College admission : Strict action will be taken against those

West Bengal Education minister Partha Chatterjee today said strict action will be taken against those involved in extorting money for admission to colleges and urged the students to complete the process through banks if their names featured in the merit list.

"Strict action has to be taken against the culprits involved in the irregularities. We urge the students to take admission through banks if their names are in the merit lists of the colleges," Chatterjee said.

He said, some outsiders are involved in the extortion and the government will identify them and take action, he said.

"We have already sent information to the colleges that there is no need for counselling. The list should be prepared on the basis of merit only and the students can submit the admission fees in the bank directly or through online system," he said.

The verification of certificates will be done when the students join classes. If at that point of time the certificates are not found to be in order then the admission will be deemed as cancelled, he said.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had yesterday paid a surprise visit to her alma mater, Ashutosh College in south Kolkata and warned of stern action against those indulging in the extortion from aspiring students.

Chatterjee also visited two colleges in the northern part of the city - Jaipuria College and Maharaja Manindra Chandra college and spoke to the students and guardians and inquired about problems faced by them.

Meanwhile, a high level meeting of the Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad, the party's student wing, took place at the TMC headquarters here.

"Some of the TMCP units have been dissolved as they have failed to protect the interest of the students. When outsiders are demanding money from the students, it is the duty of the students' union to protest against it," TMCP state president Jaya Dutta said.

Most of them who have been arrested are outsiders and are neither regular students nor part of TMCP, she added.)