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I’m surprised by this argument. Joining a govt service is in the name of socialism. So students want free education &
not a contribution to the society. And they will join IAS with politics wants free non-refundable loans. Common folks also
or without JNU. People join for their own good. This is just like want govt jobs and just sit on it till retirement. Not to mention
saying - politicians are in politics for public welfare. Well, the the corruption. The country goes to dogs.
country understands these arguments better now. Also how This socialism of the 70s is dead. Not because politicians
do we measure the “social work” of JNU. When research pa- have become saints. But because govts have run out of budg-
pers are hardly anything to talk about & nation still grappling ets. Ask Air India, PSU bank employees & others. Did someone
with poverty, there has to be some metric to measure contri- tell you that the Soviet Union has collapsed? And that China is
bution vs subsidy. And this also applies to all institutes where the most ruthless form of capitalism that you can have in the
fee is subsidized. world. How about a research paper on that?
Finally, some students indicate that during M.Phil., they
“contribute towards the research work by their professors & Media and “Half Truths”
thus earn their education”. Well, has any one of them asked the Indrani Roy Chowdhury, Associate Professor has questioned
professors what “research” they do because there are hand- where was the media when JNU website was hacked for two
ful of papers published? At least tell days by the agitating students
the country this when you protest. with masks (except the one, who
The idealism of “right to education” JNU spends about 556 crores perhaps is pursuing the ambi-
is hollow self-centered logic. This per year on its functioning. This tion of being another Kanhaiya
won’t fly. And social sciences study Kumar)? Where were the media
at 4.5 lac per student ? This would is aside of the fixed assets it has when the windows were broken,
put global schools to shame !! — the huge land base, the infra & when the central server of JNU
Defense 3: When PSU banks was vandalized, lakhs of rupees of
can lend money to industrialists & building it owns which was built on optic fiber wires were cut and de-
write off lacs of crores, why is JNU stroyed, staff was evicted from the
being targeted? government money at some point. Communication and Information
Again a self-defeating logic. Some depreciation is accounted for. Service Centre in order to disrupt
PSUs & nationalized banks are rel- the registration process of willing
ics of the past. Many of them are So what is the cost per student? students.
dying a gradual death. Many exist 556 crore/8,000 students gives us She said that this is the heinous
since politics needs a free check- crime I ever heard of from the stu-
book to write loans to loved ones 6.95 lakh per student annually dent community. This is incredible

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