Premier art college grapples with staff shortage

Officiating principal S N Lahiri said, “There is a 70 per cent shortage of staff. No recruitment has taken place for almost a decade now and new courses have been added. Officers from the Directorate of Technical Education visited the campus on Friday and we have explained the situation to them, action needs to be taken by them and the Delhi government.”

He added that no department – except applied art, headed by him – has a head, and most people in the staff are on contractual basis, with their contracts ending in December this year.

A 23-year-old fourth-year student in the painting department said students aren’t provided basic stationery. “We need to be provided with basics but are told that is not available,” he said, adding that students also want the college to remain open till later hours, beyond the current 5 pm. “We can’t lug material to practice outside, there are times when we need equipment and college premises to work in,” he added.

The concerns are not new according to the alumnus. “These issues have bothered students for several years now. The authorities have been dominating,” said Neeraj Rawal, who completed his Bachelors in Sculpture from the college in 2012. He feels that the course too requires tweaking, since not much has changed since the establishment of the institute in 1940s.

Artist and well-known printmaker Anupam Sud, who taught at the college for over two decades and retired as the head of department, painting in 2003, said, “It is unfortunate that things have come to this and students have to protest. No college can run without adequate staff.”

Lahiri said he is not the deciding authority but is working on temporary alternatives on some matters. “We have invited people to sell stationery out of a van in the premises till the tender for the shop is finalised. A private company has been hired for sanitation. Students have requested for Wi-Fi and studio lights and computer lab equipment, for which we have requested the government and the directorate,” he said.