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The university had spent around Rs 8 lakh cameras, following directives by former LU vice-chancellor Prof Ram Prakash Singh. The idea was to keep a vigil on examinees and students’ leaders.
At present, these cameras have either been removed or are lying defunct. “Of the 20-odd cameras that were bought, about 12 are lying in the university’s store room. The rest have stopped functioning, probably because of some technical snag,” said a senior teacher and member of LU’s proctorial board.
Such defunct cameras can be found at university’s arts faculty, post graduate block, new commerce block, and the proctor’s office, etc. “Only one camera installed at the vice-chancellor’s office on the old campus is still functioning,” the official added.
Senior LU officials maintained that as the purpose of the closed-circuit cameras stands defeated, the amount spent on them seems to be going down the drain. “Firstly, for a cash-strapped LU, the money spent on buying such cameras cannot be justified. Secondly, as the cameras are of no use today, it is a shear wastage of money,” said a zoology department professor.
LU Chief Proctor Dr A N Singh, however, justified the removal of the cameras. “Some of the cameras were destroyed by students’ leaders when they came to know that their activities would be monitored. Just to prevent any further damage to these cameras, we have removed them. As far as vigil on campus is concerned, we have adequate people on the proctor’s team to do so. In future, we may go for camera installation if need be,” he said.
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