The alumni of Azim Premji University, Bengaluru, have penned a joint statement, after the death by suicide of a student Ashwin Nambiar, who was found dead after he had jumped from the 16th floor of the campus building on November 10.
The statement released today, November 30, with the title "Remembering Ashwin: A Demand for Systemic Reform and Student Well-being at Azim Premji University", released on X (formerly Twitter) by Aniruddh Sheth (@aniruddhsheth), alumni, share their support for the initiation of a few changes that the alumni feel, the university is in dire need of.
"The nature of the learning environment at Azim Premji University has moulded us into individuals with a deep sense of social responsibility and a commitment to creating positive change around us. Being a part of the University's community as students and alumni has instilled in us a deep care and responsibility for each other and a sense of ownership of the institution and its stakeholders," the statement mentions.
In their statement, they strive to initiate a dialogue between the authorities and the students who were once a part of the university, and to achieve this, a few issues that need immediate attention are penned down in the statement, and these are as follows -
The need for a student body
"It is an imperative and immediate need that a representative student body be established at Azim Premji University. Students, the central constituents of the institution, must have a part in the decisions and processes that shape one of the most important phases of their lives," says the statement.
The statement carefully emulates the importance of a robust system of support, articulation, and representation when it comes to students and also a safe way to channel their grievances with a proper addressal. The statement goes on to call the administration's reluctance to form a student's body, a "grievous oversight", as for all of the academic, administrative, and disciplinary decisions, the authority has excluded the students from the process.
They also demand, "The formalisation of student representation at every institutional layer at Azim Premji University, with reserved representation for scholarship students and students from marginalised backgrounds. "
Communication and transparency
The alumni statement further outlines the problem of lack of official communication and transparency in the disciplinary committee’s proceedings. It goes on to delineate the problem within the working of the administrative body and its inability to be transparent with the decisions taken, no clear delineation of the disciplinary actions taken against the students, and no effort to rehabilitate them
"The processes that define the outcomes of such disciplinary committee hearings need to be formalised and reviewed by university stakeholders. The lack of these definitions and transparency has led to students being faced with moralistic retribution instead of a chance to reflect and make rehabilitative improvements for their actions," it says.
Mental health support
They also advocate for a different approach to improve the mental state of students where members of the institutions are also encouraged to initiate dialogues with students to make help readily available for them. "Counsellors, professors, resident mentors, and other staff should be encouraged and facilitated to recognise the challenges that students face. Students can then be referred to professionals on campus or to external experts," it says.
The statement has garnered over 92 signatures from the alumni and the first signatory was the deceased's brother, Ashish Nambiar, from the 2019 batch.
