Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, on Thursday, December 7, raised the issue of an insufficient research fellowship for non-NET (National Eligibility Test) researchers in the Lok Sabha urging the government to consider hiking the non-NET fellowship ‘significantly’.
Speaking at Lok Sabha’s zero hour on Thursday, the MP said, “I wish to draw the attention of the Honourable Education Minister and the chairman of University Grant Commission (UGC) to the plight of non-NET PhD research fellows concerning the stipend they receive.”
The non-NET researchers in India get a stipend of Rs 8,000 a month, with a contingency of Rs 10,000 an annum for science subjects and Rs 8,000 for humanities and social sciences. The amount has remained the same since 2006 when it was last revised, Tharoor highlighted.
“Normally, revisions take place every four years. There should have been four upward revisions in the amount of stipends they are receiving. UGC is responsible for ensuring a conducive environment for scholars to conduct research. However, delayed revisions have imposed a financial burden due to the rise in inflation and the country’s living cost, impacting their daily life and their commitment to doing meaningful, impactful and effective research,” he added.
The politician also stressed on issues faced by the researchers due to insufficient resources in their institutions, the infrastructure of their research institutes, inadequate support from their supervisors, and an absence of a grievance redressal committee.
Appreciating this, the All India Research Scholars Association (AIRSA) tweeted, “Thank you so much, Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Sir @ShashiTharoor. We are proud that you raised the voice of Non-NET PhD Research Scholars in the Parliament session for the welfare of research scholars across the country. Indian researchers hope that @ugc_india higher authorities @mamidala90 and the @EduMinOfIndia will implement these changes soon. A few things should be implemented immediately: #NonNetFellowshipHike, #Regular disbursement of fellowship, and #urgent reforms in infrastructure and policy”
