New Delhi- In September, another tragic student suicide adds to the alarming trend in higher education. Anil Kumar, a 21-year-old from the Scheduled Caste, took his own life at IIT Delhi, marking the seventh suicide case in IITs and the second in IIT Delhi alone. This disturbing trend extends beyond IITs, affecting other institutes and universities. The first suicide this year prompted the UGC to introduce the University Grants Commission (Redressal of Grievances of Students) Regulations in 2023. Despite this effort, experts highlight significant gaps in the new regulations.
The 2023 Regulations Fall Short of Addressing Issues Specific to Marginalized Students
In 2023, the UGC introduced the University Grants Commission (Redressal of Grievances of Students) Regulations, 2023, which superseded the University Grants Commission (Redress of Grievances of Students) Regulations, 2019, and mandated all higher education institutions to appoint Ombudsperson(s) at the university level and establish Students' Grievances Redressal Committee (SGRC). These guidelines are in concurrence with the National Education Policy (2020) but don't have the provision of an Equal Opportunity Cell and an Anti-discriminatory officer as in the 2012 regulations.
The Supreme Court had remarked in July that the deaths of students in Institutes of Higher Education were a "sensitive matter." A bench headed by Justice AS Bopanna and MM Sundresh, while hearing the plea by the mothers of Rohith Vemula and Payal Tadvi, had also asked the UGC to furnish details regarding the steps taken by the UGC (University Grants Commission) to address the issue of discrimination in Higher Educational Institutes.
Rohith was a Ph.D. scholar at Hyderabad Central University, and Payal Tadvi was a tribal student at TN Topiwala National Medical College in Mumbai, both of whom had committed suicide in 2016 and 2019, respectively, due to harassment on their campuses. The University Grants Commission (UGC) was prompted to constitute a Higher Education commission to revisit the UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Educational Institutes) Regulations, 2012, and recommend further remedial measures if needed to address discrimination in the Higher Education sector.
UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2012, also known as the University Grants Commission (UGC) Equity Regulations, 2012, were drafted by the Indian Institute of Dalit Studies, New Delhi, and formulated by the HRD ministry to promote equity and access in higher education. These regulations were designed to ensure that educational institutions provide equal opportunities to students from marginalized and disadvantaged groups, such as Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), and economically weaker sections of society.
Reservation: The regulations specify the percentage of seats that should be reserved for students from SCs, STs, and OBCs in various courses and programs offered by educational institutions.
Scholarships and Financial Assistance: Institutions are required to provide scholarships, fee waivers, and other financial assistance to students from economically weaker sections to help them pursue higher education.
Anti-Discrimination Measures: The regulations were particularly strict against discrimination. Educational institutions are expected to create a campus environment free from discrimination and ensure that students from marginalized groups are treated with dignity and respect. It mandated every higher educational institute to take appropriate measures to:
a) Safeguard the interests of the students without any prejudice to their caste, creed, religion, language, ethnicity, gender, and disability.
b) Eliminate discrimination against or harassment of any student in all forms in higher educational institutes by providing for preventive and protective measures.
c) Promote equality among students of all sections of society.
Grievance Redressal Mechanism
The regulations mandate the establishment of grievance redressal cells to address complaints related to discrimination or harassment of students from marginalized communities. The recommendations, which have seen limited implementation, state that the institute shall promote equality among all students and for this purpose shall establish an Equal Opportunity Cell and appoint an Anti-Discrimination Officer who shall not be below the rank of Professor in a University and an Institution deemed to be a university and not below the rank of Associate Professor in the case of a college.
Affirmative Action: Institutions are encouraged to take proactive measures to promote diversity and inclusion on campus and to actively engage in affirmative action programs.
Monitoring and Reporting: The UGC monitors the implementation of these regulations through regular reports submitted by educational institutions.
Promotion of Access: The regulations aimed to increase access to higher education for all segments of society, particularly those who have historically been underrepresented in higher education. There are only a few universities or institutes that have implemented these guidelines. Tezpur Central University of Assam is one such university whose website claims to have implemented these guidelines.
Former UGC Chairman Sukhdeo Thorat, who played an instrumental role in drafting the regulations in 2012, says that there was a misconception regarding SC/ST cells. They are mandated with the implementation of the reservation of students and staff belonging to these sections in colleges. Some institutes have tried to entrust these cells with grievances of teachers and students, which is entirely wrong. He added that many premier institutes he visited were not aware of the UGC (Equity) regulations.
The 2012 Regulations Fall Short
While appearing for the mothers of Rohith Vemula and Payal Tadvi in the Supreme Court, senior advocate Indira Jaisingh had remarked that the provisions of UGC (Equity) regulations 2012 fall short of addressing the discrimination on campuses.
The Mooknayak spoke to Professor N. Sukumar, author of "Caste Discrimination and Exclusion in Indian Universities," who said that the UGC (Equity) 2012 regulations were a very meticulous and comprehensive way of understanding things but have not been taken seriously by any university. Therefore, if you see the level of discrimination and the deaths have increased. Between 2012 to 2018, UGC sent circulars to the registrars to implement these guidelines, but it was not taken seriously. In the past ten years, a number of studies have come out which prove that there is a high time to address these problems, and the Supreme Court took these studies into cognizance. Sukumar suggested five additional measures to address the discrimination:
The government should form a committee and map 10 years of admission, dropout rates, and other such patterns of discrimination and conduct a social audit on discrimination.
Proper recruitment of scheduled caste, scheduled tribes, and OBC faculties in universities, which will provide representation of these groups in decision-making bodies not only in universities but also in other institutes of eminence like IIT, IIM, IISC, etc.
The University Grants Commission (Redressal of Grievances of Students) Regulations, 2023, brought out by UGC, goes against the 2012 Equity regulations because it clubs the grievances of all the students, whereas the students from the SC/ST/OBC will have different grievances compared to other general students. So the 2023 regulations don't address the SC/ST students and therefore they should be taken back.
Some pedagogical intervention is required so that there is some serious engagement on the issue of caste and gender. Teachers need to be counselled first, and then students also.
Networking between student groups of different institutes so that there is a support structure for the students who face discrimination.
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