Murari Chand College

Murari Chand University College
Established	1892
Type	Public, Coeducational
Students	6,000 (2001)
Location	Sylhet, Bangladesh
Campus	Urban 112 acres
Nickname	M C College
Affiliations	Bangladesh National University

Murari Chand University College (Bengali: মুরারি চাঁদ কলেজ) (usually referred as M C College) was the first college in Sylhet. It was established in 1892. Since then it has been playing important role in the education, cultural, and political spheres of greater Sylhet.

History

M C College was established on 27 June 1892 by a local nobleman called Raja Girish Chandra Roy of Roynagar, Sylhet with 4 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 becomes an 'aided' college. For four years it remained 'aided'. In 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 7 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 had obtained GPA 5 in SSC. For more details go to the M C College website.

Academics

Departments

1. Bangla
2. Botany
3. Chemistry
4. Economics
5. English
6. History
7. Islamic History and Culture
8. Islamic Studies
9. Mathematics
10. Philosophy
11. Political Science
12. Psychology
13. Statistics
14. Sociology
15. Zoology

Infrastructure

Academic buildings

Presently there are nine academic buildings in the college. They consist of classrooms, library, department offices, etc. and 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.

Cultural activities

Students of M.C. College, every year participate and win in many national & international debate, singing, dance, speech, reciting poem, drama etc. competition.

Every year M C College organizes the celebration of Pahela Baishakh (Bangla New Year). People of all class and profession take part in the procession which makes it one of the most colorful events of the day.

Notable alumni

• Dewan Mohammad Azraf, Poet
• Abdul Malik, Cardiologist
• Syed Manzoorul Islam, Writer
• Mohammad Ataul Karim, prominent Bangladeshi American scientist; Executive Vice Chancellor & Provost ^[1] of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. Editor, Optics and Laser Technology^[2]
• Niharranjan Ray, historian^[3]
• Abu Taher, famous freedom fighter and leftist politician
• M Altaf Hossain, former editor of Dawn^[4]
• Saifur Rahman, former finance minister of Bangladesh
• Mohammad Abdur Rab
• M. Ahmed Choudhury, a prominent educationalist, philanthropist and a pioneer tea planter in British India. Mr. Choudhury was only the second Muslim principal at M.C. College.
• Late Lalit Kumar Bhattacharjee, former advocate, Karimganj, India
• Late Ramendra Kumar Bhattacharjee
• Late Jyanendranath Sharma, former mathematics professor, Karimganj College, Karimganj, India
• Dr Abdus Shahid Khan, a well-known local doctor and humanitarian, providing free treatment for the poor, children and elderly. He is also a published poet.
• Azam J Chowdhury, a prominent entrepreneur and philanthropist, Former Chairman of Green Delta Insurance Company Ltd and Prime Bank Ltd, Member of Energy Advisory Board Govt of Bangladesh. He is also a renowned Golfer and Chairman of the Finance Committee in Kurmitola Golf Club.
• Mohd. Sunahor Ali Sharif, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Govt. of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
• Dr. Tanay Datta Chowdhury,Influence Line Specialist
• Dr. Mohammad Ashfaqur Rahman, Associate Professor of Anatomy, A renown anatomist of Bangladesh

References

External links

• Banglapedia Entry
• Behind the Scene. Star Insight. 26 May 2007.
• Sylhet int’l trade fair uncertain. The Daily Star. 25 March 2006.

[Monjer Khan, Editor, Sylhet.]