UP higher edu dept to hold weekly review of varsities, degree colleges

The higher education department will conduct weekly reviews of state universities and affiliated degree colleges to address student grievances, aiming to resolve the simmering dissent before it escalates into massive protests that could cause law and order problems in the poll-bound UP

The higher education department will conduct weekly reviews of state universities and affiliated degree colleges to address student grievances, aiming to resolve the simmering dissent before it escalates into massive protests that could cause law and order problems in the poll-bound UP.

A day after chief minister Yogi Adityanath told DMs and district police heads to keep a close watch on “every small incident” and ensure that senior administrative and police officials reach the spot immediately to hear the grievances of victims, the Uttar Pradesh higher education department too decided to monitor developments on all campuses.

The move has been initiated in view of the assembly polls scheduled for early 2027 to ensure law and order in the state remains peaceful.

In its proposed weekly reviews, the higher education department will try to identify and redress student grievances before they escalate into a Jantar Mantar scale like protests causing law-and-order disruptions, an official said, who do not wish to be identified.

This proactive monitoring strategy follows a high-level review meeting where the chief minister directed district magistrates (DMs) to strictly maintain campus peace.

This includes tracking administrative friction with students, fee hikes, or scheduling issues that trigger student unrest. University officials are expected to share intelligence directly with the DMs and local police to prevent localised campus protests from becoming state-wide security issues.

University vice-chancellors and college principals are expected to handle internal student disputes and nip them in the bud. For instance, recently at the University of Lucknow there was a major issue in which five right wing students were suspended in connection with misconduct involving minor girls. The supporters of the five suspended students resorted to vandalism after which the university tried to pacify the issue by providing them with an opportunity to appear before the Internal Complaint Committee.

Besides, several protests took place at LU over substandard food prepared with expired spices and flour. To quell the agitation, the university administration promptly reshuffled hostel provosts. Also there was a demand to reopen the reading hall of LU’s Tagore library. An order was issued and it was reopened.

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath had said officials should ensure minor incidents do not escalate into major ones. ”People seek to spread discord in the society and want to turn minor incidents into major ones. Therefore, district magistrates and SPs must personally keep a watch on even the smallest incident in their respective districts. They must immediately reach the spot, hear grievances of victims and ensure that action against the guilty is taken as per the rules,” he said during Janata Darshan at his official residence here.