SILCHAR, 24 Sep: Professor Brinda Bhowmik was appointed the dean of academics at NIT-Silchar, replacing BK Roy, after a weeklong protest on the campus over a student’s suicide, officials said on Sunday.
Bhowmik, a professor in the electronics & communication engineering department, has been appointed as the dean (academics) with effect from 25 September, according to a notification.
Her tenure will be provisionally for a period of two years from the date of taking over charge, or till further orders, it said.
Protests broke out on the campus after a third-year student from Arunachal Pradesh was found dead on 15 September in his hostel room.
The students have been alleging that Roy had insulted the victim, who got six backlogs in his first-semester examination, which was held in 2021.
Due to the lockdown, he was at home and failed to attend the online classes due to lack of internet connectivity, resulting in the backlog, they claimed.
He had appealed to the authorities to conduct a special examination, so that he could clear the backlogs, but Roy allegedly insulted him. Following this incident, he locked himself in his room and later was found dead, they said.
Among their demands was the resignation of Roy, whom they blamed for the suicide, and that no disciplinary action should be taken against the students for the protest.
The students went on a hunger strike with the demands, and withdrew from it on Friday after receiving assurances from the college authority. (PTI)
