Students of Muffakham Jah College of Engineering and Technology flaunt anti-ragging posters during the Commencement Day 2014 celebrations in Hyderabad on Wednesday.PIc:Style photo service.
As you step into a new college campus this month, the threat of ragging looms in the shadows. Shreeja Mahambre sheds more light on this social menace.
As youngsters gear up to start their new life as college students with much gusto and excitement, they also feel anxious of being ragged by their to-be seniors. Ragging itself was once a kind of interactive session for the juniors to get to know their seniors and vice versa, but that has now turned into a horror show for most students. Brutal incidents of ragging fill newspapers soon after colleges begin.
The Supreme Court mandated that a helpline be set up for victims of ragging. Following these orders, the National Anti-Ragging Helpline has been set up. Victims may ring 1800-180-5522 to register their complaint. They may also send an email to helpline@antiragging.in with their grievance. These services do not require the victim to reveal their identity.
Colleges too take an active part in minimizing chances of ragging. The UGC expects each college to be responsible in curbing the menace. Several institutions have student councils and clubs that help new students through their first few days of college.
In spite of several measures ragging has not truly been abolished from all educational institutes in our country. Only those who have given birth to this horror can put an end to it. When students themselves take a tough stand against ragging and proactively make a move to abolish it, young students who are just starting their college life will feel safe in their new environment.
As young people enter a new phase in their lives, it is necessary to guide them and help them find their way, instead of ridiculing and humiliating them. The act of ragging is a violation of a person’s dignity and should be dealt with strictly. It isn’t a senior’s right to show his or her authority over juniors. Authority should be bandied about like a showpiece item; it should be earned by being friendly with juniors and earning their respect.
* In September last year a Lucknow girl was pushed off the third floor of her college building. She suffered multiple fractures and hurt her jaw so badly she couldn’t talk.
* In February this year three college students were arrested in Andhra Pradesh for ragging a 21-year-old pharmacy student.
* In April a first-year student in Noida was thrashed, stripped and sexually abused by his seniors who recorded the incident and later blackmailed him for money.
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