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Students protested against the construction of a 39-storeyed building near the Vishwavidyalaya Metro Station. The construction of the building has led to the felling of 228 trees, aside from infringing on the University’s space.

Delhi University students on Friday staged a protest against the construction of a 39- storey building in North Campus, saying the structure will overlook six girls’ hostels and will be an “invasion of their privacy”. The building is coming up adjacent to the Vishwavidyalaya Metro Station in the campus area.

The said construction has been opposed by the University and the Teachers’ Association (DUTA) as well. The students formed a human chain chanting slogans — “Private Building, Down Down” — at the entrance of the metro station.

According to a representative of the Miranda House Students’ Union, in conversation with The Hindustan Times, the construction of the building is “an invasion of their privacy.” A student said that the private builder should have held discussions with the Delhi University administration, the teachers’ association or the students’ union before beginning construction.

The land on which the construction is to take place, was initially owned by the Ministry of Defence was transferred to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation after which it was handed to a private builder, a university official said. The construction comes after allegations by the DU administration towards the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (DMC) of ‘unlawfully’ permitting the construction of the building. Past month, the DUTA had also held protests to object to the construction.

“Construction of such a high-rise building in the university enclave area will negatively impact the ambiance of Delhi University. There are heritage buildings in close vicinity of this land. There will be serious issues of safety and privacy for adjoining girls hostels and staff flats. This extremely crowded area can’t burden such an extra infrastructural load. So, the Delhi University community as a whole is opposing it tooth and nail,” said Rasal Singh, Academic Council member, in conversation with The Hindu.

Image Caption: Protests against construction of 39-storey high-rise in DU North Campus, organised by student unions

Image Credits: Hindustan Times

Bhavya Pandey

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Admissions 2019

Protest Against ‘Faulty Admission Process’ Continues

By DU Beat June 21, 2019

Student organisations have organised multiple protests till now, raising various demands related to the admission process and alleged fee hikes. In the series of protests, a one-day hunger strike was called on 20th June.

Following the protests of 11th June, 14th June, and a press conference and dharna on 19th June, the protesting student organisations sat on a hunger strike on 20th June against what they have called a “faulty admission process” and fee hike. The hunger strike went on from 10 am to 10 pm in front of Gate No. Four of the Arts Faculty building, and saw the participation of seven student organisations – All India Students’ Association (AISA), Bhagat Singh Chhatra Ekta Manch (BSCEM), Collective, Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS), Parivartankami Chhatra Sangathan (Pachhas), Pinjra Tod and Students’ Federation of India (SFI).

A total of seven students, one from each organisation, sat on a hunger strike. These included Amarjeet from AISA, Nishant from BSCEM, Udita from Collective, Rohit from KYS, Aman from Pachhas, Diya from Pinjra Tod, and Varkey from SFI.

A press release issued by AISA stated, “The registration fees for OBC category has seen a drastic increase and is placed at INR 750, whereas the EWS category pays INR 300; the criteria for both being an income of below INR 8 lakh per annum.” The press release further mentioned about the previous protests and read, “Seeing disappointment again on the 19th, students decided to take up the method of hunger strike. From today (20th June), Amarjeet from AISA with six other students began the hunger strike and shall continue until the Vice Chancellor comes out and talks to the students.”

A press release had been issued by SFI also on 19th June, which read, “Activists of SFI and other organisations held a press conference and dharna (on 19th June) at gate number four of Arts Faculty, University of Delhi, protesting the fee hike of the OBC registration and faulty admission process. A delegation from the protestors met the Deputy Dean of Students’ Welfare, and submitted a memorandum. He made several verb promises, but nothing concrete came of it. By 4:30 pm the students were attacked by the security guard(s) and removed from gate number four. Later the police also intervened in the matter and attempted to intimidate the students. The protesters have decided to move for a hunger strike from tomorrow.”

Diya Davis from Pinjra Tod, one of the protesters who sat on the hunger strike, told DU Beat, “This (the hunger strike) was after the protest outside the Office gate (of the Dean of Students’ Welfare) was forcefully disrupted by the security personnel the previous day. Protesters were forcefully removed from the protest site on 19th June. There was no response from the admin.” She also said that the students were removed from the protest site “using force by the security guards”, on 19th June.

Another protester, Aman Bhartiya from Pachhas, remarked regarding the strike, “It was hoped that someone will come from (the) administration to discuss the issues, but unfortunately it did not happen. So we are now going to file a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) within 1-2 days. Also a mass protest has been called for, by all student organizations, on 24th June.”

DU Beat had reported about the previous protests and the demands raised. These have majorly centred around the differential fee requirements of students from Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) categories. Other demands include: setting the entrance exam question paper in Hindi as well; providing “proper facilities” at the exam centres; revoking the fee hike in Ramjas College & Bharati College, and other related issues.

Read the previously published reports here for a comprehensive and chronological understanding of the protest:

https://dubeat.com/2019/06/student-organisations-protest-against-faulty-admission-process/

https://dubeat.com/2019/06/protesters-burn-effigy-of-du-vc/

The protesting organisations are now planning to take the matter to the courts by filing a PIL. A larger protest has also been scheduled for 24th June.

Feature Image Credits: Amarjeet Kumar Singh from AISA

Prateek Pankaj

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News

Delhi University Curriculum Open for Review

By DU Beat May 21, 2019

Delhi University Curriculum after getting revised is now open to feedback to be better suited for the present demands and societal needs.

On 20 May 2019, University of Delhi (DU) uploaded the details of 75 Undergraduate Courses online, which are now open to feedback and review. The University attempts to gain feedback from alumni, academia, public sector experts, professionals and industrialists.

The curriculum will be available for public review until 31 May 2019.

This move comes after it decided to revise and update and the curriculum of UG courses, in March this year. 28 departments have uploaded the updated curriculum and among these the Department of Mathematics of College of Vocational Studies (CVS) and the Department of Home Science have had maximum revisions.

This step aims towards making the curriculum more relevant to the fourth Industrial revolution and to encourage a global outlook, corporate social responsibility and other societal needs in the students. Following 31 May, the deans will review the suggestions for the courses in their respective departments. Every department is also liable to get these suggestions reviewed by experts- two national and three international domain experts.

“Departments have developed the second draft and made several changes in the existing curriculum, including weekly-reviews, definite learning outcomes, teaching practices, assessment strategies and tasks. The revised curriculum is also being sent to the toppers of previous batches and alumni for students’ perspective.”, C S Dubey, Chairperson, Undergraduate Curriculum Revision Committee, DU on speaking to a national daily.

The feedback forms for all courses are available on the website and can be submitted to the dashboard. They contain 15 questions which include 14 close ended or ‘Yes and No’ options. There is a provision to provide a detailed answer once we select ‘No’. The fifteenth question is open ended with an option of ‘Any other suggestions’.

Sanjula Gupta a student of Kamala Nehru College commented, “I think this a good move, considering that Delhi University is a premier educational institute in the country. A better, updated and revised syllabus can make our courses more globally relevant and teach us the skills required to effectively participate in the modern economy.”

The revision of this curriculum has been awaiting since 2017 as per the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). The final draft along with the suggestions is expected to be submitted to the University Council by 20 June. And the final decision of consolidating these suggestions within the coursework lies with the Standing Committee of Delhi University. The students enrolling for Undergraduate courses this academic cycle will study this new curriculum.

Image Credits: Delhi University Website

Shivani Dadhwal

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