JU students urge univ admin to address existing crises before launching six new depts

Leaders of several progressive student organisations at Jahangirnagar University (JU) on Saturday urged the university administration to resolve longstanding academic and infrastructural problems in existing departments before launching six new departments under the planned Institute of Islamic Studies and Theology.

The students staged a sit-in in front of the Senate Building around 2:00pm, ahead of the university’s 43rd annual Senate meeting, and later submitted a memorandum to Vice-Chancellor Prof Mohammad Kamrul Ahsan.

The constitution of the proposed Institute of Islamic Studies and Theology was placed before the Senate for consideration at the meeting.

The proposed institute includes six departments: Al-Quran and Islamic Studies, Al-Hadith and Islamic Studies, Islamic History and Culture, Islamic Law, Fiqh and Jurisprudence, Islamic Philosophy, Ethics and Comparative Religion, and Arabic Language and Literature.

The memorandum, signed by Sanjida Afrin of Jahangirnagar Bachao Andolon, Tasnim Yasmin Tanvi of Nipironer Biruddhe Jahangirnagar Platform, Faizan Ahmed Orko, general secretary of the Bangladesh Students’ Union JU unit, Sajib Ahmed Jenich of Socialist Students’ Front, and Soma Dumri of Biplobi Chhatra Maitree, said they had learned through media reports that the Senate might take a final decision on opening the six departments.

They argued that the university’s existing 37 departments continue to face serious shortages of classrooms, laboratories and teachers, while the university still lacks a comprehensive academic master plan.

The student leaders said launching new departments without addressing these structural problems and formulating a long-term academic roadmap would not be practical. They also pointed to the lack of adequate residential facilities for students who would enrol in the proposed departments.

In the memorandum, they also demanded increased allocations for research, activation of research centres, a minimum Tk10,000 grant for thesis research, establishment of a university printing press, resolution of classroom and laboratory shortages, implementation of a full-fledged medical centre, introduction of teacher evaluation, discontinuation of evening and weekend programmes, and full automation of administrative services.

“Our objection is not to opening new departments. Our concern is the tendency to make such decisions without considering the university’s existing realities,” said Faizan Ahmed Orko.

He said JU currently has 37 academic departments but still lacks a coordinated academic master plan. Many departments continue to suffer from classroom shortages, delays in examinations, session backlogs and academic year gaps, while allocations for the Central Computer Centre have not been increased and administrative automation has seen little visible progress.

 “We consider the initiative to open six new departments unreasonable without first resolving these fundamental problems in the existing departments,” he said.

Orko also said the university suffers from significant infrastructure deficiencies, including the absence of a modern sewerage system and a university-owned printing press, while many development projects have been carried out without adequate planning, affecting the campus environment and overall sustainability.

He urged the administration to formulate an integrated academic and infrastructure master plan before expanding academic programmes, noting that the Faculty of Business Studies, the Institute of Comparative Literature and Culture (ICLC), the Law department and several other academic units continue to face acute classroom shortages. “Opening new departments before addressing these basic problems is not a realistic decision,” he added.