NEHUSU-HYC calls for protest against Govt’s delay to release student scholarships

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJanuary 2, 2024

The North Eastern Hill University Students’ Union (NEHUSU) and Hynniewtrep Youth Council (HYC) have urged students to gather infront of the MBoSE office on Wednesday to protest against the government’s failure to release their scholarships.

In a statement, NEHUSU general secretary Banpynbiang Riang said, “It has been more than a year since we, the students have received our scholarships. The Money which is meant for our fee, food, rent and healthcare is being criminally  denied to us. This is a brutal assault on our Autonomy and livelihood. We are having to depend on our families for the financial assistance, which is further putting immense burden on many of our families who are already struggling to survive under marginalized conditions. This extraordinary delay in scholarships has increased the risk of drop-outs as education is becoming unaffordable to many of us. Our dreams, our aspirations and our pursuit for a better life; everything is in grave danger.” 

He said they perceive this delay in distribution of scholarships not as an innocent error but as a gross violation of our right to education by the government. 

“In this era, where education is being mercilessly privatized and commodified for the profits of the few, making it an extremely expensive pursuit, hence exclusionary to majority of us who come from the margins; we see this delay as an abominable attempt to defund education. Hence, it has become a matter of life and death for us, the student community, to protect public affordable education, to resolutely resist any attempts to encroach upon our rights and unflinchingly demand for our scholarships,” Riang said.

“Let us show this government that they cannot play with the lives of the students without facing dire consequences. Let us show them that we shall not move an inch back from Mbose without availing our rightful scholarship money. When injustice becomes law, Resistance Becomes a Duty!,” he added.