Reflecting its seriousness about a zero-tolerance policy toward ragging, the Dental Council of India (DCI) has identified six dental colleges where more than one ragging case have been reported in the last 5 years.
As per the latest data available on August 12 on its website, these defaulter colleges include Eklavya Dental College and Hospital in Rajasthan (with four cases of ragging) and Kusum Devi Sunderlal Dugar Jain Dental College in Kolkata and SCB Dental College in Cuttack and KD Dental College in Mathura (all of them reported two cases each).
At the same time, three cases each were reported respectively from Government Dental College in Raipur, and Saraswati Dental College in Lucknow.
In contrast, the DCI has also highlighted that 286 dental colleges across the country have not reported any cases of ragging during the same period, establishing them as safe zones for newcomers. This includes colleges from various states, with notable numbers in southern States like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.
Number wise, Karnataka tops the list with 42 colleges followed by Maharashtra (34), Tamil Nadu (30), Kerala(27), ), Uttar Pradesh (20), Punjab (16), Andhra Pradesh (15), Gujarat and Telangana (12 each), Bihar, Haryana (nine), Chhattisgarh, Delhi and Himachal (five), Puducherry and Jharkhand (4 each), Assam, West Bengal and Kashmir (three each), Odisha, Uttarakhand and Manipur (two each) one each college in Daman and Goa and Tripura.
This initiative (identifying the defaulters) aims to hold these colleges accountable and promote a safer educational environment for students, pointed out Dr Anil Kumar Chandna, member of the Delhi Dental Council and former executive member of the DCI.
He asserted that given that many dental educational institutions have not reported a single case of ragging in the past few years, it shows that the environment in these colleges is generally more conducive for students compared to medical institutions, where incidents of ragging have sometimes led to tragic outcomes, including suicides.
Dr Chandna highlighted the DCI's commitment to maintaining a ragging-free atmosphere by conducting regular meetings with student council members, anti-ragging squads, and staff to discuss the harmful effects of ragging.
He also reiterated that these institutions are being strictly told that any form of misbehavior, whether in college or hostel premises, will not be tolerated, and immediate action should be taken against offenders.
There are over 330 dental colleges across the country, with the majority operating in the private sector.
