After JNU hikes hostel fees, JNU students boycott registration

After the JNU administration decided to go ahead with the hiked hostel fees, the students boycotted the semester registration on January 1. After more than two months of protest against the proposed exorbitant hike in the hostel fees, the university finalised it on December 30.

"No student has registered for the semester until now," says JNUSU General Secretary Satish Yadav, when we spoke to him. "We had put forward certain demands and the administration is not in accord with that. So, we decided to boycott the registration," he says. The students had earlier boycotted the examinations that began on December 12. Following this, the administration had asked the students to clear all the exams by January 20.

The IHA circular released on December 30, in accordance with an earlier statement of the MHRD's, says that the room rent for the students will be hiked from Rs 10 per month to Rs 300 per month (double room), and from Rs 20 per month to Rs 600 per month (single room). The students had demanded a complete rollback of the hike.

 "The administration is apparently hell-bent on following the academic calendar. But it wasn't getting followed for a long time. Also, they are now forcing even the JRF scholars to pay the hostel fees, despite their House Rent Allowance getting cut," says Satish. "We are also conducting a series of meetings with various student bodies to look for feasible solutions," he adds.