Visva-Bharati authorities held a meeting on Friday evening and decided to hold its annual Basanta Utsav on the day of Holi only if the state government took the responsibility of managing crowd, traffic and law and order.

Sources said the shift from its earlier decision not to hold the festival on Holi came following pressure from the government.

Varsity officials said the decision was taken after education minister Partha Chatterjee had called up vice-chancellor Bidyut Chakrabarty requesting him not to disassociate Basanta Utsav from Holi.

After the meeting, Visva-Bharati has set up a six-member committee headed by Sushovan Banerjee, the president’s nominee in the university’s executive council, who will hold talks with Chatterjee next month.

The officiating registrar, Asha Mukherjee, has sent a letter to Chatterjee informing the minister about Visva-Bharati’s proposal.

“We have decided to hold the festival on the same day only if the state government takes responsibilities of law and order, crowd management and makes other necessary administrative arrangements,” said the varsity’s officiating public relations officer Anirban Sircar.

Officials said the varsity had decided not to hold Basanta Utsav on Holi following its adverse experiences last year. The varsity had decided to hold the programme between Holi and the preceding full moon.

The officials said managing lakhs of people who converge in Santiniketan on the occasion of Basanta Utsav had become a tough job for the university.

“Last year, all roads leading to the ground got blocked, leading to traffic snarls, suffocation and unwanted harassment. There were also complaints of molestation,” a varsity official said.