Violent protests broke out at VIT University Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh’s Sehore district on late Tuesday night, with students blaming the administration for providing allegedly poor-quality food and contaminated water that caused a major jaundice outbreak on campus.
Around 4,000 students gathered on the college campus to protest, but the situation escalated when some of the protesters torched multiple vehicles and damaged university property, including the chancellor’s bungalow. In view of the situation, the university declared a holiday till the end of November.
Protesters claimed that over two dozen students fell sick with jaundice symptoms in recent weeks.
A student said the university management had turned a blind eye to their complaints, and no concrete action has been taken to address the concerns about food and water quality. Students alleged that guards and staff mistreated them when they raised these issues.
However, the state administration has denied rumours of deaths due to jaundice.
“The children had problems with water and food… There were rumours of deaths due to jaundice. This is not the case. We are working to solve the children’s problems," said Nitin Kumar Tale, Sub-divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Ashta, where the university is located.
Jitendra Patwari, Madhya Pradesh Congress chief, demanded that the government should conduct a fair investigation into the entire matter.
“The incident at VIT, an educational institution in Bhopal, is extremely concerning. It is reprehensible that children are not provided with clean water and pure food. The government should conduct a fair investigation into the entire matter and take strict action against the culprits," he wrote on X.
