The Hindu : New Delhi News : Capital's academic world simmering with discontent

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 14, 2006
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New Delhi

New Delhi

Capital's academic world simmering with discontent

The academic world in the Capital is simmering with discontent. And the preferred method of protests is strikes. With teachers leading the way, the Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA) has gone on a four-day strike since this past Tuesday to put pressure on the Union Human Resource Development Ministry to finally accept their longstanding demands. Not to be left behind, students at the politically charged Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have also decided to go on strike on Thursday. Jumping on to the agitation bandwagon, the Delhi University and College Karamcharis' Union organised a protest on Wednesday to put pressure on the University for resolution of their old problems.

A scuffle between two groups of students at Mansarovar Hostel on Delhi University's North Campus this past Saturday that took an ugly turn with the police using force on students to disperse them has got hostel inmates angry and they are following the strike trend, albeit in a different way by going on a hunger strike.

While the Delhi University teachers' methods of protest seem to have attracted criticism from Vice-Chancellor Deepak Pental who in a letter suggested that the teachers choose the working protest mode rather than "disrupt'' classes, DUTA has decided to stand firm on the strike issue. In what has turned out to be a "war" of letters in a way, DUTA has sent back a strong reply to the Vice-Chancellor. Stating that the letter "smacks" of "utter indifference to the longstanding demands of teachers'', DUTA has accused Prof. Pental of remaining "silent'' for seven months on their charter of demand which was submitted on February 14.

Defending their four-day strike, the teachers' organisation has laid the blame for "disruption" of normal academic activity on the shoulders of the "authorities''.

"We do not want to be on strike. We want to go back to our classrooms, to the business of teaching and learning, to our studies and research. But if we are to be deprived of the very basis that makes our work worthwhile and a contribution to the progress and development of our society, we have no option but to make use of our democratic rights and to raise our voices in protest,'' their letter states.

Choosing to adopt the same method of protest to get attention, the JNU Students' Union has decided to take out a protest march and called for a University strike against the JNU administration for its "insensitive and authoritarian approach to the genuine demands of the student community".

The Union had submitted a charter of demands to the authorities seven months ago like DUTA, but according to the students the JNU administration has so far not done much.

The Union has demanded that the authorities provide financial assistance to "needy'' students, democratise and strengthen the Equal Opportunities Office as well as expand infrastructure for the increase in the number of seats to facilitate reservation.

While the reasons for the protests in the two universities may be valid, for ordinary students it means one thing: another holiday.

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-- Mandira Nayar

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