OUAT hostels locked up after students clash

Reported by Santosh Jagdev

Bhubaneswar, March 21:

The Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) campus at Siripur Square here turned into a virtual battleground on Friday following a brawl that broke out between two groups of students of the university.

The situation was brought under control after the Bhubaneswar Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Nitinjeet Singh, with other police officials of Nayapalli, Saheed Nagar, Khandagiri and Chandrasekharpur along with university officials, intervened.

The trouble started when a group of agriculture students went to a shop at Siripur Square to make photocopies of some documents.

The Agriculture students alleged that while they were getting the documents photocopied, students of Veterinary college present at the shop for the same reason, prevented the shop owner from doing their job.

When the Agriculture students protested the matter, they said they were assaulted by a group of six veterinary students on the spot.

Following the incident, almost 200 students from both the colleges were involved in a brawl near the square that is close to OUAT.

Two battalions of police led by the DCP reached the spot and brought the situation under control.

“We called a meeting with the Vice Chancellor and student leaders of both the colleges to resolve the matter and both the groups agreed to have a peaceful solution,” Singh said.

College sources said the situation remained tense till evening and all the regular classes were suspended. Both the boys’ hostels were locked and the authorities prevented entry of any individual without a proper identity.

On being contacted, Dean, Student Welfare RK Das said, “It was a minor scuffle between Agriculture and Veterinary students. There is no news of arrest and hurt”.