Azim Premji University warns students protesting against shuttle fees

The students alleged the APU is forcing them to pay a mandatory shuttle fee for ferrying them from their KGA hostel, located around 2.5 kilometres away, to and from the campus. They said the management failed to inform them about the additional fees during the admission process and refused to listen to their issues.

As students intensified their hunger strike against the Azim Premji University (APU) in Bengaluru, demanding a waiver of shuttle fees, the management on Friday warned of disciplinary action against them.

Azim Premji University students have been protesting the shuttle fees of ₹8,500 per semester imposed by the college (Twitter/@azimpremjiuniv)

For over ten days, the APU students have been protesting the shuttle fees of ₹8,500 per semester imposed by the college and demanded a blanket waiver.

The students alleged the APU is forcing them to pay a mandatory shuttle fee for ferrying them from their KGA hostel, located around 2.5 kilometres away, to and from the campus. They said the management failed to inform them about the additional fees during the admission process and refused to listen to their issues.

“We had a meeting with the senior members of the university. The only official communication we got from the university was them reiterating their original stance that there would not be any blanket waiver of the shuttle fees. They said they would only deal with this on a case-by-case basis,” a second-year PG (postgraduate) student said.

“These shuttle fees are not put up on the website anywhere. It was not communicated to us beforehand at any stage of the admission process. The question we are asking is why only students from one specific hostel are being made to pay the fees,” the student added.

According to the students, in the last couple of years, there were several instances of sexual harassment when students walked to the hostel from the college at night. After protests in 2022, shuttle services were made available to allow safe passage from the university, they added.

“There are two external hostels which are quite far from the university. The previous batches had protested the shuttle service in the first place because there were instances of sexual harassment. There are a lot of times when we have to stay back in the college till late in the night,” another student, who wished to remain anonymous, said.

“They started charging the shuttle fee in June last year. The reason why we are protesting is we have been continuously trying to talk to the management and negotiate with them. But they are not willing to talk to us or address any of our issues,” the student said.

While the students stepped up their protest, the management, in an official communication to the students, said the protests have disrupted the peaceful atmosphere on the campus, adding that a subset of the students also engaged in behaviour completely unacceptable to the university.

“A universal waiver for all students is not in line with our fundamental principles. This has been reiterated to the protesting group repeatedly by several people. The shuttle fee was due last semester, and we have extended the payment deadlines several times already. We had requested students to apply individually for waivers citing their circumstances. Many have applied, and we are in the process of deciding each case based on merit. Individual students demonstrating the need will get waivers proportional to their circumstances,” the university said in its letter to the students.

“On February 21, 2023, they physically intimidated and restrained the Vice Chancellor and a few other members as they were leaving our campus, threatening their safety and seriously vitiating the atmosphere on campus. This was after the Vice Chancellor met a group of students in person to hear their views. Over the past few days, they have also disrupted smooth entry and exit from our campus. In addition, some students have spread misinformation on social media and violated the code of conduct around that as well. They have also written to the University that they will intensify the protests, which may cause further disruption,” the university said.

“The University will not tolerate any such threatening behaviour. The students engaged in this will be identified and serious disciplinary action will be taken against them. They will be notified individually about the next steps,” it added.

A protesting student said they were disappointed with the university’s response and maintained would continue an indefinite hunger strike until the issue is resolved. “The University says its motto is to ‘contribute to the realisation of a just, equitable, humane and sustainable society’, but we are disappointed with how things have unfolded. We have been protesting democratically, and such allegations are unacceptable,” the student added.