Scores of Akhil Bharatiya Vidharthy Parishand (ABVP) members rallied against the State Government over its decision to hike fees in State-run polytechnic, engineering and medical colleges on Tuesday.
large numbers of ABVP members assembled at the protest site raising slogans against the State Government. They rallied to near the secretariat causing major traffic congestion on various roads. Though adequate police force was deployed to maintain order near the secretariat, the regulation of traffic hampered by the protest appeared to have fewer personnel deployed to regulate it.
The protesters reached the barricading erected near the secretariat and tried to break through resulting in heated arguments with the police. The ABVP members then sat on demonstration at barricading raising slogans demanding withdrawal of the fee hike. They also submitted a memorandum addressed to the chief minister on the occasion.
ABVP State president Ramakant Srivastava said that the employment opportunities for the youths in mountainous areas are negligible. They are compelled to migrate from mountains to plains in search of job. The government has cheated the people of the state by hiking fees of technical education, he said, while adding that the union will intensify its stir across the state unless government withdraws the fee hike.
ABVP leader Mukesh Bisht said that the state government had increased the college fees making education in the state costlier. Poor students cannot afford college fees. The government increased college admission fee and tuition fees twice than the previous years for engineering and MBA courses. The polytechnic college fees has also been increased by Rs 2000.
One of he protesters criticised the State government decision to hike admission and tuition fees in various government- run- engineering colleges, polytechnic colleges and other colleges providing vocational education to the youth.