Vet students start chain hunger strike

Members of Veterinary Students Union of Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU) today launched a chain hunger strike in support of their demands, mainly a hike in stipend.

The students were already observing an indefinite strike at the university’s veterinary hospital, which entered its 31st day today.

The failure of police officials, including SHO Vijay Kumar and DSP Jatinderpal, along with university authorities, to fulfil their commitment of arranging their meeting with Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema before October 25 prompted the students to begin a chain hunger strike.

Dr Harshpreet Kaur and Dr Ritisha Punni sat on hunger strike today. The protesters said the chain hunger strike would continue until the union’s demands were met.

The protesting students expressed disappointment over what they termed the government’s continued neglect and repeated fake assurances, despite making commitments of strengthening the education and healthcare sectors.

They noted that no minister of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government visited the protest site to address students’ concern yet.

The union has made several requests for a meeting with the Finance Minister over the past few months, but there has been no response from the administration.

The primary demand of the students is a hike in the internship stipend from Rs 15,000 to Rs 24,310 per month, bringing it on a par with neighbouring states.

The students emphasised that the current stipend was jointly funded by the university and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research. There was no contribution from the state government.

The union members warned that if the government continued to ignore their demands, they would be compelled to begin a fast unto death in the coming days. The agitation, they added, would be further intensified if the authorities remained unresponsive.