PULWAMA; In one of the government run schools in a Pulwama village of South Kashmir, the administration forces students to labour instead of teaching them.

The Government Boys and Girls Higher Secondary School Rohomo in the southern district is undergoing some construction work and students – who come to school to study – are made to work during their study hours.

The Higher Secondary – established eight years ago – is in total mess. The principal of the School Shabir Ahmad Gilkar, says he is unaware about students being forced to labour. “I don’t know any such thing but I will investigate,” he told GNS.

Gilkar is handicapped and he often comes to the school in the afternoon at his own will, locals said.
A student told GNS that they were ordered by teachers to work. “When we argued by saying that this is not our work but of laborers, they didn’t pay any heed and ordered us to work,” a student said.
The construction work in the School is going on since last month.

The teachers in the school haven’t been transferred from four to five years, a local said.
The Sarpanch of Rohoma, Ali Muhammad Dar leveled serious allegations on the teaching staff of the school. “I was told by students that these lecturers click photos of girl students during morning prayers,” he alleged.

He said teachers also use cell phones during classes.

The Zonal Education Officer, Atta Muhammad Khan, told GNS: “This is worst Higher Secondary. They (School administration) are running school at their own will.”
He appealed: “please help us in getting things better.”

The Chief Education Officer, Farooq Ahmad, Pulwama, told GNS that he will investigate the matter. “Whosoever be found guilty, he will be punished,” he said.

The Director School of Education Kashmir, Tariq Ali Mir assured action against the guilty. He told GNS:  “I will obtain report from the concerned Chief Educational Officer in this regard. We will take action against the guilty.” (GNS)

SRINAGAR: The Law Department of Kashmir University has made fun of scores of male and female students living below poverty Line. The Law Department without providing any sort of financial assistance to these students has published their names of their official website.

Scores of students living below poverty line told a local news gathering agency that the Law Department has defamed them and has made fun of their poverty. “We have not received any financial assistance from the Law Department but surprisingly they have come up with our names not thinking about the repercussions,” a delegation of students said adding that University has played with their sentiments.

“If you visit the Website of Kashmir University you will find their how Law Department in its notification has claimed that it has given financial assistance to 60 male and female students who live under below poverty line. The fact is that we have not received a penny yet,” a female student told  adding that she was mentally disturbed after coming to know that her name has appeared on the website.

According to reports, the Law Department has published the names of 60 students living below poverty line on March 3 last month and since then it has not bothered to remove these names.

Registrar Kashmir University, Dr Zafar Ahmed Reshi admitted that it was a blunder on part of the University and assured that Law Department would remove the list without any delay.

“This financial assistance is provided by the government and the Law Department might have published the names of the students with an intention to provide information to the government,” Reshi said adding that it is a mistake and would be rectified.

All attempts to contact HoD Law, Professor Muhammad Ayoub did not materialize as he did not pick up the phone.

SRINAGAR; Three students were rusticated from Institute of Hotel Management on Monday after a scuffle between two groups of students.

Reports said that some outside state students had a brawl with Kashmiri students over a matter after which the Principal of the Institute rusticated the three Kashmiri students.

The rusticated students alleged that no action was taken against the out-side state students who according to them were responsible for the mess.

Principal Institute of Hotel Management Srinagar, Nisheeth Srivastava told that an inquiry has been ordered to probe the matter and till it submit its report, they have suspended three students from the Institute.

He further said that the fault lies with the both groups of students and the students from both groups are involved in the mess. “Strict action will be taken against guilty students,” he said.

SRINAGAR; Scores of students from Islamic University of Science and Technology Monday staged a protest in Press Enclave Srinagar demanding revision of fee structure.

The students alleged that they are being forced to pay ₹ 19000 per semester which amounts to ₹ 38000 per annum while the fee structure for all the Government Polytechnic colleges are only ₹ 2300 per annum.

“You can yourself imagine how IUST is looting us. Even the Vice Chancellor is now back tracking who earlier had promised to us that our fee will be refunded,” one of the students Reyaz Ahmed who was part of the protest told.

The protesting students said that VC had made a commitment that once the University will receive funds, the student’s fee will be refunded and the fee for the coming semesters will be revised. They said nothing in this regard has been done and students continue to suffer.

The students further alleged that IUST lacks infrastructure and other basic facilities. 

PULWAMA; Scores of graduation students Wednesday hurled stones on a government college in South Kashmir when authorities did not allow them to appear in English examination being conducted for the first year of the three-year degree.

At least eight students, including girls, were injured in the clashes. The government college in Pulwama did not permit more than 80 students to appear in the examination after which agitated students resorted to violence and attacked college staff and building with stones.

Police was called in to disperse the students and during the clashes at least 8 students were injured.

Some of the students told a news gathering agency that University of Kashmir and college management is playing with their careers and the way they were not permitted to sit in the examination proves that they don’t care for the students.

“We were barred on the pretext that we did not sit for English paper in during mid-term examination. If such was the case then how come University of Kashmir demanded fee from us and issued roll number slips. It indicates that University of Kashmir takes the career of students casually,” a student, Javid Ahmed, said.

Students alleged that college staff misbehaved with them and dragged out the female students from the examination halls. The agitated students continued to protest even after the assurance given to them by Additional Deputy Commissioner.

Some of the injured students were identified as Rizwan-ul-Haq, Mir Imran, Adil Ahmed Khan, Arifa Akhtar and Amir Bashir.

The college principal, Mushtaq Ali Mir, admitted the Kashmir university had made a mistake by issuing the roll numbers in the favour of students even after implementing single paper scheme.

He said for the first time Kashmir University has implemented single paper scheme under which only those students are eligible for appearing the examination who would have passed mid-term examination. “I did not allow these students under rules and if they have any grievances they could simply contact Controller Examination Kashmir University,” he said.

Around 33 students, four of them girls, from across Kashmir had joined BE course in Bangalore’s Bangalore Technological Institution (BTI) under Prime Minister’s Scholarship Scheme (PMSS)—the poorly-implemented scheme exclusively devised by New Delhi for the students of Jammu and Kashmir.

On finding the college ‘underdeveloped’ and suspecting that they may be expelled if the scholarship money was not released, the students went on strike last week. They demanded a written assurance from the authorities that they won’t be thrown out if the scholarship money was not released.

The students told a local daily on Friday that the college authorities did not give them any written assurance, but asked them to trust the system.

“After much dilly-dallying, the chairman of the college B R Reddy held a meeting with us on Thursday. They had also brought the agents from Kashmir who had facilitated our admission in this college. The chairman and others asked us to have faith that scholarship money will be released, and that we will not be thrown out,” one of the nine candidates told wishing anonymity.

The nine students who refused to budge have been asked to leave the college by Sunday, the students said.
“They did not reply when we asked what if the money gets delayed or is not released. Then they started writing down the names of the students who trust them and of those who don’t. We nine students have been asked to leave the college by Sunday,” said another student, adding that they are to deposit Rs 15,000 to get back their documents.

“They have asked us to arrange the money somehow till Sunday to get back our documents.”

The college authorities, however, are avoiding calls. When called by a local daily, the principal of the college H S Nanda dropped the phone saying that he was not the principal. He didn’t reply to subsequent repeated calls.

“Masters of Jammu and Kathua region, who are posted in Chenab Valley and Reasi district will be observing Teachers’ Day as a ‘Black Day’ tomorrow, to express resentment against the delay in their repatriation to their home districts despite the completion of their two-year tenure,” a teacher leader said in a official statement here.

The Education Department gave priority to new promoted Masters and adjusted them at choice postings in the Home district ignoring all norms of transfers and pleas of the Masters working in far flung areas of Chenab Valley and Reasi, he added.