Pune Varsity students demand wi-fi on campus

PUNE: Several students of the University of Pune took out a protest march to the vice-chancellor's office on Tuesday demanding wi-fi facility on the varsity campus, proper chairs at the Jaykar Library and non-privatisation of the on-campus refectory among others. The students have threatened to go on a fast if their demands were not met.

Amol Saravde, who led the march said, "If the refectory (dining room) is run by a private firm, it will be impossible to afford its rates. Many students come from outside Pune and ideally, the food must be subsidised."

The students demanded that the university must not make it mandatory for students to become members of the refectory. The students also said that the 8 pm deadline for female students at the varsity hostel must also be removed.

Saravde said, "Outstation students do not have a home and their only place for self-study is the Jaykar library. However, the chairs in the library are in a very sorry state. This is a very basic demand and the university must make sure that the chairs are replaced. We are not asking for executive chairs but the university can easily afford decent chairs."

A delegation of this group later met vice-chancellor Wasudev N Gade and apprised him of their problems. Gade assured them that something would be done. "We will study the problems of the students and solve them at the earliest," he said.

Source: TIMES OF INDIA