OU students gear up for rail roko

HYDERABAD: Giving Dasara celebrations a miss, Osmania University students, teaching and non-teaching faculty are gearing up for the proposed three-day rail roko, starting on October 9. The ‘T’ agitators, who skipped the Navaratri celebrations in support of the agitation, on Wednesday said they would stage a Gujjar like sit-in at all the railway stations and crossings near the university.
About 1,500 staff and students are expected to participate in the agitation. Railway stations including Jamia Osmania and Sitaphalmandi are located near the OU campus.
On Wednesday, posters and banners in support of the agitation appeared in Arts College and its surroundings. The teaching and non- teaching staff also called for a total boycott of classes and set up a tent right in front of the Arts College to hold a public gathering on October 9. Mild tension prevailed on the campus on Wednesday, with students holding a rally against the university administration seeking postponement of their examinations. The students also staged a dharna in front of the OU administrative block demanding the same.
OU authorities, however, postponed the pre-PhD examinations, scheduled to be held on October 11 and 13. Officials said that the revised dates would be announced after the improvement in the situation on the campus.
Student agitators said that the agitation will only gain strength after Dasara. “We are planning to conduct a public meeting similar to Vidyarthi Garjana this month. OU Telangana Students’ JAC will be supported by TSJACs of Kakatiya, Mahatma Gandhi and Telangana Universities,” said a student leader of OU. About 1,500 students who had left the campus for the Dasara vacation, are also expected to join them on October 8.
Meanwhile, 30 students of Nizam College, Basheerbagh were detained by police for trying to march towards OU to take part in the preparations. “Students from OU PG College, Law College and Nizam College will be part of the agitation,” said M Prasanth, student JAC member Nizam College. Nizam College has also postponed its internal examinations that were scheduled for the month. Some of the other universities in the city like Maulana Azad National Urdu University also postponed their examinations. The Directorate of Distance Education, Manuu on Wednesday announced the postponement of its term-end UG, PG & other exams that were scheduled to start from October 10.