UGC Directs Universities to Check Caste-Based Discrimination
- UGC has directed universities to take strict measures for regulating caste discrimination on their campuses.
- The varsities have also been asked to create a separate page to lodge complaints on its official websites and also create a dedicated committee to deal with the cases.
The University Grants Commission has directed all the universities to keep an eye on caste-based discrimination on their campuses. UGC has sent an official letter to all the universities in this regard.
As per the UGC letter, the officials and faculty members at all the higher education institutes must refrain themselves from discriminating students on the grounds of caste or social origin, particularly SC/ST students. It is the responsibility of the varsity administration to check any instances pertaining to caste discrimination on the campus.
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UGC further directed the varsities to create a page on their official websites for lodging complaints of caste discrimination. If a student registers any complaint on caste discrimination, the administration must take immediate steps and look into sorting out the issue. On the other hand, the varsities will have to maintain complaints register either in the registrar or principal’s office. Further, the varsities must constitute committees for regulating caste discrimination on their campuses, directed by UGC.
Apart from directing universities to regulate caste discrimination, the UGC has informed them to also submit a report on the number of such cases reported on the campus during the academic session 2017-18.
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Chairperson of Delhi University’s SC/ST/OB Teachers Forum, Mr. Hansraj Suman appreciated the move of UGC in directing the universities to maintain complaints register and create a page on the official website to report incidents of caste discrimination. Such initiatives will bring awareness among the students and faculty members on the process of reporting caste discrimination issues on the campus, he expressed.