New Delhi: The Central University of Jammu on Friday cancelled the bus services for its hostel inmates in the face of a six-month-long protest by students against the hike in bus fare. The decision has caused panic among the students as buses are the only mode of conveyance to reach the university premises from the hostels.
It has been six months since the CUJ students began their protest against the administration’s decision to hike the bus fare. On Wednesday, they held a day-long sit-in in front of the Vice Chancellor's chamber.
The students have claimed that the administration’s move to cancel the bus services is a systematic way of coercing them to call off the protest.
The Varsity has imposed Rs 1,000 per month on the students to avail the buses.
Noting that the University is 25 kilometres away from Jammu and most of the students staying in the hostels depend solely on college buses to reach their classes, the decision will affect their attendance, forcing them to end the protest.
Taking cognizance of the matter, the International Human Rights Council intervened and sent a written letter to the VC seeking actions against the situation in the University.
"We are being targeted by the administration after our day-long protest. We won’t reach the campus without the buses. It's unfair on the authorities’ part to increase the fare without any intimation. The UGC also clearly states that Central Universities in India must not change the fees structure till the year of 2020,” said a PG student who requested anonymity.
Flaying the University for trying to pit students against each other, students of Kerala in a statement said, "Some of the faculty members discriminated against students communally in order to break our unity. The students from Kerala were particularly targeted for availing their rightful scholarships. The Dharna was disrupted by outsiders, forcing us to call off the protests. However, the presence of such elements within the University premises amidst the tight security is mysterious.”
The scholars also attacked the University administration alleging a lack of security inside the campus as outsiders try to enter the hostels and create ruckus. “We feel threatened and isolated at the hostel premises,” said a student.
“The administration is relentlessly forcing us to pay Rs 1,000 rupees per month for availing the transportation facility. Compared to other central universities, this amount is extremely high and unaffordable for the majority of the students,” the students of Kerala added in their statement.
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