Hunger Strike Intensifies Over 16-Year Delay of Thathri College

Faisal Dar, one of the leading protesters, stated that the group intends to remain on strike until the infrastructure project finally moves forward. The campaign, which began on August 20, aims to mobilize the local community to demand accountability for years of broken promises. According to Dar, the delay has left residents feeling neglected, with the movement now serving as a broader call for local youth to assert their fundamental right to accessible education.

Fellow protester Manoj Kumar, who was forced to study in Jammu, Srinagar, and other states due to the lack of local facilities, emphasized that the current situation remains unsustainable. He noted that even when a college existed in Thathri, it was limited to a two-room facility. Kumar credited recent media coverage with finally pushing the long-dormant project file toward the Directorate of Higher Education and the Secretariat. Despite this administrative progress, the protesters maintain that their hunger strike will continue until ground-level construction begins, ensuring that future students in the region are no longer denied the basic infrastructure required to succeed.