Maharashtra CM Accepts Demands Of Protesting Tribal Students
The CM assured them that a review meeting would be held after three months: Mr. Uike
MUMBAI: Maharashtra Tribal Development Minister Ashok Uike on Saturday said the government had accepted all the demands of tribal students on hunger strike in Pune, Nagpur and Nashik. The demands include recruitment of Scheduled Tribes candidates to government posts and improved facilities at tribal residential schools.
The protests, which were triggered by the deaths of three tribal girls following snake bites at a residential school in Gadchiroli, are expected to be called off later on Saturday.
The government’s decision came shortly after the Bombay High Court directed the authorities to ensure immediate medical care for tribal students in Pune who have been on hunger strike for the past 15 days.
Mr. Uike said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had accepted the students’ demands following discussions with their representatives. “The CM assured them that a review meeting would be held after three months to assess implementation and address any difficulties,” he said.
The minister appealed to the students to withdraw their hunger strike and return to their studies.
According to student representatives, the government has agreed to prepare a time-bound schedule for filling 12,500 vacancies, with vacant posts to be identified within three months.
The Chief Minister also assured action against candidates who continued in government service without submitting caste validity certificates within the stipulated period, including removal from service wherever applicable.
The government has also scrapped the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme. A committee will examine the central kitchen system and submit its report within 15 days to one month, the student representatives said.
The representatives said they were satisfied with the outcome of the discussions and the time-bound assurances given by the government.
Earlier in the day, the Bombay High Court directed the State to provide appropriate medical facilities to the protesting students and ordered that they be admitted to hospital if required. It also directed the authorities to provide food to the students wherever necessary.
“We do not want a single student to lose his or her life,” Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge said as a Division Bench, also comprising Justice Gautam Ankhad, took up the matter urgently.
The court also took note of the circumstances that led the tribal students to begin the hunger strike, including the death of a student allegedly due to food poisoning after consuming food served at a tribal ashram school, and the deaths of three students following snake bites.
