CHHATRAPATI DUTTA

Chhatrapati Dutta has returned to his alma mater, the Government College of Art & Craft, as its principal.The 52-year-old joined his new post at the Chowringhee institution, which was founded on August 16, 1854, at Garanhata, Chitpur, on April 27. When Dutta - known for his installation art - was a student at the college between 1980 and 1987, stalwarts like Ganesh Haloi and the late Bikash Bhattacharjee were his teachers.For five years till Dutta took over the reins, the institution used to be run by officers-in-charge. The college suffered as it became a trend to run it on an ad hoc basis.Among the better known teachers now are Ratan Acharya, who specialises in Indian painting, printmaker Chandan Das and sculptor Akhil Chandra Das.Dutta had taught on the BT Road campus of Rabindra Bharati University for 12 years, from 1995 to 2007. He had handed in his papers as his work was being hampered and there was "political pressure from the previous government".Dutta today said it would be his responsibility as principal of the Government College of Art and Craft "to restore the former glory of the institution to the best of my capability". He, however, at the same time admitted that the college was grossly understaffed.As many as 20 staff members had recently retired but there has been no recruitment yet to fill up the vacancies.