New Delhi: Startling revelations have emerged from a survey conducted in 2019-20 by the Board of Student Publications (BSP) at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. The survey, involving 545 undergraduate students, exposed distressing insights into the persisting caste discrimination prevalent within the institution.
While previous surveys at IITs have highlighted caste discrimination, this particular study distinguishes itself by examining the sentiments of General Category (GC) students on the issue. Shockingly, it found that 59% of GC students either agreed with or were neutral towards casteist remarks. This marks a troubling trend that demands immediate attention.
The survey demonstrated that 75% of Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) students were adversely affected by casteist comments. More concerning was the fact that 50% of GC respondents admitted to intentionally making casteist remarks, with 15% acknowledging their deliberate actions.
Further analysis of the survey revealed that 41% of respondents across all categories reported the occurrence of casteist remarks on campus, whether intentional or not. Alarmingly, 11% of students claimed knowledge of professors and administrative staff who had made such comments.
Despite sharing these disturbing findings with senior administrative faculty and discussing them at a Student Affairs Council meeting in 2021, the report appears to have been buried and remains unaddressed. The inaction of the institute in the face of such evidence raises serious concerns.
V. Ramgopal, who served as IIT-Delhi’s Director from 2016 to 2022, stated that his office was never officially informed of the survey’s existence. This lack of communication adds to the opacity surrounding the issue.
Tragically, recent events at IIT-Delhi have brought the consequences of caste discrimination to the forefront. Two Dalit students from the Mathematics and Computing Department took their own lives within months of each other this year, prompting calls for investigations into alleged caste discrimination by certain faculty members.
Efforts to address this dire situation continue, with the SC/ST Cell and the BSP collaborating on a fresh survey to delve deeper into caste discrimination on campus. These initiatives are essential steps toward combating the pervasive issue of caste discrimination at educational institutions like IIT-Delhi.
