BHUBANESWAR : The MKCG medical college and hospital (MKCG MCH) at Berhampur tops the list of medical colleges in the country that witness the maximum number of ragging complaints. So does Berhampur University among public universities and Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT) in Rourkela when it comes to technical universities.
An analysis of ragging complaints registered between 2022 and 2024 at the UGC’s National Anti-Ragging Helpline, published by the Society Against Violence in Education (SAVE) on Monday, revealed that educational institutions in Odisha continue to report a majority of ragging cases in the country, be it in general or technical education fields.
The ‘State of Ragging in India 2022-24’ states that MKCG MCH, among the medical colleges, has become a hotspot of ragging. Among 12 MCHs across the country that saw filing of a significant number of complaints, MKCG topped the list with 25 complaints lodged in three years ending December 2024.
It was followed by Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru Memorial Medical College at Raipur (15 complaints), Vardhman Institute of Medical Sciences at Bihar (14), Takmeel-Ut-Tib College & Hospital at Uttar Pradesh (12) and Maulana Azad Medical College at New Delhi (11).
BPUT, which is the largest technical university in the state, comes fourth in the list of top-5 technical universities with most complaints. It has reported 28 complaints with the helpline while Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology in Kolkata tops the list with 74 complaints.
Veer Surendra Sai University of Technology at Burla saw eight ragging cases in this period. When it comes to technical colleges, be it engineering or polytechnic, Odisha’s Indira Gandhi Institute of Technology at Sarang (Dhenkanal) comes second in this list with 22 complaints. Similarly, Berhampur University is among the top universities with 31 complaints. Within this period, the state also saw three alleged ragging deaths.
In over a decade, the anti-ragging helpline has logged over 8,000 complaints and among the states that reported a majority of them is Odisha with 517 complaints. While the dean of MKCG MCH could not be reached for comments, a member of the anti-ragging squad of the institution said many of these cases are a result of infighting among students.
“We are following all the UGC guidelines to avoid ragging on our campus including strict action against the perpetrators of the crime. In December last year, an assistant professor and three senior residents were suspended for six months and in November, five MBBS students were expelled from the hostel for ragging,” he said.
Anti-ragging activist and vice-president of SAVE Gaurav Singhal said the above-mentioned complaints are just the ones registered with the helpline. In reality, there are a huge number of complaints that are registered directly in colleges and police which do not reflect in the anti-ragging helpline.
Concerning Scenario
MKCG has reported 25 ragging complaints in 3 years ending Dec 2024
BPUT 4th in the list of top-5 tech universities with most complaints
Eight ragging cases reported from VSSUT, Burla during this period
The state has seen three alleged ragging deaths in this period
517 ragging complaints reported from Odisha in over a decade