The Supreme Court of India has directed all Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) to follow the reservation policy in admissions and recruitment in response to a petition.
The order that was shared by the All India Other Backward Classes Students Association (AIOBCSA) on Twitter stated, "The petitioner has prayed for an appropriate order/direction directing the respondents to follow the reservation policy in the admission in research degrees programmes and recruitment of faculty in the IITs." The petition was filed by Dr Sachchida Nand Pandey, as per the SC order dated December 5, 2022.
The order also stated, "Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondent has pointed out that now in view of the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Teachers' Cadre) Act, 2019, the reservation is provided with respect to all the Central Educational Institutions including the IITs. The concerned respondents are hereby directed to follow the reservation and act as per the reservations provided under the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Teachers' Cadre) Act, 2019."
EdexLive had earlier reported that after a recent question was raised in the Rajya Sabha with regards to the seat matrix of PhD programmes in IITs and their admission statistics, it has been revealed that the intake is unfairly skewed against students from Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs). Students from these communities say that the situation has been unresolved for quite some time now.
