THE summer of student discontent is moving into autumn... From Jantar Mantar to obscure muddy paths, from the heart of the Indian capital to villages and towns fighting for a place on the education map, and from Gen Z to Gen Alpha. And the sounds of protests are getting ever louder. Picking up from the June-July Cockroach Janta Party-led agitation focusing on alleged corruption in NEET exams, hundreds of much younger school students have taken to the streets to highlight their problems. Bringing up issues such as no fans, no toilets, no teachers and no infrastructure, not even a proper building. Across India’s social and political landscape, Gen Alpha students -- those born between 2010 and 2024 -- have taken it upon themselves to improve their learning environments.

 

The reports have come in from Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh with students finding their voice, even in the midst of adverse circumstances, to spotlight problems that are immediate and personal. A major win came last week from a primary school in a village in Rajasthan’s Jaipur where students were attending classes from a cattle enclosure. Following a confrontation between members of the CJP, who wanted to inspect a school in Rampura Kanwarpura village, and some villagers, the State Government announced the construction of a new building. The Rampura school building, it admitted, was declared dilapidated in September 2025 and classes were being held in a cattle enclosure.