Chandigarh, May 3 -- In a significant decision aimed at fostering greater female participation in campus politics, Panjab University (PU) is set to introduce reservation for one of the four key office-bearer positions in the Panjab University Campus Student Council (PUCSC) starting from the 2025-26 session. This move marks the first instance of any form of reservation for these coveted positions in the university's history. The decision stems from recommendations put forth by a committee, established by the vice-chancellor to overhaul the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) governing studentelections. Led by professor Nandita Singh, this committee was tasked with drafting revised SOPs for the dean student welfare (DSW) office following a fatal stabbing incident on the campus in March. PU vice-chancellor Renu Vig confirmed that she had received the recommendations, assuring their implementation from the next academic session. "The varsity has a large number of female students and there had been a pending proposal for a while calling for reservations in the PUCSC. With a bill passed to provide reservation for women in Lok Sabha seats, it is a step in the right direction to do this for the PU student council as well," she said. According to the committee's recommendations, the specific office-bearer seat to be reserved-be it president, vice-president, general secretaryor joint secretary-will bedetermined through a draw of lots conducted by the DSW office. However, this method raises the possibility that the prestigious president's seat might either be consistently overlooked or repeatedly selected. Addressing this concern, the vice-chancellor said they will monitor the situation and can choose rotational reservation for women, if needed. "We can choose to hold a draw of lots at the start of the next session and then choose the seat to be reserved from the next session on rotational basis, either in ascending or descending order," she said....