CHENNAI: Two major teachers’ associations in the state have alleged discrimination against students and researchers in government-aided colleges and urged the state government to amend the eligibility criteria of the Chief Minister’s Research Grant (CMRG) scheme.

In a statement, the Association of University Teachers (AUT) and the Madurai Kamaraj, Manonmaniam Sundaranar, Mother Teresa and Alagappa University Teachers Association (MUTA) claimed the current guidelines of the CMRG scheme exclude students and faculty from government-aided higher education institutions.

They alleged aided colleges are now being treated with a “step-motherly attitude”. According to the teachers’ bodies, the CMRG scheme, introduced in 2023 to support research with grants of up to Rs 40 lakh, does not extend funding to students and faculty from aided and self-financing institutions.