SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Dec 9: The annual sports activities of Kolhan University (KU) in Chaibasa have been severely affected due to a lack of funds. As of 2024, not a single KU team has participated in any inter-university competitions.
A senior teacher from the university has expressed that if the financial situation does not improve, the university teams will miss out on the remaining tournaments of the year. Additionally, the university has been unable to organize its annual sports event for 2024, with the apathetic attitude of the higher authorities being a major contributing factor.
While other universities in Jharkhand, including Binod Bihari Mahto Koylanchal University (BBMKU), have successfully sent teams to inter-university tournaments and organized their own annual sports events, KU has fallen behind.
Even BBMKU, a relatively new institution (7 years old), has been able to participate in all inter-university competitions and conduct its annual sports event (scheduled for December 9-10).
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Financial allocation and administrative issues
Kolhan University has 17 constituent colleges, many of which have also not been able to hold their own annual sports events due to the university’s financial constraints created by the university authorities. Official sources reveal that Rs 100 is collected per student, with 70% allocated to the college fund and 30% to the university fund.
However, colleges cannot access these funds without approval from university authorities. When proposals for the usage of these funds are sent, they are often disregarded, further hindering the sports activities at both the university and its affiliated colleges.
Teachers criticize university authorities for neglecting sports
Kolhan University Teachers Association (KUTA) President Dr. Sanjay Kumar Singh, expressing concern over the university authorities’ apathetic approach towards sports, stated that the ongoing fund crunch has severely impacted the holistic development of university students.
“University is a den of talented students who can excel on sports map besides education at the national and international level provided they get an opportunity to display. But here they do not get the opportunity,” said Prof. Singh
Contingency and examination funds also withheld
KUTA General Secretary Dr. Indal Paswan also raised concerns about the university’s failure to release contingency and examination funds to colleges for the past four years. He emphasized the importance of sports in student development but noted that despite numerous protests, representations, and sit-ins, the authorities have failed to take any action.
“Being teachers we know the importance of sports in the life of students but what can we do? We gave several representations, demonstrated and sat on dharna but the authorities did not act,” said Dr. Paswan, expressing frustration with the lack of response from the university administration.
When contacted for comment, Dr. Parasuram Sial, the registrar of Kolhan University, did not respond to calls on Monday.
