JNU protest: MHRD committee suggests complete rollback, asks admin to consult with students

The 'high power' committee appointed by the HRD Ministry to suggest ways to break the month-long lockdown and restore normalcy in the Jawaharlal Nehru University has recommended against introducing any fee hike without following due procedure and taking students into confidence.

In its report submitted to the government on Tuesday, the panel led by former UGC chairman V S Chauhan said that while an immediate fund gap is fulfilled by the higher education regulator, any increase in fee structure in future should not happen without proper consultation with students’ representatives, sources said.

Read: JNU students to march to MHRD on Nov 29, asks MHRD to release high power committee report

“In our detailed discussions with students and teachers, it has emerged that there is a huge communication gap between the administration and the students,” said a panel member. “Unless a permanent mechanism to constantly engage with students is developed, crises like the present one will keep recurring,” he added.

Higher education secretary R Subrahmanyam said that the Ministry will “examine the report before taking action on it.”

If the ministry, VC and the government were serious about education the fee hike would never have happened. Now after massive protest's if they are saying it should be rolled back. Where is the guarantee?" asked former JNU Students'Union President N Sai Balaji. "They must first execute the roll back and then there would be any question of trusting the administration and the government," he added.