Mumbai: Members of the IIT Bombay teaching faculty have expressed solidarity with the students protesting against the fee hike. The protesting students have shared an online form with the Free Press Journal where 8 professors from Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, expressed their dissent against this decision.
“I stand in solidarity with the graduate students and understand that it may be very difficult for them in the expensive city of Mumbai,” wrote a professor.
“I think the fee hike is a significant burden on students, especially on PhD students who aren't here just to get a better job,” wrote another.
“The American-style student loan culture may be justified for undergraduates, and perhaps for masters as well, but in a country without significant private and public investment in research, the fee hike would likely be very counterproductive in attracting good PhD candidates,” they continued.
The students of the IIT Bombay have also started an indefinite hunger strike since August 6th, 2022. The teaching faculty was seen visiting the protest site to create a dialogue with the students.
“Some professors have been helping us to understand the policy, they tell us which points go against the law and how we can attack the decision,” said a protesting MTech student.
“These demonstrations have also been affecting the results of the faculty, almost 50% of MTech seats in a premiere institute like IIT Bombay are empty too,” he said. The ‘dialogue’ made by the administration has only been unofficial in nature and no forum has been called for since the protest, alleged the student.
Though students have been called as invitees in the fee committee, it still remains uncertain whether they have voting powers. Breaking down the fee increase, the Institute stated,
‘It may be noted that the total amount that students pay for hostel stay was around Rs 2000 per month earlier, which is increased now to around Rs 2700 per month. It may also be compared with the PhD stipend of between Rs 31,000 to 34,000 per month, and the MTech stipend of Rs 12,400 per month.’
The other half of the faculty does believe that the fee hike was long due. “The fee hike is not that steep and the other facilities within the institution have already been subsidized for the students. Studying in IIT Bombay makes them the MTech cream of the country and a certain surge in the fees is reasonable,” said an Electrical Engineering Professor from IIT Bombay.
The chairman of the non-academic staff association has also extended his support to the students protesting against the fee hike. The Students Federation of India (SFI) is supporting the students’ demand for a complete rollback of the decision and is to meet with the administration to discuss the same, said member Trupti Nikalje.
