Govt not pushing for segregation of veg, non-veg canteens

As a row erupted over the demand for separate canteen for vegetarian students at IITs and IIMs by a group of people, including some associated with the RSS, the Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry on Thursday said it was not pushing for such segregation and only wanted the demand to be examined.

The ministry issued a fresh letter to the IITs, clarifying that copy of the letter from a section of people demanding separate canteens for vegetarian students was forwarded to them and an action taken report was sought “in a routine manner.” 

The ministry had not taken any view on the demands, it told the IITs in its clarification, even as an under secretary of the ministry sought action taken report from the IITs on October 15, saying he had been directed to forward the copy of the demands.

“We keep receiving such representations and simply forward them to the concerned department or organisation without taking any view, saying that you may take action that you deem fit,” a HRD ministry official told Deccan Herald.

Such letters are forwarded to the concerned department or organisation “in a routine manner” because people send their representations and then seek information under RTI (Right to Information Act) on action taken by the ministry. 

Many people also lodge complaints online on the website of the Prime Minister’s Office, in case they do not feel satisfied, he maintained.

The clarification came even as HRD Minister Smriti Irani held a meeting with RSS leaders in which Sangh’s pet agendas on education were discussed earlier in the day.

Though the ministry and the RSS remained tight-lipped on what was deliberated during the meeting, sources said reforms in the education sector was the key agenda. 

Representatives from a range of Sangh-affiliates, including its educational bodies like the Vidya Bharti, Bhartiya Shiksha Mandal and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, participated in the meeting. 

The meeting was crucial as the government is set to constitute a national commission to review the country’s education policy next year.  The RSS linked educational bodies favour a education system where a mix of modern and traditional knowledge can be imparted to students.