Kolkata: An unidentified intruder allegedly broke into the Calcutta University P.G. Lady Students’ Hall on Mahatma Gandhi Road in the early hours of Sunday and fled with valuables belonging to a student, triggering panic among hostel residents.
The incident occurred around 3 am on the third floor of the hostel. Sayantani Chakraborty, a third-year Chemical Engineering student of Rajabazar Science College, said she was asleep when she woke up to a noise and found a stranger going through her belongings. “I tried to catch hold of him, but he pushed me away and escaped down a pipe from the terrace,” Chakraborty said. She reported losing her mobile phone and some cash.
A complaint was lodged at Amherst Street Police Station. Officers visited the hostel on Sunday. Members of the Trinamool Chhatra Parishad also staged a protest demanding stricter security measures. Chakraborty alleged that she had informed the superintendent immediately after the incident, but no action was taken.
Later in the day, Amit Ray, secretary of the Faculty Council for Postgraduate Studies in Science, Engineering & Technology and Agriculture & Veterinary Science, and Subal Kumar Barui, Board of Residence (acting), visited the hostel. Ray said security personnel had been instructed to remain on high alert and police asked to step up night patrolling. “We feel CCTV coverage is needed at the back side of the hostel facing MG Road, from where the intruder is believed to have entered. We are also considering netting the balconies facing the road,” Ray said.