Agitations by Students in Jharkhand
HUNDREDS of students led by AISA-RYA had jammed the GT Road for more than 1½ hours on 10 October 2018 to protest against the long delays in issuing income, caste, and residence certificates. Earlier, on 6 October the students had staged a dharna at the Zonal HQ and a delegation had met the SDO to demand early issuance of certificates; otherwise, they demanded extension of the last date to fill the forms. In view of the difficulties faced by students in filling the online forms, AISA-RYA leaders spoke to the Jharkhand Welfare Secretary and requested him to extend the date. As a result the date for online submission of scholarship forms has been extended till 15 November 2018.
SC/ST/OBC/Minority Chhatra Sangharsh Morcha Struggle in Daltonganj
A circular issued by the Daltonganj Deputy Commissioner on 28 September 2018 directed that all hostels run by the Welfare Board (for students from Class X to students in higher education) should be vacated. Students in large numbers protested in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s Office on 13 October against this thoughtless and autocratic order. Under pressure from the protest, the SDM Palamu came to meet the protesting students and assured them that their demands would be fulfilled.
The students say that the Welfare Board arrangements are so flawed that the students are forced to live in hellish conditions in the hostels. Further, the administration connives such that some who live in these hostels are not students at all. There is no administrative official in the hostels except a warden for name’s sake. Arrangements are so poor that leave alone registration on time, the students do not even get basic amenities like electricity and water.
The first demand of the students is that the autocratic order to vacate the hostels be revoked and committee formed. The SDM conceded this demand and a committee was formed with 5 student representatives.
The students also demand: repair of dilapidated hostels; admission of students to hostels which are already constructed but not yet opened; arrangements for common room, primary health centre, health officer, guards etc; women’s hostels in YSN Women’s College and GLA College are constructed and ready, but have not been opened to the students; the ST Girls Minority hostel near Palamu Club lacks even the most basic facilities like a compound wall, and a portion has been encroached upon by the Navodaya Vidyalaya and boys are residing there now. The students also demanded that elections should be held in the hostels so that an orderly system of addressing students’ problems can be established.
Many organizations supported and participated in the protest and the march, including IPTA, CPI(ML), Bahujan Samaj Party, Bhim Army. The students’ delegation included Pradeep Kumar and Divya Bhagat, who also conducted the proceedings of the meeting along with Ravi (IPTA), Danish (AISA), Sarfaraz (CPI(ML)), Rajeev and Gautam (Dihari Mazdoor Union), and Shatru Kumar Shatru (BSP).
