Bhubaneswar: After four days of continuous agitation, postgraduate and PhD students of the Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) Thursday called off their hunger strike following an assurance from Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to address their long-pending demand for a monthly stipend.
Agriculture and allied science students had been on an indefinite hunger strike at the OUAT campus, braving the winter chill to demand financial assistance for research scholars. More than 200 postgraduate and PhD students joined the protest, stating that despite pursuing higher education and research, they receive no stipend at the university level.
On the occasion of Good Governance Day, the protesting students submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister in the presence of Ekamra-Bhubaneswar MLA Babu Singh. Chief Minister Majhi assured them that their demands would be addressed at the earliest, following which the students called off their strike.
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It may be noted that around 268 students enroll each year in postgraduate and PhD programmes at OUAT, but the lack of financial support has fuelled growing discontent. Despite repeated representations to university authorities and the state government, and even after proposals were forwarded by the university, no concrete outcome emerged, prompting students to launch a peaceful, round-the-clock hunger strike.
