Koraput: Tension gripped the main campus of the Central University of Odisha (CUO) in Sunabeda, Koraput district, on Friday morning as students launched a protest by locking down the main gate. The agitation stems from long-standing grievances, with student leaders presenting a 9-point charter of demands that they say have remained unaddressed by the administration.
The protesting students have blocked entry to the campus, preventing professors, staff, and other personnel from entering. They have vowed to continue the sit-in until their issues are resolved.
Key demands include immediate disbursement of pending scholarships, which students claim have not been provided on time or at all in many cases, declaration of pending examination results across multiple departments, some delayed for up to two years, severely impacting academic progression and future opportunities, resolution of various hostel-related problems, including poor maintenance and inadequate facilities.
Other demands are fulfillment of professors post and teaching staff and urgent improvement in basic infrastructure.
Student representatives emphasized that these are not new issues but persistent problems that have accumulated over time, affecting the quality of education and student welfare in the tribal-dominated region.
Students are determined to stay put until concrete assurances and timelines are provided by the university authorities. The university authorities have not yet issued an official response to the lockdown or the demands as of this report.
