Demanding proper infrastructure and basic amenities, students of the Agricultural College and Research Institute in Karur staged a protest on Monday, May 5.
The students expressed frustration over the college functioning from a temporary building owned by the Karur Corporation, citing a lack of essential facilities, stated a report by The New Indian Express.
The protesting students gathered in front of the college, urging authorities to take immediate steps to shift the institution to its designated permanent campus in Manavasi. They alleged that the temporary setup lacked adequate infrastructure and basic amenities.
Despite being agriculture students, they said they were unable to undergo field training due to the absence of agricultural land at the current location.
College faculty and police personnel pacified the students and assured them that their grievances would be communicated to the government.
The Agricultural College and Research Institute, affiliated with Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), was established in Karur and began functioning in the 2021-22 academic year.
The college offers a BSc (Honours) in Agriculture programme.
Though the institution was initially planned to be established on a permanent campus at Manavasi in Krishnarayapuram taluk, it has been temporarily functioning from a building owned by the Karur Corporation.
About 40 acres of land belonging to the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department, located within the premises of the Madhyapureeswarar Temple in Manavasi village, were identified for the construction of the permanent campus.
Despite repeated appeals from students, faculty, and local farmers to expedite the land acquisition and campus development, the process has been dragging, students alleged, according to the report by The New Indian Express.
However, sources said that the Tamil Nadu government has recently accorded administrative sanction for the acquisition of the land, which would pave a way for the construction of permanent infrastructure