Balangir: Academic activities are suffering at Rajendra College, the oldest such institution in west Odisha, due to want of lecturers.

Despite repeated appeals by the students' community of the autonomous institute, the government has not paid any heed to their demands.

The college is now left with only 29 lecturers to take graduation, postgraduation and MPhil classes as against the sanctioned strength of 75. Out of the 29 lecturers, two will retire within the next two months. Many departments are left with just one or two lecturers. The college is now largely dependent on teachers and guest faculty employed on ad hoc basis.

More so, the institute does not have a regular principal for the past several years.

A college alumnus, Ashok Kumar Hota, said the institute was once regarded as one of the best colleges in Odisha. "I feel proud to be a former student of Rajendra College, which once considered on a par with the Ravenshaw College of Cuttack, BJB College of Bhubaneswar and the GM College of Sambalpur. But over the years, it has suffered a sharp decline because of staff crunch," he said.

Hota said many colleges, which were set up much later than the Rajendra College, had now become university, but this one was still struggling with various problems.

"It is very unfortunate to see that many colleges, which came to existence many years after the Rajendra College, are now enjoying the status of universities. But, this institute has only been made autonomous. The problem of vacancy still exists as it was earlier," he said.

Dolamani Pradhan of the All Koshal Students' Union said he had filed PIL in Orissa High Court against the state government for playing with the future of students of this college. "After the petition had been filed, some postings were made. But, those were largely transfer cases from the nearby colleges. We want permanent postings," Pradhan said.

Acting principal Binaya Kumar Jena admitted that the large-scale vacancy had hit the study in the college. "It is very difficult to regularly hold classes with the existing staff members. We recruit guest faculty to make up for the vacant posts. However, that is not sufficient. We regularly write to the government about the vacancy position urging to make the postings," he said.