8 months of '99 academic yr at CU 'lost'

CHITTAGONG, Jan 3: Almost eight months have been lost from the academic life of the students of the Chittagong University (CU) in 1999.

Classes were not held for a total period of 237 days out of 365 days.

The varsity was closed without any schedule for as many as 98 days, while classes were not held for 110 days because of scheduled vacation. Besides, there were 29 weekly holidays.

The unscheduled vacations included 15 days from June 16 to 30 due to killing of two students on June 15 and 26, 12 days from August 1 to 12 due to different agitation programmes including hartals, strikes, siege programmes and class boycott enforced by different student organisations as well as the general students for resumption of bus service on the campus.

Following a clash between two rival groups of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) the varsity was closed for 38 days from August 12 to September 20. Thirty three days were closed for student agitation protesting tuition fee hike and demanding other issues at different times in the year 1999.

Meanwhile, during the on-going vacation two students were killed in a clash between Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) and Islami Chhatra Shibir (ICS) on December 19. Following the incident, the university authority vacated all dormitories of the university and suspended all examinations till January 13. Protesting the killings, Shibir called an indefinite strike on the campus amid the vacation.

The scheduled vacations include 31 days for Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr in January, 18 days for Eid-ul-Azha in March and April, 31 days on account of rainy season in July, 15 days for Durga Puja and Autumn in October and again a month-long Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr vacation beginning from December 14, 1999.