Murari Chand University College (Bengali: মà§à¦°à¦¾à¦°à¦¿ চাà¦à¦¦ কলেজ) (usually referred to as M C College) was the first college in Sylhet. It was established in 1892. Since then it has played an important role in the educational, cultural, and political spheres of greater Sylhet.
History
M C College was established on 27 June 1892 by a local nobleman, Raja Girish Chandra Roy of Roynagar, Sylhet with four teachers and 18 students. The college was named after his maternal grandfather, Murari Chand. It was located beside the present Raja G C School. At the beginning it was a proprietary college. Raja himself used to fund the college. From 1892 to 1908 (16 years) until the death of the Raja it remained proprietary. In 1897, the original college building collapsed in a devastating earthquake, of which Raja Girish Chandra himself was a victim. Though he survived the quakes, the calamity made him financially vulnerable. It was not possible for him to run the college from his own resources from thereon. He urged the government to take over the college so that it could continue as an educational institution. The government took over the college in 1908 after the death of Girish Chandra. Then it became an 'aided' college. For four years it remained 'aided'. On 1 April 1912 the college become fully government administered and was considered as an affiliated college of the University of Calcutta.
In 1925 the college moved to its current campus at Thackarey Hills (now Tilagarh). It is spread on an area of 112 acres of land of a beautiful natural set-up.
In 1942 the Golden Jubilee of the college was observed by the publishing of the Murari Chand College Golden Jubilee Volume.
In 2001, the college had 130 teachers and 6,000 students. There are seven residential hostels for students, which is one of the best residential arrangements of students at the college level in Bangladesh.
In 2000, the college won the national award as the best educational institution.
The library of M C College is famous for its collection of books, which numbers around 100,000.
Currently, all the students of HSC first year obtained GPA 5 in SSC.
Academics
Departments
- Mathematics
- Physics
- Chemistry
- Zoology
- English
- History
- Islamic History and Culture
- Islamic Studies
- Bangla
- Philosophy
- Botany
- Political Science
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Statistics
- Economics
Infrastructure
Academic buildings
Presently there are nine academic buildings in the college. They consist of classrooms, library, department offices, etc., and are mainly used to conduct classes. Almost all of the departments have their own academic buildings.
Library
The central library of the college is one of the oldest in the region. It houses a huge number of volumes; many of them are rare. The library is widely used by researchers. It holds more than 90,000 books.
Principal
The current principal is Professor Nithai Chondro Chondo.
Notable alumni
- Dewan Mohammad Azraf, poet
- Sanat Bhattacharjee, Headmaster of Nilmoni High School; President awardee
- Joy Bhadra Hagjer, former MP of India; former HAD; Veterinary Minister Government of Assam
- Altaf Husain, former editor of Dawn
- Syed Manzoorul Islam, writer
- Mohammad Ataul Karim, Bangladeshi American scientist; Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth
- Abdul Malik, cardiologist
- Abul Mal Abdul Muhit, Finance Minister of Bangladesh
- Nurul Islam Nahid, Education Minister of Bangladesh
- Mohammad Abdur Rab, professor at University of Dhaka
- Saifur Rahman, former finance minister of Bangladesh
- Niharranjan Ray, historian
- Abu Taher, freedom fighter and leftist politician
References
External links
- Behind the Scene. Star Insight. 26 May 2007.
- Sylhet int’l trade fair uncertain. The Daily Star. 25 March 2006.