General category students facing unjust discrimination, Says Jamwal and Dr. Saryal
Munish Sood
Mandi
The Himachal Rajput Mahasabha and Samanya Varg Sanyukt Manch have raised a strong objection to what they call “deeply discriminatory” fee policies at India’s premier engineering institutes — IITs and NITs — where general category students are being made to bear a disproportionately high financial burden compared to others.
Speaking to the media, Er. K.S. Jamwal, State President of the Mahasabha, said the organisations have taken “serious note” of the disparity and have submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Education Minister, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, seeking an immediate and fair review of the existing fee structure.
“It is highly unfortunate that in institutions like NIT Hamirpur and IIT Mandi, general category students are charged exorbitant fees — ₹62,500 per semester at NIT Hamirpur and ₹1,00,000 at IIT Mandi — while students from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are given complete exemption, regardless of their family’s financial status,” Jamwal said.
“Even a poor farmer’s or labourer’s child has to pay the full amount, but a millionaire’s child from a reserved category pays nothing. This is not social justice — it’s economic injustice.”
Echoing similar sentiments, Dr. Ashok Saryal, Senior Vice President of the Forum and former Vice-Chancellor of Palampur Agriculture University, said the policy runs contrary to the spirit of equality enshrined in the Indian Constitution.
“The government must realise that caste-based exemptions, without considering economic conditions, are breeding deep frustration among the youth,” Dr. Saryal remarked. “We are not opposing reservation as a concept — we are only saying that fee structures should be based on economic status, not caste identity. A poor general category student deserves the same support as a poor SC or ST student.”
Both leaders urged the Centre to introduce a uniform, income-based fee policy for all students in centrally funded technical institutions. They stressed that the present system, if left unaddressed, could foster resentment and alienation among economically disadvantaged youth in the general category.
“India is being projected as a Vishwaguru on the global stage,” Jamwal added, “but such blatant inequality in our education system sends the wrong message. The future of our young generation cannot be built on policies that divide them by caste rather than unite them through fairness.”
The memorandum sent by the organisations calls upon the central government and Himachal Pradesh’s Members of Parliament to intervene urgently, review the policy framework, and ensure that the principle of equal opportunity is upheld in both letter and spirit.
