Tata Institute of Social Sciences students rubbish admin suggestions

Mumbai: On the 30th day of the students’ protest at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), the students have rubbished all suggestions given by the administration. After TISS withdrew the funds provided to students belonging to scheduled castes (SCs), scheduled tribes (STs), and other backward classes (OBCs), they started protesting at all four campuses in the country from February 21.

The Mumbai campus administration however, as a solution to this protest, asked the students of upcoming batches to pay the fees on an installment basis as they could not waive off the entire amount owing to lack of government funds.

The protesting students conducted research about the financial deficit, especially at the Mumbai campus, and discovered that TISS was spending more on expansion, projects and introduction of new professional courses while spending a minimal amount on students’ welfare and development.

According to the “TISS Self Study Report” prepared by these students, “How TISS is expanding in a massive way since 2009, despite financial constraints. The Guwahati campus was set up in 2009 while the Hyderabad campus was set up in 2011. Besides this, there has also been a rise in the overall courses offered by TISS.”

The students have demanded clarity on the Rs 11 crore amount granted by the University Grants Commission (UGC) to the TISS after the ongoing protests.