Hubballi (THe Hindu): Several colleges remained closed in Hubballi-Dharwad and other places of Dharwad, Haveri and Gadag districts on Saturday in response to the call for a Statewide ‘School- College Bandh’ to press for free bus passes to students.

All India Democratic Students Organisation (AIDSO), All India Democratic Youth Organisation (AIDYO), and All India Mahila Samskrutika Sanghatane (AIMSS) had given the call. Students Federation of India (SFI) and a few other student organisations had also extended support to the bandh call.

While several colleges remained closed in these districts, most of the schools functioned normally. As it was a half-day on Saturday, in some places schoolchildren took part in the agitation after school hours.

In Hubballi, a huge protest march was taken out with hundreds of students, particularly girls, from different colleges participating in it.

Raising slogans against the State government which had failed to keep its promise of issuing free bus passes, the students demanded immediate fulfilment of their demand. The students then submitted a memorandum addressed to the Chief Minister to the Hubballi Tahsildar demanding immediate announcement on free bus pass and also reimburse the amount already paid by the students to get the bus passes. A similar protest march was taken out in Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri and other places.