What do you call a place, which is in news for wrong reasons all
the time ?
Jawaharlal Nehru University's (JNU) top decision-making body on
Wednesday announced a "major rollback" in the hostel fee hike, a
senior official of the Ministry of Human Resource Development said amid a massive protest by students over the
issue. The officer said the JNU body also proposed a scheme to provide
financial help to students from the Economically Weaker Sections. Can you
imagine what the reaction was ?
It
was set up in 1969 by an act of Parliament with the noble objective of
providing quality education – and named after India’s first PM - Jawaharlal
Nehru University. G. Parthasarathi was the first vice-chancellor. The bill for the establishment of Jawaharlal
Nehru University was placed in the Rajya Sabha on 1 Sept 1965 by the then minister of education, M. C.
Chagla. During the discussion that followed, Bhushan Gupta, member of
parliament, voiced the opinion that this should not be yet another university.
New faculties should be created, including scientific socialism, and one thing
that this university should ensure was to keep noble ideas in mind and provide
accessibility to students from weaker sections of society.
Sadly,
it has become a place where some groups of vested interests stay forever in the
name of pursuing higher studies and research and speak against the Nation from
the ramparts of the educational University.
With prices of everything from dosa to car going up, if the fees too are
increased, a group calls it draconian and battles it out with brute power. It seemingly was a regular move of proposed
fee hike, administrative increase in room rent, service charges, water,
electricity bills and mess deposits.
It
provides place if not education for those who once thought of pursuing studies
abroad but settled here claiming that the cost of education is less, facilities
provided is good and compares well with Universities abroad. For many of us who come from low-income
families, going to a bank for a loan is a reminder of our class position ~ and those from rural areas, coming to the
city in pursuance of education is the first step of excellence. Govt provides various scholarships and measures
in supporting the education of the underprivileged. The education system is so divided that it
encourages some to educate freely while some classes struggle to get
seats, more so in Govt colleges and other educational institutions.
The
cost of education in the city has gone up considerably that one may have to
take bank loans or worser still, loans from private parties selling their
property to get quality education ~ all in the hope of getting educated well,
and getting good employment and thereby good remuneration – not all succeed in
a society where some are benefitted at every step. At JNU, student groups chose to battle out
the proposed hike and it turned violent !
The
struggle against fee hikes has been going on for more than two weeks now; students have come out against the
administration in the past few years. JNU still remains a symbol for affordable quality education in this country. JNU has changed the lives of many students from marginalised and non-affluent
backgrounds to transcend the socio-economic conditions from which they come.
All
Govt support comes from tax-payers money but .. .. there are constant
complaints that some students, read – student leaders are freeloaders; these institutions cultivate a
particular kind of ideological leanings among students that seems threatening
to the status quo socio-political order;
and there are some courses in humanities that do not serve the Nation
State or the Society at large. The aim
of education is to improve the quality of human beings and make students better
citizens, not the ones to fight at will and harm public property. Universities and hostels should never be
places that allow elements to stay on forever; those who are not bonafide
students should be flushed out. Even in
some hostels here, we often here that people who come to the city for one job
or the other end up staying in student hostels, in the garb of visiting their
relatives.
At
a time when people spend so much on movies, malls, food, and at times on
unwanted beverages, increase in fees and expenditure are protested
vehemently. What students movements should aspire is good
quality education and upliftment in society.
Education is the tool for social transformation. Though the management announced partial rollback the JNU
students' union slammed the centre, calling the announcement
"eyewash". There has been
bigger rollback for students belonging to BPL category. A JNU teacher has called the centre's move an
attempt to mislead the students. The
students, who had been objecting plans for what they claim is a huge hike in
hostel fees, amped up their protest on Monday as the university held its
convocation that was attended by Vice President Venkaiah Naidu and HRD Minister
Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank'. They had surrounded the building where the event
was being conducted. The Minister was stuck for over six hours at the venue. That sounds hooliganism.
Hundreds
of protesting students had clashed with the police on Monday. Policemen in riot
gear, completely outnumbered by the students, were seen jostling with the
crowd. To top them all objectionable
messages were written on the Swami Vivekananda Statue inside the Jawaharlal
Nehru University (JNU) campus. The
statue is situated on the right side of the administrative block opposite the
statue of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. The
incident has come to light just a day after students entered the JNU
administration block and left painted messages for vice-chancellor Mamidala
Jagadesh Kumar. "You are not our
VC. Go back to your Sangh," they wrote on one of the doors to the VC's
office. Another message written on the floor outside the office read,
"Mamidala, Bye, Bye Forever." On one of the walls of the
administration block, the students wrote, "RIP VC."
~ in someways, that represents the
quality of fight and the way it is heading for – should students select VC ?
and decide on the action ? –things do not augur well. How long should this continue, and why not
strong action against goons ?
Sad
!!
With
regards – S. Sampathkumar
14th Nov.2o19.
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