Students, student organisations and faculty members feel that there is no need to restart sports and cultural activities in colleges during the pandemic.
Amaresh Kadagada, State president, Students’ Federation of India, Karnataka said that while it was important to restart offline classes for intermediate semesters, there was no need to begin sports and cultural activities at this point in time. “There are reports that there might be a second wave of COVID-19 cases. During this time, colleges should focus on academics and ensure that students’ learning outcome is not affected. I also feel that colleges will exploit students and charge fees for these activities from students. Students and their families are financially distressed, and cannot afford to pay fees for this,” he said.
Suraj K., a student of a city-based college, said that there was a need for colleges to make sure that they fulfil the basic requirements of students, and provide accommodation in hostels and ensure that they get access to transport in a hassle-free manner. “Without fulfilling our basic needs, there is no need to start cultural and sports activities,” he said.
Sithara H.M., Bengaluru district president, All India Democratic Students Organisation, said that while cultural activities and sports were important, the main concern due to the pandemic was academics, and the government must ensure basic facilities like laboratory, staff, hostel, class rooms. “As final-year students are quite anxious about their future, academics should not be compromised with other activities,” she said.
