University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman M Jagadesh Kumar has written a letter to directors of institutions of national importance (NITs, IITs and IISERs) requesting their attention regarding the redressal of grievances of students. Initiatives in this direction have been recently undertaken by the UGC.

“You will agree that a robust and transparent system for the redressal of grievances of students in an educational institute is of utmost importance. An opportunity to redress grievances in a time-bound manner is fundamental to the relationship between students and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). Therefore, as HEIs, we must strive to provide channels to redress students’ grievances", the letter says, as per a report by ANI.

The chairman added that the grievance redressal procedure in HEIs must be reinforced and standardised with an independent appellate authority appointed by these institutions. “To frame a simplified yet effective mechanism for students’ grievances redressal, the UGC has brought out the University Grants Commission (Redressal of Grievances of Students) Regulations, 2023”, Kumar said.

The letter mentions that these regulations provide details for the establishment of the Students Grievances Redressal Committee(s) (SGRC) by all the HEIs and the appointment of the Ombudsperson(s) at the institute or university level. “The detailed mechanism for the constitution of SGRCs, its composition, the appointment of the Ombudsperson, and other related attributes and the means for the redressal of students’ grievances have been provided in the Regulations," Kumar stated.

"A copy of the same is attached herewith for kind reference. I expect the UGC (Redressal of Grievances of Students) Regulations, 2023, will assist your institution in strengthening the student grievance redressal mechanisms,” he added in the letter, as per ANI.