United News of Bangladesh

Planning Adviser Dr Wahiduddin Mahmud Sunday said there are some pre-conditions to establish the permanent campus of Rabindra University in Chalan Beel area. “The university authorities have to take clearance from the Department of Environment as per the existing rules,” he said while briefing reporters after the Ecnec meeting. He also said that there will be no deviation of the rules for this purpose. Wahiduddin Mahmud said the project area was fallow land and in 2018, the Land Ministry gave a clearance certificate as non-agricultural land and issued a no-objection certificate for land acquisition. It was said that clearance from the Environment Ministry would be required, he said. Now the project received approval on the condition that those conditions will be met. The government on Sunday approved the permanent campus of Rabindra University, Bangladesh, in Shahjadpur upazila of Sirajganj district with an estimated cost of Tk 519.15 crore. The approval came amid environmentalists’ concerns that constructing the university  in Chalan Beel area would obstruct the natural water flow. According to official documents, the “Establishment of Rabindra University, Bangladesh” project will be implemented between May 2025 and April 2029 under the Ministry of Education’s Secondary and Higher Education Division. Rabindra University will be developed like Biswa Bharati: Planning Adviser The University Grants Commission (UGC) and Rabindra University authorities will jointly execute the project. The project’s objective is to build physical infrastructure to facilitate modern, technology-based teaching and research, alongside promoting Rabindra studies, science-mindedness, and creativity. Once completed, the university is expected to offer world-class academic opportunities. Currently, Rabindra University operates from three local colleges in Shahjadpur but the temporary agreements with those institutions have already expired. Authorities of the colleges declined to extend the arrangement, creating an acute shortage of classrooms, offices, and accommodation facilities. The proposed permanent campus will be built on 100 acres of khas land at Buripothajia mouza in Shahjadpur, part of the poet Rabindranath Tagore’s former zamindari estate. The process of land allocation is underway at the Ministry of Land. At present, the university runs academic activities in five departments under four faculties, with around 2,500 students. Under the first phase of the new project, 10 departments will be opened, while the long-term plan includes 40 departments and three institutes accommodating about 7,000 students. The project will include construction of academic and residential buildings, land development, electrification, and procurement of furniture, computers, and research equipment. Officials said the project aligns with the government’s 8th Five-Year Plan, which prioritises improving the quality of tertiary education and research with a particular focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines.

Students of Rabindra University in Sirajganj blocked the Bogura-Nagarbari highway for three hours demanding permanent campus on Tuesday. The students gathering from several departments set fire and blocked the highway in front of the temporally Academic Bhaban-3 of the university and continued till 1:45pm commencing at 11am. Addressing the event, students Jakaria, Raihan Uddin, Miraj, and Ambar alleged that though the university was established in 2016, no permanent campus is yet to be set up. The campus is running on rented buildings and struggling with a sufficient number of classrooms, they said. The authorities concerned haven’t taken any measures so far despite demonstrating several times earlier, the students alleged. Read: JU students stage blockade over Afsana's death Shahjadpur police station Officer-in-Charge Md Aslam Ali said the three-hour blockade by the students caused severe traffic congestion on both ends of the highway. The students left the highway paving for the traffic movement upon assurance of the concerned administration, he added.