Assam University students call off protest after written assurance on road repair

Students of Assam University on Wednesday staged a sit-in protest against the poor condition of the road connecting Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH) to the university, demanding its immediate repair and reconstruction.

The students began their protest at around 9 am outside the main entrance of Assam University, alleging that repeated representations to the Cachar district administration and concerned divisional authorities had failed to bring any improvement to the condition of the road.

They said the Silchar Medical College–Assam University road had remained in a severely damaged condition for a long time, causing inconvenience to students, faculty members, patients and other commuters.

The students had earlier submitted memoranda to the Cachar district magistrate and other authorities and issued a 15-day ultimatum, warning that they would launch an agitation if repair work was not initiated within the stipulated period.

As no visible action was taken, the students went ahead with the sit-in demonstration. They said the protest would continue until a senior administrative official or the Cachar district magistrate met them and provided a written assurance regarding a solution to the issue.

The agitation continued for several hours before an Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) met the protesters at around 1:30 pm and gave them a written assurance that the matter would be addressed.

Following the assurance, the students withdrew their protest.

The students said they would continue to monitor the progress of the proposed road repair work and hoped that the administration would take prompt steps to restore the crucial connectivity between Silchar Medical College and Assam University.