On Monday, the High Court of Uttarakhand quashed the Centre’s decision to establish a permanent campus for National Institute of Technology (NIT), Uttarakhand, at Sumari in Pauri Garhwal. Disposing of a Public Interest Litigation filed by an Ex-NIT student, the bench of Chief Justice Ramesh Ranganathan & Justice Ramesh Chandra Khulbe, in its judgement, called the decision ‘irrational, unreasonable, arbitrary & falling foul of Article 14 of the Constitution of India’ after the Centre said that the campus was being made at Sumari primarily to end the impasse between the Central Govt. & State Govt. Sumari is a landslide-prone zone & the decision to have a campus here was also questioned by experts. The Court in its judgement directed the Centre to “take considered decision on establishing the permanent campus of NIT within 4 months.”
The Centre, by its own admission, had taken the decision to establish the campus at Sumari in Pauri Garhwal district – around fifteen km from its existing location in Srinagar town – to end the impasse with the State Govt. However, Students had been against the move arguing that Sumari is a landslide & earthquake-prone location & the security of students, as well as the NIT staff, has not been taken into consideration. The petitioner, Jasveer Singh, an alumni of NIT Uttarakhand, had submitted that the area is not only prone to severe landslides, but is also characterised by cheed forests, & steep descents, which would render providing necessary infrastructure there highly dangerous, adding that the area is also prone to earthquakes, & is not fit to build a permanent campus for institutions of higher learning such as the NITs.
The Court directed the Centre to obtain expert opinion & examine the suitability of Sumari as a permanent location for NIT from the safety angle of students. The Court added that the Centre should satisfy itself that construction of campus at Sumari won't endanger the life of students, faculty & staff, & then take a considered decision whether the permanent campus of NIT, Uttarakhand, should still be located at Sumari, or should be shifted elsewhere within the state.
The plea in this matter had been filed after a student of the NIT, Neelam Meena, was paralysed in an accident in Oct 2018 while crossing the road to attend her class. The students of the institution protested after the accident, boycotting classes & even going to Delhi’s Jantar Mantar to hold demonstrations. Students had alleged that even though the institute was established in 2009 & is an institute of national importance, it has been running in a temporary campus that lacked basic facilities & infrastructures like proper classrooms, hostels or even faculty accommodation.
The Court also directed the Centre to consider a detailed project report (DPR) submitted for provisions at the temporary campus & release the funds within a period of three months. After the funds are released, the NIT will then initiate an invitation of bids for construction of building & other infrastructure works, the court said, adding that the entire exercise should be completed on or before July 1, 2021.
The Court further ordered the Centre to provide funds to the NIT so that the injured student, Neelam Meena, who had been given a compensation amount of Rs 25 lakh, was provided an additional amount of Rs 25 lakh as compensation within four months. The court said that apart from compensation, NIT will reimburse the medical cost of her treatment so far & the facility of medical reimbursement will be provided to her throughout her life.
Meanwhile, Jasveer Singh, who had filed the PIL, termed the High Court's Judgement “a major victory for the students of NIT.” "The students had been demanding their right for years. We now hope that both the Centre & the NIT administration will comply with the court's order & the students will finally be able to study at a permanent campus very soon," Singh said.
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