Displaced people threaten suicide by climbing atop university building

Kasargod, Oct 7: As many as 16 persons, whose families were displaced owing to allocation of land for the Central University of Kerala's Periye campus in Kasargod district on Thursday threatened to commit suicide by climbing atop a university building demanding job for a member of the displaced families.

The authorities brought temporary truce assuring them that the issue would be taken up with higher authorities.

The 16 persons, residing in Malathampara SC/ST Colony, adjacent to the university campus, reached the campus around 5 a.m. They threatened to commit suicide by consuming poison. A team of district officials, led by Sub-Collector Joshi Mrunmai Shashank, rushed to the campus and held talks in the presence of university officials.

“We have taken up the issue in writing with the Union HRD Ministry as the university cannot take a policy decision in respect to awarding job each to a member of the displaced families,” University Registrar-in-Charge K.P. Suresh said.

Vice-Chancellor G. Gopakumar was attending a conference in Varanasi and the protesters were asked to remain calm till he returned on Saturday. A demand to give job commensurate with their educational qualification was pending before the university officials, who are engaged in building houses to the displaced families by December-end, Ms. Joshi said.