Students of Bhloa Nath College, Dhubri, work in the laboratory on the college premises. Telegraph picture

Focus on all-round development

Bhola Nath College in Dhubri town has always been in the forefront of higher education. The first full-fledged science college in lower Assam also has an excellent track record in extra-curricular activities over the last 66 years.

The college, formed in 1946, was built on the 46 bighas donated by Bhola Nath Choudhury, a zamindar. The building, a specimen of Scottish architecture, has now been declared a heritage site.

Among the Bhola Nath College alumni are a number of noted personalities, including doctors, engineers and civil servants.

Former president of Asam Sahitya Sabha and noted author Lakhinandan Bora and Ananda Borbora, former head of the electronic department in Gauhati University, both served as lecturers in the college.

This premier institution has all the three streams — Arts, Comerce and Science — taught by over 72 teachers among whom 15 are MPhil degree holders and 17 PhD. In the field of distance education, Bhola Nath College offers various courses via Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Institute of Distance and Open Learning (IDOL) under Gauhati University and Krishna Kanta Handique State Open University (KKHSOU) under the Assam government.

Moreover, permission to start a BBA course has already been granted by Gauhati University.

The college has introduced LCD projectors in classrooms which aid teaching. There are laptops and ‘smart board’ backed by five generators to have uninterrupted power supply on the campus and in classrooms. There is a computerised library boasting of a rich collection for general and research students. It has 5,000 books and journals and a spacious reading room with a seating capacity of 100.

Three boys’ hostels, which were closed long back, have been renovated and readied for boarding. A girls’ hostel has also come up and two more – one for girls and one for boys – are coming up. The total corpus of Rs 1 crore will soon be released by the state government and minority cell.

The college campus also hosts other activities to meet the educational needs of students like career guidance and counselling cells, UGC Network Resource Centre, Health Centre, Yoga Centre and Daycare Centre for babies of teaching and non-teaching staff of the college.

Apart from vast academic and other curricular activities, the college is moving ahead with a number of projects to promote sports.

Motiur Rahman, a teacher of physics, said that a track and field stadium is being constructed with a 60-metre gallery at a cost of Rs 40 lakh while separate volleyball and basketball facilities with floodlights are also being constructed at a cost of Rs 20 lakh. Both are funded by the UGC.

Beside this, DoNER was moved for funds for an indoor stadium, construction of administrative buildings, arts, commerce and science blocks. It will most likely be sanctioned soon, Rahman said. All these are being done to make the institution the best college in lower Assam. Efforts are on to turn it into a university in the near future.

Bijoy Kr Sharma

Teamwork does the trick

Padumi Kalita, vice-principal, Bhola Nath College

Teaching and non-teaching staff here give their best to make this college a destination in higher education and I have immense satisfaction in working in such an environment with mutual co-operation.

We work as a team, so anything that is in the best interest of the college is discussed with teachers in the presence of the principal. Decisions are taken by taking all into confidence.

This is why we could organise a number of national seminars on The Cultural Heritage of Asom in the Context of Indian Tradition, Open Distance Learning — A Need of The Present Day Society, Re-accreditation and Re-assessment of NAAC and Introduction of Semester System in TDC course under GU.

I feel a lot more work is still to be done and the list is a long one. In the academic section there is need to introduce degree/diploma courses in journalism and mass communication, environmental science and sociology as subjects in degree courses, B. Sc in information technology. More vocational courses like computer repairing, mobile handset repairing, tourism, pisciculture, floriculture and horticulture needs to be introduced.

I feel that along with academic performance, sports is equally important for students’ physical and mental development which provides moral strength and courage.

This is the reason why we are also serious about the development of sports infrastructure. Some of the projects are already under way and nearing completion.