ISM students renew IIT cry on Delhi Street

More than 1,000 students of Indian School of Mines (ISM), Dhanbad, gathered at Jantar Mantar in the national capital on September 2, 2013 to launch a silent protest in demand of IIT status for their 85-year-old institute.

As many as 400 students left for Delhi on Friday, while the remaining 600 boarded different trains today.

A handful of ISM student leaders also met Dhanbad MP P.N. Singh today, apprising him of their “Delhi Chalo” campaign. Singh, along with Giridih MP Ravindra Pandey, had raised the issue in the Lok Sabha.

While the boys protested at Jantar Mantar from 9am onwards on Monday, their female counterparts raised slogans at ISM gate in Dhanbad.

Student leaders Abhinav, Shashank Shekhar, Varun Pandey, Ankit Gupta, R. Singh and Anshul Ranjan told The Telegraph that their objective was to draw the attention of the HRD ministry, IIT board and media. “Ours will be a silent protest aimed at attracting attention for our genuine demands,” said one of the leaders.

The students decided to launch their agitation on Monday in view of the IIT council meeting that will be held the next day.

At the last IIT council meeting on January 12, 2013, it was decided that an expert committee would review the proposal. If the panel submitted a favourable report, a bill would be introduced in Parliament. But, the panel is yet to be formed.

If ISM misses the bus this time, it will have to wait for four more months, as the next meeting will be held in January.

According to our source the campaign for an IIT status, which was started in September 2009, is in its last leg. After three years, Planning Commission recommended the conversion of ISM into an IIT on December 14, 2012.

However, classes at the Dhanbad cradle will continue as usual, said ISM registrar Retired Col M.K. Singh.

Source: Sagar Kumar Swain, click4college Specialist