New Delhi: Students form human chain in CP to support JNU students
The university has seen protests by students over the issue of hostel fee hike.
Students from across the city formed a human chain in Connaught Place on Wednesday. They came forward in support of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU), which is protesting against the hostel fee hike.
The JNUSU had urged universities and students across the country to observe November 27 as the National Protest Day in support of affordable and accessible education. The JNU students have been on strike from October 28 after the varsity administration approved the new hostel manual and revised hostel and mess fees.
"See, it's been 30 days now and no official dialogue has been made to the students by the Vice Chancellor. Our demand is simple; roll back what you implemented. A high level committee is constituted and they recommend concessions for all the students including the BPL category students. But, has the administration looked upon the BPL category parameters post 2002? We really don't need a partial rollback but a complete one else we'll continue protesting," JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh told India Today TV. Ghosh said the JNU is not an island and whatever is happening in the university is also happening in other educational institutions.
Carrying banners with messages like 'oppose new education policy 2019', 'extremists have shown what frightens them most - a girl with a book', 'fee must fall', the students formed a human chain around Central Park in the Inner Circle area of Connaught Place.
The students called the recommendations made by the High Level Committee (HLC) an insult to the students committee and termed the concessions in utility and service charges absurd and unfit to satiate their demands. The high level committee recommended 50% concession for all the students and 75% concession for BPL category students in utility and service charges.
According to Priya, a student, "We want complete rollback and nothing less. How difficult it is to provide us the right which we want? Is affordable education this expensive? We've been protesting for a month now and the Vice Chancellor has still not initiated a dialogue. We're only communicated via mails and twitter. This isn't democratic. What we demand is our right." Far away from the national capital, thousands of students from Presidency University thronged the College Street in Kolkata.
- With inputs from PTI
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