Standing tall: Jamshedpur Women?s College

Jamshedpur, May 5: The battle has been won, but the journey has just begun.

With the recognition ? college with potential for excellence ? from the University Grants Commission (UGC) in its kitty, Jamshedpur Women?s College (JWC) has chalked out a roadmap for future development. The college would now be getting an additional one-time grant apart from the Rs 14 lakh annual grant from the UGC.

?There are several plans lined up, but our foremost priority would be the infrastructure development of the college,? said Shukla Mahanty, the college principal.

State-of-the-art teaching aid and Internet and computer facilities for all the departments, well-equipped air conditioned audio-visual rooms, an auditorium with about 1,000 capacity, better laboratories and libraries, a gym, more toilets and common rooms are also on the anvil. ?We could not instal many hi-tech devices due to lack of funds. But now, all the departments will be equipped with them,? Mahanty said.

Apart from upgrading the existing infrastructure, the college is also planning to set up a technical block on its premises. ?The new technical block would house the departments for B.Ed and other vocational courses,? the principal said. The college is also planning to start a two-year full-time MBA programme once the centre comes into existence.

Significantly, the college is not looking forward to just academic and infrastructure development. The psychology department would begin a women?s cell for the students. ?The redressal forum in the college addresses various academic problems faced by the students, but this new body would go a step further and interact with the students to deal with their problems,? said a senior faculty of the psychology department.

JWC is the first college from Jharkhand chosen for this award. The ?potential for excellence? recognition is given to colleges awarded either B++ or A grade by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC).

Apart from JWC, Graduate School College for Women and Karim City College were also in the running after having sent their reports to the university for the recognition. The colleges, which could not bag the title this time, however, decided to remain tight-lipped.