BHUBANESWAR: Students of Ramadevi Women’s University on Saturday staged dharna in front of university main gate demanding suitable land for second campus of the university and rollback of decision of the state government to abolish teaching posts of Ramadevi Autonomous College.
The students also blocked Janpath (the road between
Vani Vihar to
Sishu Bhawan square) near the university for more than an hour as a mark of the protest. Vehicular traffic was affected for an hour due to the protest.
They said the state government had created three universities on May 30, 2015, including Ramadevi Women’s University. “Other two universities have already got land for second campus, but we are yet to get a suitable land for our second campus. Due to this problem, our university cannot hold sports meet, modern laboratories and research centres for the university. Because the existing campus is not spacious enough,” said Soubhagya Soumyashree Samal, president of university’s students union.
She said they also urged the state government not to abolish the Ramadevi Autonomous College and its teaching posts. “The government can bring the college into the jurisdiction of the university without abolishing it,” she added.
A delegation led by Samal met higher education secretary GVV Sarma in the afternoon and discussed about the issues. “We are not satisfied with the answers of the secretary and will continue the agitation,” said Samal.
Sarma said the state government is working on to find a suitable place in the city for the second campus of the university. On the abolition of posts of the autonomous college, he said the students should understand that the college is upgraded into university and it has its own rules. “We will try to make them understand about the reality of the issue,” he added.
On Friday, teachers of the university had staged dharna in front of registrar’s office here protesting abolition of 71 teaching posts of erstwhile Ramadevi Women’s Autonomous College. Students had also supported the demand of the teachers and torched tyres in front of the university gate opposing the abolition of the teaching posts.
Earlier, a committee was formed to select some land for the second campus of the university. It had given report by March 15. The committee had proposed two patches of land - 10 acres inside the city which can be used immediately and 100 acres in
Gothapatna to be developed later - for the second campus. The government will take a final call on the issue very soon, sources said.
