‘We demand better food at hall canteens’

Leaders and activists of the left-leaning Samajtantrik Chhatra Front held a human chain on the Dhaka University campus yesterday, demanding lower price and better quality canteen food at the university.

They said ever since the halls reopened after 18 months of closure due to the lockdown, the price of food has been increasing on one hand, while its quality has been falling.

"Canteen owners told us they have no option but to hike the prices as food prices have increased at the kitchen markets. But when we faced similar situation in the past, food price at the canteens were still stable, as the authorities used to intervene," said Salman Siddiqui, president of the organisation's DU unit.

"But now the hall canteens are controlled by private owners, which is why they don't care about students' welfare," he alleged.

"Another reason is that many leaders who eat at the canteens don't pay the bills, shifting the burden on to general students," he said.

Speakers at the programme asked for the university authorities to pay subsidies to keep food prices stable, if necessary.