The historic students agitation shook the foundations of ruling party and made it impossible to conquer with students power. This agitation has teach us some lessons, not to forget on any angle to compromise with quality education provisions.
Geographically, Basara is located on the banks of the holy river Godavari near Nizamabad town in Telangana, is the abode of Gnana Saraswati. Students of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT) at Basara deserve full compliments for their grit and determination in setting the faulty system right. Unable to bear the KCR government’s lethargy, indecisiveness, inaction and negligence of the highest order, students launched a peaceful agitation braving the heat, rain, and police tactics for seven days and brought the government to its knees.
The Basar episode epitomizes a bigger malady plaguing Telangana for the last eight years. In view of a news critic, there are six key takeaways from this awe-inspiring agitation:
- – utter disregard for human capital;
- – anti-intellectualism;
- – cruel ploy to kill rural talent;
- – adhocism;
- – student power, and civil society’s reaction.
Human capital is the knowledge and skills that people accumulate throughout their lives, enabling them to realize their potential as productive members of society. In the words of social reformer and playwright Gurajada Appa Rao, a country does not mean land, a country means people (deshamante matti kaadoi, deshamante manushuloi).
People are not ‘vote banks’, they are wonderful resources to build any nation. The omissions and commissions of the KCR government suggest that it does not have much regard for human capital.
Had it not been the case, KCR and his government would have either acted proactively or reacted with alacrity to fix the issues raised by Basar students.The plight of more than a dozen universities in Telangana showcases his utter disregard for human capital.
The modern world is shaped by people who engage in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society.These people, called intellectuals, propose solutions to the normative problems of society. It was intellectuals like Kaloji and Prof.
Jayashankar who vociferously voiced their concerns over discrimination and inspired generations to join the no-holds-barred struggle to achieve ‘self-rule’ for Telangana people. Having realized the power of these intellectuals, KCR developed a strong aversion to them. Kapilavai Dilip Kumar, author of the sensational book Aparichitudu, recollects a diktat issued by KCR to put a board in Telangana Bhavan – the TRS party headquarters – barring the entry of intellectuals. It suffices to reflect the aversion that KCR has towards those who use their brains to think and question. Otherwise, he would have appointed VCs and adequate faculty members at not only RGUKT – Basara, but all the public universities in the state, long ago.
Established as a university in combined Andhra Pradesh in March 2008, RGUKT-Basara’s goal is to provide top-class engineering education for impoverished but educationally gifted rural youth – the crème de la crème from every mandal.
It accepts 1,000 students who pass 10th grade into its 6-year integrated B.Tech degree program every year.The main objective of RGUKT is to enable such students “experience educational standards in engineering education that are of world-class”. Such a useful institute meant for unlocking rural talent has been decimated by KCR. The way the parents of the agitating students were dealt with by the police is unpardonable.
Another salient feature of the KCR government is adhocism coupled with substandard decision-making. The government’s initial response to the agitation was to press officials into action to pacify the students. While the Chief Minister remained indifferent, his son took to Twitter for making generic assurances.The Education Minister tried to play down the agitation by dubbing the list of students’ demands as ‘silly’. For more than a week, the government tried various methods to weaken the agitation, but the students did not budge.Finally, the government agreed to ‘soon’ appoint a full-time VC and allocate some funds to address immediate needs. To independent observers, it seemed that the government bought time to dilute the students’ cause.
The Basar episode has brought back the revolutionary zeal of student power — the key ingredient for the success of the Telangana movement. The father-son duo know very well that university campuses are potential threats to their autocratic family rule.
Hence, the state government created a rift among students on the campuses of State-run universities to silence any kind of resentment or dissent. In this gloomy situation, Basar students proved their mettle and inspired students to fight for better facilities and just demands.
The Basar agitation provoked civil society members to discharge their responsibility. Voices that had been silenced during the past eight years have become strident once again.Leaders like BJP state unit president Bandi Sanjay Kumar were arrested for extending their support to the students of Basar.
The media was denied permission to cover the inspiring agitation of these students. In such a grave situation, civil society members played a vital role in building pressure on this thick-skinned government. The successful agitation in the abode of Gnana Saraswathi will usher in a broader change in Telangana. #KhabarLive #hydnews
