Several students, including girls, were forcibly taken into custody when they were agitating in Vizianagaram and Parvatipuram on Thursday over delay in release of their scholarship and fee reimbursement amount to their respective colleges.
Around 60 students, who were taken into custody, were later released in the evening. Over 1,200 students of Maharaja Degree College and other institutions staged protest at Vizianagaram Collector’s office at around 11.30 p.m.
Their protest irked the police personnel as Union Minister for Labour and Employment Santosh Kumar Gangwar who was scheduled to move on the same route for laying the foundation stone for the construction of ESI Hospital at Gajularega on the outskirts of Vizianagaram.
Students’ Federation of India State vice-president K. Suresh and its district leaders P. Rammohan, Ch. Venkatesh and Ch. Pavani strongly condemned the deployment of heavy police force.
“The government has to release ₹300 crore funds to various colleges under fee reimbursement scheme. It has also stopped release of scholarships. The students would not have come on to the streets if the government resolves the issues,” said Mr. Suresh.
