Karnataka higher education department reiterates need for CCTV on campus

Bengaluru: The higher education department has reiterated that all educational institutions should have CCTV cameras on campus. The circular, dated May 19, is in response to a letter from a citizen who quoted media reports about the use of drugs among children, expressing concern about the growth of anti-social activities — including drug abuse, sexual harassment, and ragging — in educational institutions."There's already a standing order that educational institutions should have CCTVs. This is only to reiterate the same. While most colleges have CCTV, some govt colleges are yet to have it because of lack of funds. To curb the menace of drugs, there has to be sustained efforts to keep students safe," said KG Jagadeesha, principal secretary of higher education.In response to the circular, Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) has asked its affiliated colleges to conduct special seminars for students, install CCTV cameras at prominent places, and regularly monitor student activities. A counsellor must be appointed to aid victims of anti-social activities, VTU said.Colleges have also been told to install boards at prominent places stating that "consuming drugs, alcohol, tobacco, involving in ragging and sexual harassment, and other anti-social activities is strictly prohibited". If such cases do occur, colleges have to take stringent action and submit a report to the university. "The VTU circular is based on the govt circular. Almost all our affiliated colleges have CCTV on campus. They should monitor it regularly to curb illegal activities," said VTU registrar BE Rangaswamy.