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Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarathi Parishad (ABVP Delhi) and Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) have launched a missed call number and a helpline number for DU admission aspirants for the upcoming admission period. Students can call on the helpline number to get any information about admissions in Delhi University.

By calling on the missed call number students will receive messages from ABVP regarding admission schedule, dates, cutoffs and regular updates. The helpline number will be monitored by the ABVP and DUSU volunteers to answer queries of aspiring students.

[caption id="attachment_33154" align="aligncenter" width="537"]Admission helpline numbers Admission helpline numbers[/caption]

Help desks for online admission at several places in Delhi have also been launched to help aspirants in filling form online at the spot. Two such centers are running at Vishwavidyalaya Metro Station and Arts Faculty. Up till the first half of 29th May 2015, the organisation recorded around 7000 missed calls to register for admission updates. Some 500 students also called up the helpline number which has been connected to 5 different lines.

“There is a lot of confusion pertaining to admissions each year in respect of what subjects to include and how to go about filling the form. For those who are applying online, such help is very important. Therefore, our team has been answering all the admission queries regularly and at physical sites we have been helping the students to fill the forms”, says Saket Bahuguna, State Secretary, ABVP Delhi.

Such centres have been set up in South Campus as well. Apart from this, such help centers will be set up at more than 15 places all over Delhi in all zones.

In relation to admissions, ABVP also demanded North Campus to be one of the centers for the offline admission process. After constants efforts by various such groups, Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Khalsa College in North Campus was declared to be one of the centers for offline admissions.

Feature Image Credits: Saket Bahugna, ABVP

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nsui camp Congress’ student wing – N.S.U.I. musters support against F.Y.U.P. by means of signature campaign at North Campus, D.U.[/caption] Sunny Kumar, State Secretary for Delhi, AISA in response to the same question, said that “It is high time the focus shifts to students’ issues from muscle-and-money politics.  Therefore it’s not just the question of NSUI – every party has to raise students’ issues to survive. NSUI has now realized that the rage against F.Y.U.P. is not something they can tame and hence they oppose it now.” Calling ABVP, a passive opposition, Kumar said that any action against FYUP by the central government cannot imply that the party has done any ‘concrete work in the same direction’. In their defense, Amrish Ranjan Pandey, NSUI national spokesperson, told IANS that, “It was something new  last year, so we neither supported nor protested against the structure, but now after a year, we conducted a survey and have found that it is not good academically and students are not happy with it”. Nonetheless, the coming together of all the parties is a clear sign that the students and teachers of DU unanimously agree that FYUP is not something they want and should indeed be rolled back.      ]]>

After the triumphant victory of its principle party in the national elections, Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad is set to move to the Ministry of Human Resource Development and seek a rollback of the Four Year Undergraduate Programme, introduced during UPA-2’s term.

The issue was also tabled at ABVP’s recently concluded National Executive Meet in Mangalore (26th-29th May), in which a special resolution was passed to express complete dissatisfaction over the implementation of FYUP. In an exclusive interview to DU Beat, Saket Bahuguna, ABVP’s State Secretary for Delhi, said, “For the past 5 months we have been taking delegations to various BJP leaders and expressing our worries for the University. Now that BJP is in power in the centre, a delegation will meet Minister of HRD, Ms. Smriti Irani, as soon as senior ABVP Delhi leaders return from the National Executive Meet. It is a matter of great urgency as the University plans to begin the process of admission from the 2nd of June, thus we passed a special resolution in the meet.” The Leader went on to challenge the FYUP on grounds of proper approval from the appropriate authorities. He also said that the programme is in contrast with the National Policy of Education, which recommends the 10+2+3 system. BJP’s student wing also cited arising problems in the University’s School of Open Learning (SOL). The institute will not be able to award honours degrees henceforth, courtesy of UGC’s new ruling which prohibits a University from awarding the same degree in 2 different ways.]]>

th of April. Raju Rawat, member of ABVP (the RSS-run students’ party), met Professor Umesh Rai in order to discuss the complaint of some FYUP students who had not received laptops. It is alleged that Prof. Rai behaved rudely and asked Rawat to leave. Rawat, in his statement to The Hindu, told the professor that “his attitude would not last long since the Modi government would come and get rid of FYUP”. To which Rai replied by saying, “chaiwallahs are not equipped to come and take university decisions”. Rawat and a group of a few more students also smeared black paint on the Professor’s face. The Joint Secretary said he lost his temper at these words and hit the professor. It is also alleged that he blackened the professor’s face. Prof. Rai has filed a complaint against Rawat, said the police. According to the latest report by Times of India, ABVP has condemned Rawat’s behaviour, and suspended him from the party. Professor Aditya Misra, confirming and condemning the act, said that “No student should be allowed to hit a teacher, no matter what the provocation”. DU officials, however, through an official statement, have said that Prof. Rai did not make any such provocative comment and the perpetrators fabricated  the anti-Modi statements. Both Prof. Rai and Rawat were unavailable for comments.]]>

st March 2014 and the badge holders of this newly formed committee have been assigned their duties for the Lok Sabha elections campaigning. Ankit Dedha, the National Secretary of NSUI said “Parliamentary seats like Meerut, Bareilly and Agra have been selected with established universities and election campaigns and awareness meetings are held in these selected cities, wherein Congress’s manifesto is being read out and students are explained the benefits associated to them, mentioned in the manifesto” Chattra YUVA Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS), the students’ wing of AAP has also been effective in gathering support for its parent party. Avinash, member of CYSS, said, “We have been part of the road shows that have been conducted by AAP under Kejriwal’s leadership. The members of CYSS have been active in appealing people, especially students by creating awareness programs and distributing pamphlets, in support of various candidates of AAP.”  ]]>

The Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) in association with various students’  groups conducted a Protest March to the Parliament demanding a roll-back of the FYUP on the 18th of February. The DUTA had organized this March along with various students’ organisations including All India Students’ Association (AISA), All India Democratic Students’ Organization (AIDSO), Democratic Students’ Union (DSU), Students’ Federation of India (SFI), All India Students’ Federation (AISF), and the students’ wing of Aam Aadmi Party – CYSS.

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In what was labelled as a March towards Parliament, students and teachers marched from outside Zakir Husain College to the Parliament Street where they were joined by MPs, leaders of political parties, trade unions, women’s organizations and civil society bodies. Political leaders including Manish Sisodia and Ashutosh (AAP), Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M), OP Kohli (BJP), Tarun Kumar Mandal (SUCI-Communist), Udit Raj (SC/ST Federation), DP Tripathi (NCP), Kavita Krishnan (CPI-ML and AIPWA), Jagmati Sangwan (AIDWA) and Iqbal Singh Sindhu (AIFUCTO), All India Forum for Right to Education (AIFRTE) joined the procession at Parliament Street. The March culminated in a massive Public Meeting next to the Parliament Street police Barricades.

The marchers not only demanded a roll-back of the FYUP but also a reversal of the education policies’ thrust towards commercialization and PPP model. Removal of VC Dinesh Singh and condemnation of the Government’s decision to award him with a Padma Shri after allowing him to destroy Delhi University were also put forward in the form of slogans and handbills distributed to the public.

Manish Sisodia addressed the issue of commercialization of education and large-scale contractualization in teaching jobs. He also criticized the DU VC’s disregard of all democratic norms and processes, as was recently evident in the controversy over the formation of Governing Bodies in the Delhi Government colleges. He underlined the need to build popular resistance against the Government’s commercialization agenda in Education and expressed the AAP’s commitment to fighting against FYUP.

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Women’s organization leaders Kavita Krishnan, Jagmati Sangwan and Ritu Kaushik (AIMSS) expressed their opposition to the FYUP by stating that it would keep the large majority of girls and young women from poorer families out of good jobs and higher studies that are the only guarantee against the conservative pressure of Khap Panchayats and the patriarchal family structures.

DUTA President Nandita Narain expressed the DUTA’s resolve to continue the struggle with greater intensity till the principal demands of the teachers and students are met. She warned the Government that its indifference to the plight of the Delhi University community would cost it heavily in the General Elections as the destruction of a Central university like DU is going to alienate the masses and turn them against any party in power that imposes anti-people measures under the garb of reforms. She attributed this indifference as a factor in the Congress Party’s heavy defeat in the last Assembly elections. She appealed to all sections of the public to join the struggle against FYUP and the policies which undermine the future of students and teachers in higher education.

In a similar protest, on 15th February, AISA led a march to UPA chairperson, Sonia Gandhi’s house to protest against the new format of UPSC exams and Delhi University’s four year undergraduate programme.

AISA has been condemning FYUP for a long time now and is demanding a full rollback. The student’s party had already made its stand clear on the same during the Delhi University union polls, adhering to which they have been carrying protest marches along with ABVP and DUTA in the recent past.

According to sources, due to the unavailability of UPA chairperson Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, the party led its march to All India Congress Committee’s Office where they met Mr. Janardan Dwivedi, senior leader of Indian National Congress who further deputed the case to Mr. Shakeel Ahmed, senior spokesperson of INC. Mr. Dwivedi, though ensured the protesters that their demands would be looked into and action would be taken.

DUTA and students organisations also conducted protests against Antardhvani the previous week, condemning the nature of FYUP promotion embedded in all activities of the cultural fest.

Delhi University Stiudents Union (DUSU) organised a university wide marathon in North Campus, as a part of ABVP’s endeavor to create political awareness among university students. Organised every year since 2009 (barring 2012 and 2013- when ABVP wasn’t in power), the central theme of the marathon was Initiative 272: securing 272 seats for Mr. Narendra Modi in the fast approaching elections.

Among the Chief Guests were Mr. Suresh Thakur, owner and CEO of the media house- Aapka Faisla, Mr. Umesh Dutt, National General Secretary, ABVP and Dr. Sanjay Kumar, Assistant Professor, Aurobindo College.

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Organized by Raju Rawat (DUSU Treasurer), Dharmedre (Dhamu) and Avadh Nagpal, the marathon managed to get thousands of students out on the streets to support ABVP. The marathon started from Law Faculty, North Campus and circumferenced the entire campus region. Tens of policemen patrolled the region to make sure that the event progresses smoothly. The turnout was huge and the event took place in a highly orderly manner.

Avadh Nagpal, one of the main organisers of the event, had the following to say, ‘We faced a lot of problems. Some of our important sponsors backed out last minute. A lot of preparations were in jeopardy because of that. But we somehpw had to pull it off. We aimed to bring together 25,000 students and we managed around 11,000. So extremely satisfied.”

The dissatisfaction against the First Year Undergraduation Programme (FYUP) was recently expressed as a ‘Delhi University Bandh’, organised under the leadership of DUSU and ABVP party members on the 17th of January, 2014. Apart from their major demand for the dissolution of the FYUP, the protest also included some other demands such as a restart to the recently scrapped off re-evaluation system, and an introduction of certain benefits for the economically weaker sections of the ‘general’ class. The dharna was staged in North Campus, propagating their agenda in several colleges, primarily including Kirori Mal, Hans Raj and Hindu.

Through banners and posters, a prior notice about the bandh had been given to the students and teachers of Delhi University. While the classes seemed to go about as usual in several colleges, some colleges including Lady Irwin College saw many classes get cancelled. The attendance drop was low in most colleges, with a 15% drop in KMC. Ramjas College already didn’t have any classes scheduled in lieu of the College Founder’s day. The protests started off from the Faculty Of Arts around 12 p.m., slowly gaining momentum as banners and chants of “Rollback FYUP” caught the attention of interested onlookers. However, as Kirori Mal and S.G.T.B Khalsa college indicate, this action was only restricted to a number of colleges as a tight security arrangement had been arranged for restricting and minimising the acts of hooliganism. Most off campus colleges including Motilal Nehru, Sri Venkateswara College and Lady Shri Ram College for Women were not effected by the bandh with classes continuing in a normal fashion.

The bandh is the part of a series of protests that ABVP is planning for the rollback of the FYUP. They have also followed a black ribbon day distributing fliers and black ribbons to students as a form of protest.

“FYUP has failed to live up to the expectations and the results prove that, it seems like the marks have been distributed to students for no reason other than the promotion of FYUP…like a lollipop being offered to a kid” says an ABVP member, Hindu College.

Akhil Goswami ([email protected]) and Isheeta Sharma ([email protected])

With the state elections just around the corner, Delhi University happens to be a stage for political campaigning by different parties. In the university elections itself, many bigwigs come out in support of the students’ wing of their respective parties.

Besides, two of the most prominent politicians of Delhi happen to be DU alumni. The present Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit, did her graduation in History Honours from Miranda House and Vijay Goel of Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) is an alumnus of SRCC, who was also the Delhi University Student Union President in 1977-78. Congress has fielded Ragini Nayak and Amrita Dhawan for the upcoming elections, who have been former DUSU office bearers. Parties have been fielding young leaders to attract young voters.

Let’s have a look at the campaigning activities of major political parties in the University:

Aam Aadmi Party

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is the most visible among all the political parties in its campaigning in Delhi University. Arvind Kejriwal visited St. Stephen’s College in August to interact with students. Many students from different colleges have joined AAP and are volunteering for the Delhi Assembly Elections. Yogendra Yadav addressed a rally on 30th October in the University. Recently, MTV VJ Raghu Ram could be seen campaigning for AAP in different colleges of DU and in IIT Delhi. Prashant Bhushan has also addressed students on various occasions.

Adding to this, in the party manifesto released on Wednesday, the party declared that if brought into power, they would open more colleges in the state and roll back the Four Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUP).

Bhartiya Janata Party

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BJP has its share of young leaders who have been DUSU office-bearers. Nakul Bharadwaj, popular face of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of BJP, contested elections last year as well. ABVP has organised a bike rally to spread awareness about voting among the youth. ABVP has also initiated a campaign ‘Youth For Change’, to spread voting awareness. The emphasis on the youth is apparent in the campaigning by the party where it promises to open 15 new colleges and one university under the Atal Yuva Mission, if voted into power. They are also promising to exempt all taxes on computers, laptops, tablets and smart phones for college students.

Congress

National Students Union of India (NSUI) the students wing of Congress had organised a protest march against Vijay Goel. At least four ex office-bearers of NSUI are fighting elections from Congress ticket in the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections. With the release of the party manifestos, the Congress promises to increase the number of evening colleges across the University, a new university for health sciences and 5 more medical colleges. Besides, the state government had also proposed 90% quota for Delhi students in the state funded colleges of DU in October.

The Election Commission is leaving no stones unturned in roping in the young voters. It has started campaign with many NGOs to rope in the young voters and enrol students of various colleges to vote in the upcoming elections.

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Ritu Rana from ABVP who stood for the post of President giving an interview accusing NSUI of foul play soon after the results were out

“ABVP calls Delhi University to be closed on Monday, 17th September because of unfair means in calculation of votes in DUSU elections”. This is the message that was widely circulated on Sunday nights, causing wide absenteeism in colleges on Monday.

In what is being regarded as a highly imprudent move, the ABVP is busy garnering attention and public support because they feel that the DUSU elections vote counting process was rigged.

‘I think they are being too egoistic, they should just accept that they have lost and move on”, says Professor Prachi, of the English Department, Hansraj College.

As commonly known by now, ABVP lost the elections as NSUI sweeped the polls to victory. Subsequently, the former accused DU of using unfair means to calculate votes but strangely did not file an application requesting a re-counting of votes. “It’s stupid, if they so strongly believe that the elections were rigged, they should have filed an application immediately, rather than engaging in hooliganism”, says Vaishali, a student of Hansraj college.

This move by the ABVP was also not very successful as classes went on as usual in most colleges, where no reports of ABVP stalling classes was reported. However, the ABVP activists were able to make their presence felt in colleges like KMC and Ramjas, where the activists stormed into classrooms and demanded that the students leave the classrooms, thereby disrupting normal college routine.

“They just entered into our classes even when our professors protested. They did not let the class continue.”, says Nupur, a student of Ramjas college.

While no new move has been introduced on part of ABVP, speculations are that they will not raise this issue further, because of lack of evidence and also since they don’t want to spoil their party image.