JnU turns 20 today with 167yrs of institutional glory

Bangla Press Desk:  Jagannath University, near the Buriganga in Old Dhaka, marks 20 years as a university today, carrying a legacy that stretches back more than a century.

The university was once known as Dhaka Brahma School, founded in 1858 by Dinanath Sen, Prabhaticharan Roy, Anathbandhu Mallik, and Brajasundar Kaitra.

The school was renamed Jagannath School in 1872 after a takeover by Baliadi Zamindar Kishorilal Chowdhury. In 1884, it was raised to a second-grade college, and the school section was separated to form an independent school named Kishore Jubilee School. It is now known as KL Jubilee School.

In 1921, the college had to stop admission to degree courses with the establishment of Dhaka University. It was then renamed Jagannath Intermediate College, which reopened degree classes in 1949.

The college was taken over by the government in 1968 and opened honors and master's programs in 1975. That year, the government upgraded it into a postgraduate college.

In 1982, the college closed its intermediate-level programmes which were transformed into a university in 2005. Currently, with its history of 167 years, the institution has over 17,000 students and 700 teachers to its campus long defined by struggle and hope.

Crises on all fronts

The university has repeatedly faced protests over accommodation, classrooms, transport, medical care and budgets — with demonstrations recorded in 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2024 and 2025.

With more than 17,000 students, there is only one residential hall, housing 1,200 female students. Most students live in rented rooms or private hostels. Academic activities of 38 departments and two institutes run in just eight buildings. Many departments have only two or three rooms for six running sessions, forcing classes to be shared, said insiders.

The central library has too few books and seats, and lacks essential academic journals. Transport shortages are severe – only 23 buses serve thousands of commuters, many travelling while hanging on steps. The medical centre has only two doctors and no diagnostic tools. The counselling centre has no recognised psychologist. Sports facilities are minimal, with no field for practice, they added.

Signs of change

Student protests over housing intensified after the fall of the government on 5 August last year. The university has since arranged accommodation for 1,000 students reportedly through a foundation.

Work on the long-delayed second campus in Keraniganj has been handed to the Army. Two previously occupied halls – Habibur Rahman Hall and Bani Bhaban – have also been recovered and given to the Army to develop into residential halls, said insiders.

Following student demands for housing allowances, the government has increased budget allocations. Applications are now being taken for a special scholarship programme, they added.

M Rohan, a student of law and land administration, said, “We don’t have any facilities that a university usually offers. We hope the pending works will be completed soon and we will get a good academic environment where one doesn’t have to struggle to study.”

Masud Rana, of physics department, said, “A research-focused academic environment exists in universities of developed countries, but in our case, we have been spending our time in constant protests for basic facilities since the establishment. We hope that the university will overcome these crises and emerge as a role model for other universities in Bangladesh.”

Talking to this correspondent, Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Md Rezaul Karim said, “We are working together to tackle all challenges over the past year. In the same way, with everyone's continued cooperation, we will overcome future challenges and move forward.

“We have already achieved some successes since taking charge, which would have been difficult to attain without the students’ participation. We hope the rest of the difficulties will be resolved soon.

BP/SP