SUNABEDA : Students of Central University of Odisha (CUO), Koraput on Tuesday staged protest in front of the main gate of Sunabeda campus over various demands.

The agitating students sought strict implementation of reservation policy in fee waivers during admission, covering both academic and hostel costs. They demanded that pending mess dues be deferred until scholarship amounts are disbursed.

They also urged immediate operationalisation of the Dr BR Ambedkar Centre of Excellence for SC students and called for regular orientation programmes for SC/ST students. They also called for reconstitution of the SC/ST cell with a dedicated office space.

The agitators demanded organisation of national seminar, cultural activities and competitions on the occasion of Dr BR Ambedkar's birth anniversary, along with formal recognition of SC/ST/OBC students' organisations on campus. They further pressed for immediate recruitment to fill backlog vacancies in teaching and non-teaching posts and improvement of hostel facilities for SC/ST students.

The students also sought establishment of gym facilities in both boys' and girls' hostels, construction of an auditorium and an indoor stadium for extracurricular activities, and equal access timing for boys and girls in the central library.

The protest was later withdrawn after registrar Rakesh Kumar Lenka assured that the issues would be discussed with the vice-chancellor.