TISS Students Protest Near HRD Ministry Against Withdrawal of Aid

TISS students have been protesting since 21 February against the withdrawal of financial aid for SC/ST scholars.

Students from TISS staged a demonstration near the Human Resource Development Ministry on Monday, 26 February, against the withdrawal of scholarships for SC and ST scholars.

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Students and alumni of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) on Monday, 26 February, staged a demonstration near the Ministry of Human Resource Development against the withdrawal of scholarships for SC and ST scholars.

The students of all the campuses of the institute have been protesting since 21 February against the administration demanding tuition, dining hall, and hostel fee from scholarship students.

They have been protesting against the withdrawal of financial aid given to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) scholars.

Over 30 students, along with their counterparts in Delhi, demanded hat the SC/ST students not be financially burdened.

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One of the alumnus, who requested anonymity, told PTI that the fees per semester had surged over 100 percent in just two years, and the students were forced to take loans from banks.

"We appeal to you to immediately rollback withdrawal of Centre's Post Matric Scholarship (GOI-PMS) in TISS and reinstate all financial assistance that was earlier available," a memorandum that the students intended to submit to Union HRD Minister Prakash Javdekar read, PTI reported.

All talks and mediation with the administration over past many months have failed.

Archana Soreng, TISS Students Union president, to PTI

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Along with the administration’s call to withdraw financial assistance to its SC/ST scholars, it has also reportedly been hiking its general fees, as a result of which several students were being forced to drop out.

(With inputs from PTI)