COIMBATORE: An allegation has been raised against a private agricultural and horticultural college at Kalavai in Ranipet affiliated with Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), that discriminates against female hostellers by denying them non-vegetarian (NV) food.
While boys staying in the hostel are provided non-vegetarian food twice a week, the college allegedly denies the same to girl students.
A girl student from the college told TNIE that around 600 girl students stay in the hostel. "Chicken biryani is served to boys who pay mess fees of Rs 5,500 to Rs 6,000 per month on Thursdays, while white rice with chicken gravy is served on Sundays. Only vegetarian food is served to girls who pay mess fees of around Rs 5,000 to Rs 5,500 per month, on all days. Only vegetable biryani and an egg are served on Sundays. We feel that it is discriminatory and gender-biased," she explained.
She also said that the authorities fail to provide a proper explanation for not serving non-vegetarian food.
Another female student said, "We have to stay in the hostel for a minimum of two to three months without stepping out. Due to the restrictions, we cannot go outside the campus to eat non-vegetarian food in hotels. We are also prohibited from ordering food through food delivery apps. How can we eat non-vegetarian food?" she questioned.
She said that the denial of NV food was causing physical and mental distress to the girls, particularly those involved in sports, and urged the college to provide NV to them, considering their nutritional and health needs.
An associate professor from the Department of Food and Nutrition at a college in Coimbatore said, "As girls nowadays are increasingly facing anemia, which can affect their health and menstrual patterns, consuming iron-rich foods such as non-vegetarian foods can help maintain their health by providing them with essential nutrients like B12 and iron," she said.
Educationist Prince Gajendra Babu condemned this and questioned why the elected government existed if private colleges could act against students as they wished, and asked where the rule of law was.
"Article 21 speaks about the right to life and dignity. In this, denying non-vegetarian food is against the provisions of this article," he pointed out.
According to sources at TNAU, when officials questioned it, college authorities reportedly said that non-vegetarian food was stopped for girl students following a food poisoning incident. It was noted that non-vegetarian food is served to students of medical and other courses on the same campus except for agricultural students.
When contacted, a top authority from the institution said, "The mess fee is around Rs 5,500 to Rs 6,000 per month when non-vegetarian food is served. Earlier, the parents of girl students said they could not afford this mess fee. That is the reason why non-vegetarian food is not provided to girls, while the parents of boys agreed to it. There is no other intention behind this. If the girl students are willing to have non-vegetarian food, we will serve it."
The advocate said that girls pay only Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 less in mess fees than boys and that denying them non-vegetarian food on this basis was unacceptable.
M Raveendran, Acting Vice-Chancellor of TNAU, told TNIE that, based on a complaint from an advocate, a committee had been formed to inquire into the issue, which is underway and that a notice had been sent to the college seeking an explanation.
Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister R Vinoth also told TNIE that necessary steps would be taken.
