Bhubaneswar: Police will shortly convene a meeting with the heads of various educational institutes in the city to focus on the safety of girl students.

The decision was taken after a third-year nursing student of a city-based private medical college jumped off the roof of her three-storey hostel building on April 9 allegedly after the college authorities did not act on her complaint of being molested by a canteen staff member.

The police later arrested a canteen staff of the institute for molesting the woman. But the delay on part of the institute to report the matter to the police raised eyebrows in several quarters.

"The incident took place on March 31 and the authorities remained silent though she had informed the matter immediately. Had the authorities sought police help on time, she might not have taken the drastic step," said a senior police officer.

The officer said that they would ask all educational institutes to bring such incidents to the notice of police immediately instead of trying to resolve the matters on their own.

In January, director general of police R.P. Sharma had issued an advisory to educational institutes to ensure that campuses remain crime free. Sharma had advised educational institutes to construct boundary walls to prevent entry of outsiders and to install closed-circuit television cameras in strategic areas on the premises.

The advisory also included regular police patrolling, action against non-students loitering around the campuses, deployment of plainclothes policemen and sensitising students on the effects of such crimes on their future. Besides, Sharma had also asked various police stations to remain in constant touch with the college authorities.

Stalking and eve-teasing near city schools and colleges have become a major concern for students and parents. Sale of narcotic substances near campuses is another area of concern.

Deputy commissioner of police Anup Kumar Sahoo said they would organise a detailed discussion on the problems faced by the institutes. "We will intensify patrolling near the educational institutes. Besides, we will also deploy our personnel in plainclothes to nab eve-teasers and outsiders passing lewd comments at women," said Sahoo.