Shimla
Taking serious note of recent incidents at universities in neighbouring states, Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had directed a review of student safety measures at all universities in Himachal Pradesh and called for necessary steps to prevent similar incidents.
In compliance with the Chief Minister’s directions, a meeting was held today at Police Headquarters in Shimla, chaired by Director General of Police Ashok Tiwari, with vice-chancellors and other senior representatives of the state’s 17 private universities. The meeting aimed to further strengthen campus security and establish regular, effective coordination between the police and university administrations so that students’ concerns can be addressed promptly.
A presentation on the recent unfortunate incidents in the Lovely Professional University and the Chitkara University was given at the start of the meeting.The meeting held detailed discussions on campus security, monitoring of entry and exit points, verification of visitors, hostel security, the police verification and regular training of private security personnel.
Participants also discussed increasing the active involvement of universities and students in the statewide anti-chitta campaign being led by the Chief Minister. It was decided that the police and university administrations would work together to prevent drug-related activities on campuses and in surrounding areas.
To prevent rumours from spreading on social media during an incident, universities will coordinate with the police Cyber Crime and Media Cells. Each university will appoint an authorised spokesperson to ensure that accurate information was shared promptly.To strengthen police–university coordination, each university will designate a nodal security officer who will remain in regular contact with the concerned district Superintendent of Police. Joint security audits of university campuses will also be conducted and clear procedures will be developed for responding to emergencies.
The Director General of Police urged universities to support the traffic volunteer scheme, cyber-safety awareness initiatives, the anti-chitta campaign and make better use of technology. He also discussed the possibility of signing memoranda of understanding to establish regular cooperation between universities and the police.He said that Himachal Pradesh Police’s emergency service, 112, ranks first nationally. He urged universities to inform students-particularly female students-about this service and the ‘Track Me’ facility available for women’s safety, and to encourage them to follow the police’s official social media channels.
The Chief Minister after taking note of the recent incidents had directed the police and university administrations to take concrete, coordinated steps so that every student feels safe at educational institutions across the state and parents can have confidence in their children’s safety.
The Director General said the police aims to develop systems that prevent incidents before they occur, rather than respond only after something goes wrong. Student safety, mental well-being and protection from drugs and cybercrime were a shared responsibility.
He expressed confidence that, under the Chief Minister’s guidance, regular dialogue, mutual trust and cooperation between the police and universities would help ensure a safer, more disciplined and positive environment at the state’s educational institutions.
The Director General urged students, teachers and university administrations to report any emergency, suspicious activity or security concern immediately by calling 112.
