The National University of Study and Research in law (NUSRl), Ranchi, will get affiliation of the Bar Council of India (BCI) by Diwali on October 23, after a wait of four and a half years.An official of the law institute on Wednesday said that documents related to the affiliation have been despatched from BCI’s office at New Delhi.
“The affiliation will be a blessing for the first batch of undergraduate students of the university passing out in 2015. We can then continue our studies without any tension,” undergraduate second year student Deepak Vyas said.
On May 8, members from BCI accompanied by local advocates had inspected the then temporary functioning campus at Birla Institute of Technology, Polytechnic Campus (BIT) at Mesra and the permanent infrastructure at Nagri where the university shifted in August.
Sources said that the recognition of NUSRl by the University Grants Commission was not enough for a national law university as the graduating students will be unable to appear in judicial competitive exams or practice in any of the courts if their degrees are not affiliated to BCI.
Meanwhile, basic facilities for the first phase construction at Nagri campus like playground, glass display at doors and proper road from the entrance gate to hostels, including the academic blocks are still pending. “The University lacks funds to complete the remaining works. The State government is yet to provide us an amount of Rs 15 crore. In such circumstances, CPWD cannot be given the required amount. We are likely to meet HRD secretary Aradhana Patnaik soon for the discussing the matter,” an official said.
However, students of the university seemed satisfied with the set up of university’s campus at Nagri. However, they expressed concern over the ignorance of Jharkhand denizens towards the university. “It becomes difficult for us to explain majority of the city residents that we hail from a national law university. They usually confuse us with a law college. Earlier, some shopkeepers felt there is a law department in BIT,” said Prachi Bharadwaj, a second year undergraduate student.
Similarly, her batchmate Aniruddh Sharma said that the perception of best law institutes like National law Universities at Jodhpur and Bengaluru is vice-versa. “It is sad that the state where we have come from miles to study fails to recognize us. Getting a degree of NlU is itself an honour.
The response of reputed law colleges and universities outside Jharkhand is appreciable. Whenever, we participate or bag an award in moot court competitions, trial advocacy, or other events, we are applauded for representing a state called Jharkhand,” Aniruddh said.
To promote their identity, the students have formed a wing of Care About People foundation registered at lucknow reaching out to the nearby rural and urban areas through organising various activities.