Student drowns inside Jadavpur University

Mou Chakraborty
Kolkata, September 14, 2007
Tragedy struck Jadavpur University on Friday, when a third-year student drowned in a pond inside the campus. The youth had gone for a swim after a football match.
The students’ unions of arts, science and engineering streams had organised a football tournament and a match between the maths and English departments were slated for Friday. Subhashish Mukherjee, third-year B Sc student of the maths department was playing for his side. A good player, he went for a swim in a pond near the metallurgy department at 5pm after the match got over. N ot knowing how to swim, Subhashish drowned. He was rushed to EEDF nursing home and then to AMRI, where he was declared dead.
According to university authorities, the accident could have been avoided if pupils had followed norms set by the university. “We have repeatedly asked students not to go into the pond. There are three notice boards around the pond cautioning them. This is not a school and it is not possible for us to put a fence around all our ponds to make pupils follow orders,” said Rajat Bandopadhyay, registrar of the university.
A pall of gloom fell over the campus after news of the drowning spread. “I am terribly shocked to know a young boy died inside campus. This boy I am told did not know swimming. The three students’ unions organising the football meet cannot deny their responsibility. They should have stopped students from stepping into the pond after the match was over,” said Bandopadhyay.
According to authorities, security guards tried to prevent Subhashish from going for a swim. But, according to them, the youth exchanged words and went for a swim anyway. Following the mishap, the security and friends rescued Subhashish and took him to a nearby nursing home.
Some students, however, alleged that the uncaring attitude of a nursing home also had a hand in the student’s death. “He used to tell us that he could swim and I was shocked to hear he had drowned. We took him to EEDF, but initially they denied him admission. Only after cajoling they agreed but they left him unattended for a long time. They also did not give him oxygen and requested us to take him to AMRI. And after we brought him to AMRI he died. If EEDF had attended to him immediately and administered oxygen, he might have survived,” said Sujoy Konar, a third-year maths student and a friend of the victim.
The youngster’s teachers are equally shocked. “He was a bright and jolly student. Because of that, he was popular amongst both students and teachers. The incident has saddened us deeply,” said Dipak Kesh, a professor of the maths department.
The police have not yet ruled out foul play. “Initial investigations do not indicate any foul play, however, we would be able to clarify only after we get the post-mortem report,” said SP South 24-Parganas Praveen Kumar.Mou.Chakraborty@hindustantimes.com