New Delhi: The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) administration has come out with a detailed justification for its decision to hike hostel fee as the student agitation and the controversy over it rage on.
In a 66-page statement issued late Thursday, the university said it had to make the choice to increase the hostel fee due to a deficit of Rs 45 crore.
“Currently, JNU is having a deficit of more than Rs 45 crores. It is largely because of the huge electricity and water charges and the salary of contractual staff,” Prof Satish Chand Garkoti, JNU Rector II, said in the statement.
The administration further noted that 89 per cent of JNU students living in hostels are on financial aid, and that the university’s tuition fee is the lowest in the country.
“Out of the 6,000 students living in hostels, 5,371 students receive financial assistance in the forms of fellowships and scholarships,” the university said.
Garkoti added that the University Grants Commission (UGC) no longer allows payments of salaries of contractual employees of the hostel from the salary head of the budget.
“The number of such employees in the hostels is over 450. The UGC has given clear instructions to JNU that all shortfalls in the non-salary expenditures should be met by using the internal receipts generated by the University. Thus, there is no alternative for the administration than to collect service charges from the students,” said the rector.
He was referring to the new service charge of Rs 1,700 per month for hostellers.
JNU students have been protesting against the decision to hike hostel fee since the beginning of this month, claiming that the move would force a lot of students to leave the university. The hostel fee hike will make JNU the costliest central university.
Also read: Amit Shah meets HRD minister Pokhriyal over JNU protests, asks for quick resolution
Aid for some students and lowest tuition fee
In its statement, the JNU administration said the estimated revised hostel charges for students including three meals for each student would be approximately Rs 4,500 per month.
Out of this, Rs 2,300 is for food charges per month. Of the remaining amount of Rs 2,200, students from the economically backward or below poverty line (BPL) category will have to pay 50 per cent — in effect, Rs 3,400 per month.
The university also made a comparison of its tuition fee with four other central universities — Banaras Hindu University, Delhi University, Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Milia Islamia — and said it charges the least.
While these four charge between Rs 2,400 and Rs 8,000 annually for arts stream, JNU charges Rs 365. For science courses, tuition fee in the four universities varies from Rs 3,000 to Rs 41,000, while JNU charges Rs 364, according to the institution.
The statement, however, presents a generic description of courses and avoids going into the details of courses in any university. All courses mentioned have been categorised under BA/MA and BSc/MSc.
Also read: Are JNU students justified in protesting steep but long overdue fee hike?
Krishna Chandra, It’s actually guts that they are atleast fighting for their rights. Do you have such guts against your MP/MLAs who gets lakh rs subisidy and live lavish life on your tax cut? A 5 rs Parliament tea doesn’t bothers you but fee hike of 40/100 students who’s family monthly income is less than 12k fire you up. See this is why India is not developed coz we ask our tax money expenses on education but never ask why 3k crore induced in sardar vallabh bhai statue. Indian govt put only 3% of its gdp in education in which only 1% to phd n masters, and then people like you question why we are so poor in research and innovation. even Bhutan share 6% of it’s gdp in education. Do one thing just say your daily maid that next month onwards you’ll pay her 300 less from her salary and then ask her how little 300 can affect her daily life expenses.
Rahul Pandey we crack our engineers 1/10000 we have paid 60k per year.. what we deserve…
You’re so wrong with your numbers. How could you manage to do engineering?
Meanwhile, if we compare the comparables, IIT+NIT success rate is 1/30. As JNU is equivalent to IIT, this seems fit.
So please don’t display your ignorance everywhere and get destroyed by arguments
Get yourself educated.
IIT admission ration 9℅
In 2018 it was 2,20,000 students appear in AIJEE and in 23 ITTs it is only 12 000 in UG and 4,000 in PG
In 2018 2,20,000 are selected from 16,00,000 to appear in JEE ADVANCE
So admission ratio is not 9%
It is incredible that students who get scholarships insist on further subsidies. They have no idea as how the common man who does not have privileges of attending good universities make do with nothing. The students think that they are entitled too freebies. Instead of studying they waste their time doing politics at tax payer dole outs.
It is a shame on them. Just because they believe in socialism they should look at the plight of the common man.
It is no charity. Only 1/35 crack JNU entrance. They deserve this.