All academic tours, excursions and industrial visits undertaken by students of colleges and universities will now be undertaken only after getting proper consent letters from their parents.
The students would also have a mandatory insurance for any form of accidents The University Grants Commission (UGC) passed strict guidelines this month to be followed by all institutions under its ambit in connection with taking students for excursion, be it part of the syllabus or otherwise.
The guidelines were framed following series of mishaps involving students reported in recent past. One such incident occurred last year in Himachal Pradesh where 24 engineering students, who were on an excursion, had drowned in river Beas.
As per guidelines, the students would also be required a mandatory insurance against accidents. Moreover, if the number of students on such excursions exceeds 50, a qualified doctor with adequate supply of medicines will be part of the entourage.
The instruction bears significance in terms of several universities in Uttar Pradesh taking the students for excursion as it forms part of the postgraduate course. Be it botany, geography or anthropology, students of these departments go for field work every year and prepare a synopsis after returning to the campus.
Besides making the guidelines available on its official website, the UGC has sent copies to vice-chancellors of all universities for implementation. The guidelines state that before proceeding on a tour, all the students should be properly briefed by way of "training session". They should be made aware about the geography, climate, hazardous locations and risk zones at the proposed destination, codes on environmental protection, emergency procedures and basic first aid.
"Students should be allowed to carry personal communication devices such as mobile phones. They should be instructed to remain in constant touch with their parents. This would also facilitate casualty handling and communication in the event of an emergency," the guidelines said.