Preparations on for the diamond jubilee celebrations of B. Borooah College. Picture by S.H. Patgiri

Nov. 27: B. Borooah College, a premier educational institution of the city, will celebrate its diamond jubilee from tomorrow.

The college, which had its founder principal in Assam’s first chief minister late Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi, will observe the occasion with a three-day programme comprising flag-hoisting, book fair, panel discussion, quiz competitions, kavi sammelan and many more.

The celebrations will conclude on November 30.

Tomorrow’s programme includes a cultural procession in the morning followed by inauguration of a book fair. The panel discussion will be on higher education at 2 pm.

Noted artist Neel Pawan Barua has designed the renovated main gate of the college.

The college has had among its faculty four former presidents of Asam Sahitya Sabha, the apex literary body of the state. They are Jogesh Das, Bhupen Hazarika, Nirmal Prabha Bordoloi and Birendra Nath Dutta.

An open session will be held on November 29, which will be followed by a programme by the Mathematics department demonstrating special skills.

General secretary of the B. Borooah College Alumni Association Dhrubajyoti Choudhury said, “The college started as a night college in 1943, operating from the Kamrup Academy premises, and came to its present site in 1959. It started with only 17 students, which has now increased to 3,360.”

The alumni association has decided to hold its own programmes on November 30, which is the last day of the diamond jubilee celebrations. This includes reunion of past students, cultural procession and cultural night. The cultural night will be held at the Nehru Stadium.

The college, originally an arts college, added the science stream in 1964. It became a government-aided college in 1947.

The college authorities have undertaken a number of ambitious projects aimed at improving the infrastructure.

A 3,000-litre capacity reservoir has been installed. It will store the water treated in a plant fitted with iron filters.

Provision for safe drinking water has been a long-felt need of the students and teachers of the college and completion of the project is expected to fulfil this requirement.

The alumni association of the college, formed last year, has also undertaken a number of projects coinciding with the diamond jubilee celebrations to supplement the efforts of the college authorities.

Other long-term projects initiated by the alumni association include renovation of the college auditorium, construction of separate common rooms for boys and girls equipped with modern amenities and installation of a guide map of the college campus.

The association has an ambitious plan to upgrade the auditorium into an air-conditioned one equipped with modern acoustics.

Coinciding with the celebrations organised by the college authorities, the association has also decided to bring out a souvenir to commemorate the past history of the college. Production of a documentary reflecting the college history is also in the agenda of the alumni association.