Hundreds of students of the Utkal University on Friday took to streets and blocked NH-16 protesting against the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) direction to educational institutions for vacating hostels in view of the Covid-19 resurgence.
Tension mounted as vehicular movement on the NH came to a standstill for a while due to the students’ unrest. On the BMC’s direction, the university authorities have on Thursday decided to vacate 14 hostels in the campus.
Opposing the decision, the students staged the protest holding placards and raising slogans blocked the NH and later sat on a dharna in front of the university’s entrance. “No positive cases have been reported from any of our hostels yet. The administration still wants us to vacate the hostels.
One year of our academic session has already been disrupted. We don’t want to ruin it any further. We are not leaving the hostels at any cost,” said a protesting student. “No restriction has been imposed on election rallies and functioning of shopping malls and cinema halls yet.
But students have been asked to leave hostels. Is the Government is in its sense? The Government needs to retrospect its decision,” said another protester.