Protest over notice to hosteliers

Coming just a week after the Delhi University hostel provosts unanimously decided to introduce the centralised admission procedure for distributing hostel seats, the reaction of students to the notice of eviction has come as more than just a matter of protest.

Although the eviction notice was served to almost all the overstaying students of the University's hostels, the PG Men's Hostel -- where the protests took place -- probably had the largest chunk of such students.

Though the matter was sorted out later after students approached the Pro Vice-Chancellor with the problem and requested him for more time, most hostel authorities are of the view that these are just excuses and that they have no intentions of leaving.

As of now, students have been given more time and hostel provosts asked to look into the complaints alleging that bona fide students, too, have been included in the eviction list. The new admission system will be fully computerised and will distribute students to different hostels based on their marks. This, feel hostel authorities, will help democratise the process of admissions in hostels.

With colleges required to submit the total number of seats available to the University in another week and admissions expected to begin by August, the success of the new system depends on not just how `transparent' the procedure is, but also how well the authorities can convince students in leaving their much-loved and convenient abode.

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As a hobby, it might be a good one to pass time. And as an industry it might be a booming business, but as far as Delhi University is concerned, music just does not count as a good enough optional subject to be added in the best of four aggregates.

There may not be many schools in the Capital or other cities offering music as an optional subject at the senior secondary level, but students who made the mistake of thinking that they could use it in their best of four aggregates during admissions had to return back rather disappointed this year.

While teachers of the music faculty complain that music is not given its right due and is treated at par with physical education and an extra curricular activity rather than a subject, college authorities say the marks of music students cannot be treated at par with that of the regular students.

As one college principal put it, ``We cannot just admit students who come to us with music as an optional subject. The subjects of a student have to be in line with the course that he is applying for. Our treating such subjects like music as a replacement for Maths or some other subject would be unfair to students with the regular combination.''

But music teachers beg to differ. With not many colleges in DU offering a course in music, the Music faculty has already written to various colleges to introduce it at the undergraduate level. Going by the response that it has got so far, the idea definitely does not seem to sound music to the ears of college Principals.

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In continuation of their demand for the restoration of admission of the 67 Kashmiri students which were cancelled following an order by the Union Government, members of the Students Federation of India (SFI) and the Joint Action Committee of the Jammu and Kashmir Students has decided to go on a 48-hour hunger strike on Thursday.

The students had got admitted in the Public Research Institute of Multiplex Education (PRIME), a private medical college in Budgam, Srinagar in 1995. Due to lack of recognition by the Medical Council of India, the college was closed by the State Government in 1998.

Following an order by the Union Government in December 2000, the 67 students were allowed to take admissions in the various Medical/Dental colleges of Jammu and Kashmir. The students have been alleging that the decision to cancel the admissions nearly three months after they had joined various colleges and started attending classes was taken under the pressure of ABVP.

-- By Lakshmi Balakrishnan

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