One more student becomes victim of severe ragging

Bargarh (Orissa) May 18, 2004 (ANI):
Yet another case of gruesome ragging in professional colleges has surfaced in Orissa.
Tapan Jajati Chhuria, a second year engineering student, has been bed-ridden eversince he was mercilessly beaten up two months ago. The 22-year-old is a student of Padma Shree Krutartha Acharya Institute of Engineering and Technology at Bargarh.
Tapan, who has lost hearing in one ear, said that he was targeted by seniors as he belonged to a low caste.
"That day, when I was returning from my practical classes with another first year student, three students came and started beating me with shoes and belts," said Tapan.
He was rushed to a local hospital by the teachers and later on his parents took him to a speciality hospital in Vellore.
"For treatment, I took him to Krishna Hospital in Vellore. Doctors there told us that he had lost hearing in one ear. He also has to undergo thigh bone replacement surgery, otherwise his leg would have to be amputated," said Soukilal Chhuria, Tapan's father.
Santosh Acharya, the Principal of the college however said that the altercation was initiated by the victim.
"After assessing the situation completely, I found out that Churia (the victim) first started the fight, and attacked a first year student. But because Churia was beaten up so mercilessly, we have decided to suspend all the three students from the institute," said Acharya.
Ragging has become a social problem and several students have ended up spending days in hospital beds with traumatic experiences. Unofficial estimates say that nearly 25 per cent of the students who join professional courses drop out as they are not able to cope with severe ragging by their seniors.(ANI)