Responding to an influx of student’s protest that shook the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IIT-KGP) grounds recently, the organization has chosen to cut the recommended hike in enrollment fees considerably for Masters in Engineering (M. Tech) and Doctorate (Ph. D) programs. Around 300 research scholars had surrounded the administrative building holding organization director Partha Pratim Chakrabarti and a few authorities hostage for 17 hours. The protesting students didn't permit IIT-KGP executive Partha Pratim Chakrabarti, registrar Pradip Pyne, the dean of students and a few other senior authorities to leave their office. IIT Kharagpur students were protesting over the 20 per cent fees hike in hostel fees. The decision to hike the fee was taken recently and will be viable from January next year.
Nonetheless, the protest finished after a meeting between the students and administration in which a confirmation was given that their requests will be investigated. A board of trustees of three senior members (student’s affairs, UG and PG) that met to talk about the rise in overhead charges suggested a modification in both hall establishment charge and mess advance. In current, the hall establishment charge is 8250 per semester. Initially, the hike of 84% was being proposed. With this hike, the proposed amount was 15,200 per semester. However, the committee has revised the hall establishment charge and it is 12,500 per semester after slashing earlier hikes. Mess advance charge has also been revised as a part of new proposal. Currently the mess advance charge is 13,500 per semester which will get reduced by 1,500 after revision. The proposed amount for mess advance is 12,000 per semester.
In April, the students organized a protest when the Human Resource and Development (HRD) Ministry declared hike in the fee structure from Rs 90,000 to Rs two lakh.