When asked about security measures on Azam campus run by the MCES, Inamdar said instructions had been given to the college staff and security guards to report any unusual activity or suspicious person in and around campus. “We have also directed college officials to conduct surprise checks in hostels and ensure hostel timings are strictly followed,” he said.

Prof Anil Sahasrabuddhe, director, College of Engineering Pune (COEP), said COEP hostel was being rigorously monitored. “Though we have not increased the number of security guards, we have requested our students to cooperate during random checks,” he said.

Sahasrabuddhe said I-cards should bear a hologram or watermark of the city or college. “While we cannot ensure that anti-social elements do not misuse an identity card, we must at least make it difficult for them to do so,” he said.

S M Chitale, former principal of Fergusson College, also agreed that the I-card issuing process had loopholes. “When one can get a fake passport, which is a government document, it is not difficult to get a fake college I-card,” he said.

Dr Hemant Abhyankar, principal, Vishwakarma Institute of Technology, expressed similar views on the process of issuing college I-cards.