BESUTA intensifies movement for INI status,threatens hunger strike
Kolkata, Feb 19(UNI) The Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur(BESUS) teachers have threatened to resort to a 'mass indefinite hunger strike' demanding that BESUS be declared as an Institute of National Importance(INI) immediately.
Stating that in spite of the Anandkrisnan Committee's recommendations to the Ministry of Human Resources Development in February last year to declare BESUS as an autonomous institute through an act of Parliament and make necessary budgetory allocations for it within a timeframe, nothing had been done about it, BESUS Teachers' Association Secretary Sujay Kumar Mukherjee alleged .
He blamed both the Union and the state governments for remaining silent on the issue.
"With deep regret we have noticed that there was no affirmative reponse till date from any of the concerned authorities towards the recommendations of the Anandkrisnan Committee," Dr Mukherjee said and expressed concern at 'no further progress' in this regard before the finalisation of the budgetory allocation of the 11th Five year plan for the Institute.
"The teaching community of the prestigious institute can neither afford to let the honour be denied, nor silently watch the indefinite delay in BESUS' rightful transformation into INI", the BESUTA Secretary said.
He also made it clear that if the concerned authorities continued to delay the proposed upgradation of the Institute 'deliberately', the BESUTA members would not only intensify their ongoing agitation, but would also resort to an indefinite relay hunger strike to press for their demand with the support of the state's entire teaching community.
UNI