Kaliyaganj school: CCTV removed from girls hostel bathing area, 2 staff terminated

Raiganj: In response to mounting protests by female students and their guardians, police have removed a CCTV camera installed at the open-bathing area of the girls’ hostel of a Higher Secondary School in Kaliyaganj, North Dinajpur. Simultaneously, the school authorities terminated the employment of two contractual staff in connection with this issue.

The controversy dates back three years when the school installed a CCTV camera near a tubewell used by students for bathing in the early morning hours. The girls recently discovered that the hostel accountant and the art teacher, both residing in the hostel, had allegedly been clandestinely monitoring them live or recorded feed of the students bathing.

Upon learning about the breach, the girls, backed by their guardians, launched a vigorous protest on Thursday afternoon, demanding the immediate removal of the camera. The agitation drew the attention of local officials, including Sub‑Inspector of education Shila Saha of Kaliyaganj, Hiranmay Sarkar, Sabhapati of Kaliyaganj Panchayat Samity and Sandipan Dey, Joint BDO. They arrived

at the scene and following discussions with school authorities, ordered the CCTV’s removal.

The Headmistress of the school confirmed: “After our managing committee met on Thursday, we resolved to remove the camera. Both the accountant and the art teacher, found to be misusing CCTV footage, have been dismissed and a formal complaint has been lodged with the police.” Debabrata Mukherjee, officer in‑charge of Kaliyaganj Police Station, stated: “Upon receipt of the complaint from the school and learning of the student protest, police immediately began an investigation.”

He added that the complaint mentions explicit voyeurism via the CCTV and that the probe will determine the exact nature and duration of the misuse.