“Makhanlal University Students Revealed the Reality of Bhopal Public Transport Through the ‘Vikalp’ Project”

CNN Central News & Network–ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: Journalism is not limited to the classroom—this has been proven by the students of the Journalism Department at Makhanlal Chaturvedi National University of Journalism and Communication. Through their project ‘Vikalp’, the students captured the stories of waiting faces at bus stops and the emptiness of the bus stations. This special edition includes reports and ground-level photographs that expose the realities of the city’s transport system.

The students have now held up a mirror to the government regarding the poor state of public transport in the capital city. Working together, the students of the university’s Journalism Department prepared a special edition of their experimental newspaper ‘Vikalp’, entirely focused on the ground realities of Bhopal’s public transport system.

The release of the special edition of Vikalp was held at the Vikas Bhavan of the university’s City Campus in MP Nagar, with Vice-Chancellor Vijay Manohar Tiwari inaugurating the edition. Appreciating the students’ initiative, the Vice-Chancellor said, “Journalism becomes meaningful only when it can raise the voice of the people’s problems.”

On the occasion, the Head of the Journalism Department, Dr. Rakhi Tiwari, along with Prof. Shivkumar Vivek, Prof. Anup Dutta, and other faculty members and students, were present in large numbers.

The university hosts 1,800 students from around 20 states, most of whom face public transport challenges in their daily lives. These experiences motivated the students to publish this special edition. The journalism students directly questioned the government and the system: “Why is public transport so un-smart in a smart city?”

After the release, copies of the special edition of Vikalp were presented to editors of major newspapers, news channels, and digital platforms in Bhopal. This edition, based on Bhopal’s bus services, smart city projects, e-bus schemes, and administrative negligence, has become a topic of discussion across the state.

This effort by ‘Vikalp’ is not only an excellent example of journalism education but also raises serious questions about the system itself.

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