BAU students confine VC, 200 teachers demanding single combined degree

More than 200 teachers, including the vice-chancellor of Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU), were confined for six and a half hours today by students of two faculties.

Students of the Faculty of Veterinary Science and the Faculty of Animal Husbandry locked the teachers inside the Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin Auditorium around 1:00pm, demanding a single combined degree.

Around 11:00am, the teachers held an emergency academic council meeting in response to the students' demand, with BAU VC Prof AK Fazlul Haque Bhuiyan in the chair.

Since then, students began gathering in front of the auditorium, demanding a single combined degree, said Proctor Prof Md Abdul Alim.

However, in the meeting, the academic council decided to continue with three degrees -- BSc in Animal Husbandry, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, and a combined degree jointly offered by the two faculties, the proctor said.

But most of the students rejected this decision and then locked the auditorium, confining the teachers, including the VC. Later, around 7:00pm, officials from the district administration and police arrived at the scene, unlocked the auditorium, and helped them come out, said Prof Abdul Alim.

In response to the students' demand, a four-member committee headed by the convener of the Dean Council has been formed to prepare a new curriculum for the combined course, along with a makeup course curriculum, the proctor informed.