Kolkata: Freshers may not go to campus right now – Times of India

KOLKATA: Campuses may reopen on November 16 but undergraduate first-semester students, who have just taken admission, are not likely to get a taste of campus life right away.
Jadavpur University, which held a stakeholders’ meeting on Tuesday, decided to reopen in phases and to allow all its PhD and MPhil students to resume on-campus work from next Tuesday. For the rest, it wants the different departments to decide which semester students to call for offline studies.
Presidency University has also left it to individual departments to decide. Following a meeting with the heads of 68 departments on Tuesday, Calcutta University has decided to call only third-semester postgraduate students to the campus from November 16. Rabindra Bharati University held two meetings with the teachers’ organisation and students’ body and decided to start with both UG and PG terminal-semester students. RBU wants to prioritize practical classes.
“Heads of of 68 departments took a uniform decision to start offline classes with third-semester students. Departments with large number of students, like commerce and business management, may have blended mode and they will set their own timetable,” said CU vice-chancellor Sonali Chakravarti Banerjee. First-year PG students will continue to have online studies.
The university authority might provide hostel facility to the third-semester students if they applied, she said.
At JU, where all PhD and MPhil students will be allowed on the campus from next week, the Arts faculty will call one UG year and one PG year first. But it is up to each of the departments to choose the year. Science faculty will call UG-II and PG-1 after November 16 and engineering PG first-year. Different engineering departments will take their own decisions on PG-II and PG-III semsters. Engineering UG-II, UG-III and UG-IV semesters would continue with online learning, sources said.
Presidency registrar Debajyoti Konar said, “The government order on Covid-safety protocols will be followed. Academic and administrative committees will discuss in detail and finalise the method”.
RBU said its terminal-semester students will attend offline classes on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and online classes on Mondays and Fridays. Students of other semester will continue online classes. Hostel facility will not be allowed at present. Packaged dry food will be available in canteen but cooked food will not be served.
RBU vice-chancellor Sabyasachi Basu Ray Chaudhury said, “Practical classes will be prioritized and so will be BA arts and fine arts 5th semester, visual arts 7th semester. But postgraduate semester 3 can attend only compulsory elective courses on campus but core subjects will be held online. This system will continue till mid-December and further decision will be taken after reviewing the situation.” PhD and MPhil students may come to the campus according to their requirements.