protesters and the administration.

    A rally by Bangiya Hindu Jagran Manch on October 4 also led to the escalation of the situation, with stones and bottles allegedly thrown towards the campus.

    The agitation has led to suspension of academic activities, while the administration and protesting students have traded allegations over the handling of the crisis.

    The institute's closure has also been extended till December 11, with students alleging that the administration was resorting to coercive measures instead of addressing their grievances.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)