A group of students from other classes gathered in the front of ‘A’ block during the break time and called others also to join.  So, in quick time a huge number of us had gathered.  Mr. Raja, our lecturer, who knew about the strike earlier was taking a class for the Mechanical students of our batch (1999-2003) and so didn’t allow the Mechanical students to go out.  And so after about an hour later they joined us and from that point onwards, things started to pick up like wild fire.

All the boys marched towards the Kundrathur police station walking down the road and shouting anti-chairman and anti-college slogans.  The girls sat on the cement roads near the college entrance.  Then we informed the police station about this.  Some of us even informed the press.

Then chairman came hurriedly in his car and consoled us saying, “Our college’ name is getting spoiled by these activities.  Whatever we have to discuss should happen within the college campus”.  None of us responded to these words and so he went on saying, “Ok, you needn’t pay the fees.  Study for free.  I think now you must be satisfied.  Then come to the college now”.

After he persuaded for a long time, we marched back to our college.  Now started the real trauma for all of us.

We didn’t enter the college stating that we would do so only after the management agrees to our conditions and withdraws the fee hike.  We sat under the shades of the trees in the area exactly opposite to the place where the girl’s hostel now stands.

The chairman called the representatives of each class to discuss with the management.  Now, we started planning about what we have to discuss in the meeting.

The mechanical students led by Dominic and others took the aim of the strike to wrong directions and that was the best reason for our troubles and the prolonged strike.  They demanded the dismissal of the then Mechanical department’s H.O.D. who was also the Vice-Principal of our college. They also demanded the withdrawal of the compulsory food and transport schemes and said that they should be made optional.

These things raised passions in most of us and we began to realize that we were being cheated off our money in the compulsory food and transport schemes.  That was good to realize but late because the college had by then built up a big dinning hall and acquired more buses.  So it would be a great loss for them if they had to stop it.  We could have raised such things before the facilities for those schemes had developed much.  We failed to realize this truth and were carried away by the impressive words of the Mechanical students.

So the representatives went and on behalf of our class, I and Krishnaswamy went there.  The meeting was held at the seminar hall in the ‘B’ block.  As the meeting proceeded I was very feared that they might note me easily and could try to revenge on my semester exam’s performance.  I even avoided signing the attendance report for attending the meeting.

The management didn’t agree to much of our demands especially because of difference-of-opinion between us in the meeting as some new faces from our junior batch and some student from the IT department of our batch agreed to the food and transport schemes.  When we came out, most of us including the people who went for the meeting weren’t satisfied with the management’s proposal.

As we came out of the meeting, news spread out that Mr. Santhosh Kumar, a lecturer of the Physics department, had slapped one of our junior boys and that it caused blood to flow from his face.  This angered the already angry set of students and we thought of taking revenge on him and started demanding his dismissal also.  Remember Mr. Santhosh Kumar had already angered us several times through his arrogant behaviour.

So Anand and some others marched to the Physics lab through the uncompleted wall near the security room.  They were about to hit Mr. Santhosh Kumar.  I safely informed the Physics department staff and also stopped Anand and others from harming Mr. Santhosh Kumar.  They just shouted at him and went away.

By that time, it was close to 3 pm and most of us including me didn’t have our lunch.  Some had their lunch at the hotel at Kundrathur bus-stand.

Around the time we usually leave our college, the Chairman came and talked to us stating that our demands will be taken care of.  But the dismissal of the staff wouldn’t be done.

Then the buses started and we left for home with the thoughts that our demands will be accepted.  Indeed some of us congratulated ourselves.

But the mechanical students weren’t satisfied because they gave more priority to their demands of the staff dismissal.  So things were slowly building up that evening.  The plans for the next day were sorted out.

Then came the all-important second day of the strike.  As planned some people had brought the things required like spoiled tomatoes, eggs etc. were arranged.  It was planned to stop all the buses at Kundathur.

Some people came to college in their private vehicles to aid in stopping the buses at predetermined places.

Although the drivers were given strict instructions that they shouldn’t stop anywhere unnecessarily, some buses were banged by the people inside and forced to stop while some others managed to reach the college.    In our class, Sandeep was one of the persons who stopped the bus at Porur in which Mrs. Uma Gowri was traveling.

Unknowing these plans, some people had their breakfast and went to the classes.

Suddenly, a big gang gathered opposite the gate and started shouting various slogans to press their demands.  To start with, there were mainly mechanical students there.  But slowly others joined them.  Even people inside the college who had earlier gone to their classes came out.  But the girls remained inside the college.

Now the police was deployed and they allowed us to do anything inside the college but not to disturb the public.

The angry students’ gang pulled the main gate.  Though the gates were held tight by the security-men, they gave in to the intense pressure of the crowd.  Even one of them suffered injuries when hit by the crowd.

As the gang marched into the college, they started throwing stones, uprooting any samplings planted for decoration.  They damaged the vehicles parked near the gate and one of the helmets went flying in the air.  The name board of the college was brought down but they can’t uproot it.  Then they marched in throwing stones at lights, class-room windows made of glass etc.

Meanwhile they prepared an ugly poster about the principal with his customary French-beard to condemn his acts of mocking the students.

The mechanical students were virtually unstoppable and drew others to their will.  Now, in our class, Anand and Thirugnanam had joined a heated argument with the management people by leading the gang.

The SSI staff laughed at the state of our college but supported us indirectly.

By now, our seniors who had just completed their unit-test came to us and said that they would mediate between us and the management.  But they too failed to do it.  And as they were in their final semester, they cautiously pulled out to avoid any backlash especially at a time when they were passing out of the college.

Some policemen were posted inside the college to prevent any untoward incident.

After sometime of the mayhem, the police chief who came there agreed to mediate with the management and asked us to disperse.

Though we didn’t agree to it initially, after seeing their luthies (sticks), we slowly dispersed.

In the meanwhile, some people didn’t go inside the college and were taking rest in the comfort of the coconut groove opposite our college while some others went and provided the ‘latest updates’ to these people.

Some people had ordered a lot of water packets to be distributed to the students.

Now, it was afternoon time.  The police chief, after discussion with the management, announced through the temporary loudspeaker placed in the chairman’s room that the chairman had agreed to their demands and the college was declared closed for the next 4 or 5 days.  He said that the steps to resolve our demands will be taken in the meantime and asked us to leave immediately.

So we had to go home but the college buses weren’t arranged.  The policeman stopped wayside vehicles passing through our college road and ordered them to provide free lifts to us.  I remember coming in a lorry upto Kundathur bus-stand.  Some others walked to Kundrathur bus-stand.

Then came the third day of the strike.  Some people didn’t come to college that day.

The people who came went to give a complaint to Anna University and Madras University.

There was a huge rush and people easily stopped the buses and got in only to find themselves in the midst of crowded bus and went to the respective places to complain against our management..

Some people even complained to the Education Minister.

Some people met the press when they went to give the complaints.  An article regarding our strike was published in the New Indian Express.

Though we were optimistic, we never believed them.  In the holidays, the college sent telegrams to all our parents regarding the strike and called them for an immediate meeting.

The chairman had even phoned up to some parents whose wards were very arrogant during the strike.

In the meeting, the management capitalized on our parents’ weakness, namely paying anything so that we are not affected.  It also had some valid reasons to prove its point.

The fee structure was revised back to its original with Rs.5000 less for SSI classes and no extra charges added.

The other demands like compulsory food and transport service, dismissal of the two staff members and the principal weren’t accepted naturally due to several difficulties and losses that would be faced by the management had it agreed to these demands.

Then the college demanded apology from us and we had sign in a letter and all our parents should have compulsorily attended the meeting.

For those students whose parents didn’t attend the meeting, there was another process of meeting the chairman and that dragged on for long and settled down later.

We lost our caution deposit of Rs.5000 through black-mail during our final semester Project Viva Voce.  Even our immediate juniors lost it in the same way.  But our seniors got their caution deposit in full because they didn’t participate in the strike.  Probably the management took that amount went as a compensation for the Rs.5000 we saved by not having the SSI classes in our final year.

The management always maintained its anger with all the people who took part in the strike.  It expressed that anger by various means during every occasion it could do so.

The one notable incident in this regard (of expressing its anger) was while issuing our Hall-Tickets for the 6^th semester exams.  The management forced us to come several times to collect our Hall-Tickets and also made us to wait for long hours during each visit.

The SSI classes were gone forever.  That was indeed very good for all of us because we can study the same courses in SSI outside our college for a less amount and better facilities.

It was a great opportunity to understand the character of many of the students.  We came to know the real concerns and efforts of many of us by observing their participation and ther behaviour during the strike.