Over 300 students from Delhi College of Arts have been on strike since August 31 because of shortage of teaching staff and equipment and lack of sanitation facilities. They are also demanding the revival of their annual art exhibition and transparency in the way funds are used on the campus, among other demands. On the ongoing strike, officiating principal S. N. Lahiri told Indian Express,”I am only the officiating principal. My hands are tied. The administrative decisions of the college are taken by the Delhi government and the Delhi Technical University. We are short by 70 per cent staff, which only the government can fill up. No recruitment has taken place for almost a decade now and new courses have been added. Officers from the Directorate of Technical Education visited the campus on Friday and we have explained the situation to them, action needs to be taken by them and the Delhi government.”
Given that Mr. Kejriwal offered FTII students to hold their classes in Delhi, this is quite ironical. Delhi College of Arts is affiliated to Delhi Technical University, which happens to be a state university, giving Kejriwal all the powers to fix all that’s lacking within the college.
My offer to FTII students- Del govt can provide u temp space in Del. Run ur classes here till central govt agrees(2/3)
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) August 19, 2015
Last week, although protestors marched to the Delhi Secretariat and the Chief Minister’s home, they couldn’t get an appointment with the Kejriwal. Watch the video to trace the students’ struggle.
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