Mumbai: Government spends on Shivaji statue or Bullet Train but not for students, says TISS student

Mumbai: Students protesting on campus in various educational institutes have raised several issues which are of deep concern and need of immediate action. Recent protests have taken a new form which may lead to serious consequences if the government and authorities continue to lend a deaf hear to this outrageous cry.

Since last two weeks, students of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) have boycotted lectures, classes, practicals and field work. Students have raised issue of lack of funding from both central and state government. Financial assistance, scholarship and fellowship programmes for students have been eliminated by the government.

In addition, students of socially backward classes are worst hit by as funding and scholarship programmes for them are completely withdrawn. Anuj Shah, a student, said, “The government has withdrawn the funding by stating that they do not have sufficient funds. So, this means the government has money to spend on projects like building a Shivaji Statue or a Bullet Train but it does not have money to educate children and youth?”

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Students are burdened with paying Rs 50,000 for hostel and tuition fees annually due to this withdrawal. Malika Yadav, a student said, “All this while we have been silently accepting this cruelty and dominance of the government. But now we will not cave in unless our demands our fulfilled. Education is not a joke and the government should not take students lightly. Without funding it is impossible to sustain and grow in the education field.”

Similarly, students have been raising funding issue on campus at Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B). Students are unable to conduct their research work for doctorate programmes (Ph.D) as they are not provided with adequate funds. In addition, every step like experimentation, projects and field work requires financial assistance and cannot be done without a constant supply of grants.

Students claimed the government expects world class research work but does not provide basic funding. Kartik Salian, a student said, “How are we supposed to conduct research work if we are not provided money to even use a particular apparatus? We cannot travel to places for field work because there is no money even for continuous transportation. Where is all the money of the government? Are we living in a poor country or poor state or in an ignorant India where the authorities are least bothered?”

Students of Mumbai University (MU) have been facing similar issues due to fee hike. Rajesh Mane, a student said, “In some courses, there has been a fee hike which has made it difficult for us to manage financial burden. The self financing courses which have high-end fees do not have professional faculty so we doubt if our fees are being used adequately.”

Protesting on campus and boycotting regular classes is the only way to awaken the authorities as per students. Sneha Singh, a student said, “It is only when we come out of our classrooms and voice out our opinion that we receive some attention. Large number of students are suffering silently due to corruption and dominance of the government. It is high time that students need to take a stand and increase funding for education.”