THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Violation of the restriction imposed by college authorities on entry of unauthorised private vehicles inside the campus has put the life of a civil engineering student in ordeal. The Mahindra Jeep which knocked down the student inside the College of Engineering (CET) here has been under the scanner for several years and had been issued several warnings in the past.
Whenever student scuffles took place, certain students used to bring the vehicle inside the campus. In 2014, it was strictly prohibited from entering the campus, according to sources. Breaching the existing ban, the jeep entered the campus again during the Onam celebrations and hit an engineering student that day. Sources said that the exit gate of the campus was locked and the vehicle took the route towards the entrance point, hitting the girl on the way. While there is a mechanism to monitor staff vehicles and special passes are issued to them, vehicles owned by students do not pass through any mandatory security checks. They are allotted a parking space within the campus.
Curbs Mooted
In the wake of the incident, college authorities are gearing up to beef up security measures on the campus and guidelines in this regard will be chalked out after discussing with college PTA and staff members. As a prelude, a staff meeting was convened on Thursday. “A common suggestion which came up in the meeting was to arrange a strict observation mechanism around the men’s hostel and the activities taking place there. Like the time limitations which are mandatory for ladies hostel inmates, we may require the same for men’s hostel as well.
During festival occasions, former students who stay near the campus premises join here. These should be closely monitored. We will chart out suggestions for a better safety mechanism on the campus and submit them to the government at the earliest,’’ said college principal J David.