WATCH: Rubber bullets fly as University of Venda students protest

Academic activities at the University of Venda in Thohoyandou, Limpopo, have been suspended due to student protests over meal grants that have not been paid.

Speaking to Jacaranda FM, the university’s spokesperson Takalani Dzaga said students have been blockading the main gate since Monday, making it difficult to access the campus.

“So we took the decision because we don’t want them to put themselves at risk by coming in everyday to check how the situation is,” he said.

Students at the university, who are being funded by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, have not received their meal grants, saying they were being forced to live like “beggars”.

Dzaga said the process of paying their allowances started on Monday, but students refused to go to class until all of them receive their Nsfas allowance.

Pictures of students who have been shot allegedly by the police have been circulating on social media, with those affected saying they will not stop until all students have received their grants.

Watch some of the pictures shared on social media:

WARNING: Pictures not for sensitive viewers