Twelve girl students faint during protest demanding classrooms in Sivaganga Govt College

SIVAGANGA: Twelve students of a government college for women fainted during a sit-in protest demanding permanent classroom facilities and were rushed to the Government Medical College Hospital after breaking open the locked college main gate at Sivaganga on Wednesday afternoon.

More than 300 students of the Government Arts College for Women, located on the district Collectorate campus, staged a protest from Wednesday morning demanding permanent classroom facilities.

As the college administration did not heed their demands, the students continued their protest despite the scorching sun. Unable to withstand the scorching heat, some students fainted. The situation turned tense when the students found the main entrance gate locked and were unable to take those who had fainted to hospital.

Despite calling for help, the students alleged that no one came to their rescue. “We had no other option but to break open the gate and save our friends,” a group of students said as they were seen carrying the fainted students to share autos. Subsequently, the affected students were taken to the Sivaganga Government Medical College Hospital.

Around 3,000 students are pursuing various courses at the Sivaganga Government Arts College for Women, but students of the BBA department have not been provided adequate classrooms.

“Nearly 300 students are studying in the BBA department, but there are no proper classrooms for them,” the protesters said.

“For the past three years, teachers have been conducting classes under trees and in bicycle parking areas,” said a third-year BBA student.

Despite repeated representations by the students to the college administration, no efforts were made to arrange permanent classrooms, they alleged.

“Hence, we had no other option but to express our anger by boycotting classes and launching a sit-in protest on the campus. We are demanding that a newly constructed building be allotted for conducting classes,” they said.

After this incident, the college administration held talks with the students and assured them of the allocation of classrooms for students of the BBA department.