Harass fight goes to CM

Patna: A delegation of Patna University Students Union met chief minister Nitish Kumar at his 7 Circular Road residence on Sunday and discussed issues related to the varsity, including eve-teasing on campus, lack of teachers, and transportation facilities.

Union president Divyanshu Bhardwaj led the five-member delegation.

Education minister Krishna Nandan Prasad Verma, MLC and former education minister Ashok Kumar Choudhary were also present during the meeting at the chief minister’s residence.

“We spoke to the chief minister about the problem of eve-teasing at Patna University institutions. These cases have been occurring frequently and there is lack of police personnel, including women police, to control the situation,” Divyanshu told The Telegraph.

The delegation members included the union’s vice-president, Yoshita Patwardhan, treasurer Nitish Kumar Patel, Kumar Satyam and Janata Dal United student wing’s former general secretary Manish Kumar.

They pointed out to Nitish the case of GDS Hostel, meant for girls and located along the banks of the Ganga between Patna University and Patna Science College. Frequent incidents of eve-teasing have come to light, especially in the evenings, they said, when criminals assemble on the route leading to it.

Nitish spoke to director-general of police K.S. Dwivedi and asked him to take action. Later, the students’ union delegation and a team of police officers surveyed the GDS Hostel and areas around it to chalk a plan to stop eve-teasing.

The delegation also requested the chief minister to revive the “ring bus service” for the university students, which was disrupted around 1990. They said the bus service will provide better commuting facilities to the students.

“The chief minister telephoned transport secretary Sanjay Kumar Agarwal and asked us to meet him in this regard. A route chart for the ring bus service will be prepared and buses will begin to ply in seven days,” Divyanshu said.

On the scarcity of teachers, Nitish assured the student leaders to hold a meeting with Patna University vice-chancellor Rash Bihari Prasad Singh and education department’s principal secretary R.K. Mahajan to sort out the issue. Nitish also iterated that the government has no problem in providing money to the university.

The union leaders invited Nitish to attend a students’ conference being organi-sed at the university from June 14-16.

Courtesy: The Telegraph