Thaindian News

New Delhi, July 21 (IANS) With a generous display of anti-ragging posters, disciplinary squads manning the length and breath of campus and unsuspecting policemen roaming around in plain clothes, it was a smooth first day for freshers at Delhi University (DU).

The day also marked the beginning of the semester system for all undergraduate courses.

Nerita James from Tamil Nadu, though a little nervous, said that she hadn’t been subjected to any ragging.

Deepak Sharma, a first-year student at St. Stephens college, said: “Having heard of horror stories about ragging before, I was a little nervous before coming to college today. But then the atmosphere here was very friendly, so it was a good start”.

“Ragging creates a negative atmosphere, it’s not fun. So my friends and I do not indulge in it,” said Ashish, a second year student of Ramjas college.

The Delhi University, in association with the Delhi Police, took several measures to check ragging of freshers by the seniors.

One among them is the setting up of joint control rooms in the north campus (011-27667221) and south campus (011-24119832) where anyone with any complaint can call. According to the officials at the control rooms, there were no complaints on the first day.

“Disciplinary squads have been formed in all colleges to monitor ragging and extra vigil is kept on eating joints in the campus. There are police pickets outside every college and hostels have restricted entry to outsiders,” a DU official said.

A police officer outside the Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) said: “I don’t think that any student will dare act foolishly by indulging in ragging. Police constables are deployed in civil as well as their duty uniform at every college.”

“Also PCR vans are present outside every college,” he added. Further, pamphlets with police control room numbers were distributed to students.

While there was no ragging, informal interactions between students of first year and their seniors were seen in all colleges.

“There was an informal interaction, an introduction, with seniors because we have to spend the next three years here and it’s good if we know them. We will need their help and guidance,” said Saswati Sharma, a student of Hansraj College.

Mukul Kashyap, a third-year student at SRCC, said: “We are here to study, to make a career for ourselves - not to make life miserable for our juniors! We will just try to break the ice with them through some informal interactions and form a friendly bond”.

P.C. Jain, principal of SRCC told IANS: “We have got no complaints regarding ragging since morning and I am quite sure that there will not be any such complaints.”

“Students here have 94-95 percent marks and they are more interested in their studies…they know that they can ruin their career with such immature act,” he added.