College principals to be held responsible for ragging: DTE

In a letter addressed to joint director offices in the state,Subhash Mahajan,Officiating Director,DTE, has asked institutes to hold separate meetings of freshers and senior students to spread awareness about the Act and apprise them of punishment for indulging in ragging.

DTE has asked institutes to adopt anti-ragging measures such as ensuring residences of principal,vice-principal and rector on educational campus,surprise visits by the authorities in hostel,especially during nights,and arranging institute-level meetings once or twice a year to spread message about expected discipline and behavior of students.

As per the Act,ragging is defined as a display of disorderly conduct which causes or is likely to cause physical or psychological harm or raise apprehension of fear or shame or embarrassment to a student in any educational institution and includes,teasing,abusing,threatening or playing practical jokes on or causing hurt to such student or asking a student to do any act or perform something which such a student in ordinary course will not do.