The Kashmiri students at Srinagar’s NIT have countered some of the demands of their outstation mates made before a visiting team of the Union human resources development ministry here on Wednesday.
The Kashmiri students at Srinagar’s NIT have countered some of the demands of their outstation mates made before a visiting team of the Union human resources development ministry here on Wednesday.
The faculty members too have expressed their dismay over attempts aimed at tarnishing the image of the institute.
In a memorandum submitted to the HRD ministry team, the local students have said the presence of Central forces on the camps will set a tone of hostility and fear amongst every student and parent, given the political and security situation of Kashmir.
“We are all aware of the volatile nature of the Kashmir region. The presence of Central security or armed security forces of any type will only make the campus (and subsequently, its students) vulnerable to disturbance owing to political events outside college,” they said, adding the NIT Srinagar has overcome a long history of struggle to get rid of security forces on campus in the first place.
“Let’s make this very clear. They are demanding the presence of armed security upon the grounds of an educational institute. This is not acceptable here or anywhere in the world. In the past, security forces used to reside in the hostel. This set a tone of hostility and fear amongst every student and parent. We call upon any of the representatives of the non-local brethren to cite a single incident (including and especially through the turmoil of 2008 and 2010) where a non-local student was harmed,” the memorandum reads.
Reacting to the demand that 50 per cent staff at the institute should of non-locals, the memorandum says, “After just a few seconds of thought, it is very clear that the onus of selecting teaching faculty is on the human resources development ministry.”
