Strike called off at College of Art: Protests to go on if promises are not kept, warn students

“The biggest win for us is that we can now form a students’ body to analyse the policies of the college and pressure the faculty and administration to do their jobs,” added Narang.

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The main focus of the students’ protests was on the college syllabus which, they claimed, had become obsolete. The protesting students had demanded a revised curriculum, which would include lectures by visiting artists.

Authorities have now promised to form a committee — comprising the faculty, three to four eminent artists and a student — within four months to work on the updated syllabus.

The art gallery — one of the main demands of the students which authorities have agreed to — will have two halls dedicated to the college’s archival collection of works by masters. The remaining rooms will showcase art pieces created by teachers and final-year students.

“An engineer from the public works department (PWD) will visit the college in three days to assess its infrastructure and decide what needs to be fixed. The deadlines to make the other areas functional is between one week and four months,” said Nitish Arora, a student.

Interestingly, the ‘footpath classes’ or sessions by eminent artists — held on the pavement outside the college gate during the strike — will continue, said students.