Despite the extension of the status quo to maintain academic and administrative arrangements between the University of Visvesvaraya College of Engineering (UVCE) and Bangalore University for the next one year, conflict continues. In a fresh development, Bangalore University issued a unilateral order and asked the students of the UVCE residing in three hostels on its Jnana Bharathi campus to vacate by May 1.
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The Director of the Directorate of Student’s Welfare of Bangalore University sent a notice to the hostels on April 27 stating, “The UVCE has become a completely independent university from the academic year 2023-24. No fund has been sanctioned by the government to the engineering students. Therefore, all the engineering students should vacate the hostels by May 1.”
The UVCE was to be the first autonomous State university along the lines of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), but plans were derailed following a paucity of funds. However, after outrage from students and staff, the Higher Education Department extended the status quo of financial and administrative powers of the UVCE with Bangalore University till March 31, 2024.
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While the State government made the UVCE, affiliated to Bangalore University since 1964, autonomous in March 2022, civil and other engineering branches continued on the Jnana Bharathi campus and the university has provided hostel facility for engineering students on the same campus. There are around 150 engineering students staying in the three hostels. The latest order has put such students in trouble.
A student of the UVCE, said, “I have come from Raichur and have been staying in this hostel for two years. Now, all of a sudden, we are asked to move out of the hostel by May 1. My parents are worried. We brought this issue to our principal’s notice. But there has been no proper response. Therefore, the Board of Governors (BoG) of the UVCE should immediately resolve this problem. Otherwise, all the hostel students will go on an indefinite fast from Monday.”
A delegation of the All-India Democratic Students’ Organisation and the UVCE Students’ Struggle Committee met Bangalore University Vice-Chancellor on Friday and requested him to take a stand in favour of the students.
Jayakara S.M., Vice-Chancellor of Bangalore University said, “The UVCE has become an independent university from the academic year 2023-24. However, the government has extended the status quo of the UVCE for one more academic year. According to this status quo order, the UVCE should reimburse the fund for us. But, there is no sign from the UVCE in this regard. The BoG of the UVCE has never discussed anything about financial assistance. We can’t bare the hostel expenditure of engineering students. Therefore, we decided to get the hostels vacated.”