JNU admin wants to shut down dhabas citing hygiene to make way for food courts

The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union alleged that the administration passed a proposal to shut down small dhabas on the campus after the varsity decided to explore the feasibility of establishing food courts on the campus.

The varsity's Executive Council (EC), in its meeting Tuesday, November 20, took the decision to temporarily close one of the reading rooms in the main library building to improve fire safety measures.

All other facilities in the library will continue to be available for the users, the varsity said.

In response to the growing demands from the students for availability of clean and hygienic food, and also creating good ambience on the campus, the Executive Council has taken a decision to explore the feasibility to establish food courts at suitable locations, it added.

It said that these food courts will provide a space for networking among students from diverse background and will be able to serve them a varied cuisine.

The administration said it will take action against the canteens which are not following the catering rules and which failed to provide clean and affordable food. It said it has called for fresh tenders for canteens and will not allow the culprits to take part in the tendering process.

The JNUSU accused "the JNU administration under Vice Chancellor Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar of trying to privatise and corporatise the university public spaces and academics".

"The latest decision to close down existing dhabas and start tendering process for new food courts comes from that very philosophy as this is being done by bypassing already established democratic decision making process in JNU," the union said.

"By closing down a reading room of library, and cutting down 80% of library budget, the JNU VC has holistically attacked and destroyed what JNU stands for," it added.

With agency inputs.