IIIT Surat students complain about deplorable condition of campus ahead of August return
Students of the Indian Institute of Information Technology Surat (IIIT Surat) have taken to Twitter to bring attention to the deplorable condition of their campus. While they have been asked to return to college for offline classes in August, the students claim that the area surrounding the campus is not suitable for an educational institution to be constructed.
According to the official website of the university, IIIT S is an Institute of National Importance (INI) that is established under the Act of Parliament 2017, by erstwhile Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India, on not-for-profit Public-Private-Partnership basis. The academic activities of the institute began in June 2017 with Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology (SVNIT) as a mentoring institute.
Students claimed that they were kicked out of the SVNIT campus a couple of months ago this semester. “We don’t know why we were kicked out but it could’ve been because their MoU expired,” said a member from the student representative body who did not wish to be named.
University's notice
After receiving a notice from the university regarding reopening of the institute for the odd semesters on August 8, parents of the students went to check the institute and the hostel. However, they were met with a tin-shed-like building. “The college is still under construction with nothing but a tin shed to call a college,” the student said. Additionally, the students claim that the entire municipality surrounding the institute is in shambles and filled with mud. Parents were apparently informed by the construction manager on the ground that it will take at least two months to build walls around the area, the student said.
The notice by the university stated, “The classes will be in our own academic facility in Kholvad, Kamrej Taluka of Surat District. Hostel arrangements are being made and the details will be communicated by the Institute shortly.”
However, the students claimed that they were offered accommodation at a boarding school's hostel that is 12 km away at Valthan. “It offers no lunch except for weekdays, has a high fee (Rs 86,000) and a room, which will have to be shared with four other students,” the student said. While the university has assured that a bus facility will be provided for students to travel to the hostel, students said that, currently, it is difficult for a vehicle to even pass by on the road.
While the students did try to reach out to the university administration by sending them emails, they haven’t received any response yet. “We need to be in a campus which is at par with the standards of SVNIT because that was the basis of us taking admission in the institution,” the student body stated in an email to the university. They demand a campus with basic facilities and a hostel with three meals with all the facilities that an INI deserves.
“We still don’t know where will we live and where we will study even though classes will start soon,” the student said. They plan to continue sending emails to the administration and will eventually protest if things do not go in their favour.
From the official
Meanwhile, JS Bhat, Director of the Institute, said that they were earlier operating out of SVNIT before but now are ready to shift to their own campus. “It is a transit campus it cannot be ready overnight. There were rains for a few days so obviously there is water around,” he said. He assured that the campus will be ready by August 8. Additionally, he said that lunch is not arranged in the hostel but it will be available in the canteen of the campus at subsidised rates.
