College excursions and study tours have become infrequent or are no longer part of the calendar in many institutions because teachers are wary of chaperoning students on any trip that involves a night stay.

In the winter of 2009-10, a south Calcutta college affiliated to Calcutta University had organised excursions for five departments: English, history, Bengali, geography and Sanskrit. This year, only students of the geography department went on a trip.

"The college being an affiliate of Calcutta University, a study tour is part of the university's undergraduate geography curriculum. Had it not been so, this trip wouldn't have happened either," a teacher said.

Until a few years ago, anyone who hadn't been on a college excursion was supposed to have missed out on a part of growing up. Teachers too would look forward to such assignments as a challenge and a learning opportunity.

"Our daily allowance was a pittance but we would happily take the responsibility of managing groups of young men and women on these trips. Sometimes, we would take the fall for any indiscretion by them. But an excursion is no longer a refreshing break from the routine of teaching and interacting with students in the confines of a classroom," recalled a teacher who has been on several such trips.

The primary reason for teachers refusing to lead excursions and study trips seems to be the fear of allegations of harassment , sexual or otherwise.

"Students nowadays don't hesitate to bring a charge of sexual harassment against a teacher if he doesn't allow them to act according to their wishes during a tour," a teacher said.

A college principal who requested anonymity said he stopped organising trips except the ones that were "compulsory" following an incident three years ago. "There was a college excursion to Murshidabad and an elderly teacher who had accompanied the students was accused of molesting a girl after he caught six students shifting to another hotel after midnight," he said.

One of the students later lodged a complaint against the teacher, accusing him of harassing her. The teacher was acquitted.

" Over the past few years, colleges have taken a slew of measures to prevent sexual harassment. But there have also been instances of false accusations damaging the reputation of teachers. This is the reason why I have decided against accepting proposals for excursions," said a teacher at Calcutta University.

The problem of male teachers not wanting to join excursion teams is more pronounced in co-educational institutions, though even girls' institutions are facing difficulty organising trips.

Gargi Nath, principal of Jogmaya Devi College, said the rule was to have at least one male non-teaching employee assist the teacher in charge during an excursion. "But it is becoming more and more difficult to convince male non-teaching employees to go on these trips."

Jadavpur University's international relations department couldn't organise a single trip this year because no teacher was willing to shoulder the responsibility. "Our excursions are usually held between December and February. This time, there was none," said Kanak Sarkar, head of the department and a member of the Jadavpur University Teachers' Association.

Another official said excursions used to be routinely organised by the Bengali, Sanskrit, physical education and history departments at JU until last year. None of these departments has had one this season.

Study tours and fieldwork are compulsory for undergraduate students of geology, geography, zoology, botany, sociology and environment science at both JU and CU. For students of history, English, Bengali, political science, philosophy, chemistry, physical education and international relations, study tours are optional.

Surendranath College, Bangabasi College, City College, New Alipore College, Asutosh College and Scottish Church College have stopped organising non-academic excursions.

Sujit Das, principal of New Alipore College, said tours of faraway places were a no-no even for courses that require study or field trips. "We arrange only short tours to nearby locations such as Barrackpore and Santiniketan."

Srutinath Prahraj, general secretary of the CPM-controlled West Bengal College and University Teachers' Association, said it was unfortunate that colleges and universities had been forced to cut down on or do away with field trips just when education had started going beyond textbooks and the classroom.

A senior official of the state higher education department, which allocates a substantial amount of funds for both compulsory as well as non-academic excursions, admitted that lack of teachers willing to take excursion assignments had stalled routine trips.

According to him, the reason for this wasn't just the fear of facing allegations of harassment or being embroiled in any other controversy. "The reluctance of teachers to oversee excursions also stems from the poor financial incentives offered to them. The daily tour allowance offered to teachers of government and aided institutions for accompanying students on an excursion hasn't been revised since 1998. The allowance varies between Rs 100 and Rs 500 a day, depending on the city that they are visiting."

Some college heads are trying to hold on to the tradition despite the difficulties and attendant risks of sending boys and girls on trips where they are prone to demand more freedom than is permitted.

These principals - and there are only a few of them left - see excursions as having social importance too. "A college trip allows students to experience a new environment and learn to travel in a group. It also teaches them to be respectful of the locations they visit," a principal said.

For optional tours, students share 50 per cent of the expenses and the institution provides the rest. Teachers aren't required to pay for their travel, though that's hardly an incentive to manage groups of students that invariably include some who are prone to causing trouble.

"It's just not worth it. Period," said an excursion veteran.

Why do you think a college trip should/shouldn't be part of the calendar? Tell ttmetro@abpmail.com