RU to face acute session jam for Mar 13 closure

23 March 2009, 18:00 PM

RU Correspondent

The session jam problem at Rajshahi University (RU) will worsen further due to its indefinite closure following March 13 violent clashes. Earlier session jam at the university became acute following students' movement in August 2007 and violent clash between students and local traders on August 20, 2008. The incidents led to closure of the university for indefinite period and postponement of scheduled examinations under different departments, causing unwanted delay in the academic life of about 25,000 students. The RU authorities closed the university for indefinite period as March 13 clashes between the activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League and Islami Chhatra Shibir left one student killed and 100 others injured. Around 158 examinations including year final, honours and masters under different departments were postponed due to the March 13 closure. Honours and masters final examinations of many departments began ahead of the closure but were postponed before completion, sources said. Several teachers of social science faculty told newsmen that many departments concluded their written parts of different year final examinations but the scheduled viva examinations could not be held due to the closure. The unscheduled closure will add at least three months' fresh session jam in different departments under the social science faculty which is already facing one and a half years session jam, the teachers said. Students of science faculty expressed their deep concern over the closure as they face session jam up to two years or more. History department did not experience any serious session jam problem earlier but the indefinite closure will cause it, said Lutfar Rahman, a student of the department. Every unscheduled closure leads to a few months of delay in examinations and it adds to students' suffering at the university that have faced serious session jam since August 2007, said Prof Dr Anwar Hossain, controller of examinations at RU.