IIIT Basara students on hunger strike; parents detained by police

IIIT Basara students on hunger strike since Saturday night as a protest against the quality of food provided at the technology institute since the food poisoning issue.

IIIT Basara Student Protest: The students of Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), popularly known IIIT-Basar, are on hunger strike since Saturday night as a protest against the quality of food provided at the technology institute since the food poisoning issue. The first and second year students of engineering have boycotted three meals demanding to appoint a new caterer.

Parents join protest

Later on Sunday, parents have also joined the protest and demanded to provide medical insurance to the students. "Despite paying 700 per annum, students were not provided medical cover," the parents told TOI.

"We have not seen any change even after so many students fell sick due to food poisoning, so we are fighting for the change. Same caterers are proving food and the management has not even levied penalty," a third year student said.

Show cause notice to students disrupting academics

The entire fiasco prompted the newly appointed Vice-Chancellor to call for a press meet. "We have appointed 20 wardens as a stopgap measure to resolve the issues. The faculty are also eating food from the mess. We have also arranged for basic maintenance, fixed lights in public areas, opened a lab and also improved the infrastructure of reading rooms," said professor V Venkata Ramana, Vice-Chancellor. He has further stated that students will be issued show-cause notices if they disrupt academics in the garb of protests.

"However, changes cannot be made overnight. The management is trying their best to complete the works at the earliest," Venkata Ramana added. Meanwhile, Adilabad MP from BJP Soyam Bapu Rao, who headed to the campus to meet the students were detained by the police.

Parents detained by police

Nearly 15 parents of IIIT Basara students were detained in front of the residence of education minister Sabitha Indra Reddy when they tried to submit a representation to her.

They were petitioning the minister about the protest by students after over 500 of them fell sick after having lunch at the college mess almost two weeks back. Many of them are yet to recover.

The parents refused to leave the place when informed that the minister was not at home. Banjara Hills police detained them at the police station.

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