'Kam karo, kam karo, fee hike kam karo (Reduce fee hike)' - these are the words that echoed the campus of IIT Guwahati as hundreds of research scholars and MTech students gathered on Tuesday to protest what they claim to be an 'exceptionally high' hike in fee. This year, apart from a fee hike for PhD students, fees have also increased for BTech and MTech courses. Protests that started last afternoon gained momentum overnight as students marched to gather support.
The protests erupted after the authorities allegedly did not keep their word on what was agreed upon over the increased fee structure in an open house session on July 17, led by the director of IIT-G, along with the deans of student affairs, academic affairs, and senior officials of the IIT-G administration.
"An open house discussion was held last week, and the administration said that they are there to listen to us, but it appears that they were there to buy time. Tuesday (July 22) was the day of registration for the July-November semester. However, you cannot register without paying the fee, and the premier institute did not communicate properly on the status of registration because, after the open house, we were promised a revision of the fee," said a PhD scholar on the condition of anonymity.
On Tuesday, when research scholars reached their respective departmental officers, they were allegedly prohibited from registering for the semester, citing non-payment of the semester registration fee. This led to protests, sources added.
Some of the students say they had no option but to pay the amount "imposed" on them. Most of the students are protesting and have refused to pay till the fee hike is rolled back.
"With their research stalled, the students have come out and are protesting in the heat."
According to sources at IIT Guwahati, the fee for PhD students increased by Rs 10,900 for the July-November semester, from Rs 34,800 in the January-May 2025, and rose to Rs 45,700.
"The incoming students are expected to pay an exorbitant amount of Rs 92,000. Besides, each semester, their total fee with the current revision will be around Rs 57,000 (because of the new tuition fee applied to them). That is 20k more than their stipend," scholars allege.
From Rs 2,500 to Rs 25,000 per semester, the fee for the part-time scholars has also seen a steep rise.
The PhD students also allege that IIT Guwahati does not release HRA (house rent allowance) to scholars, provided by the centre. Additionally, the students are charged a hostel fee.
"This means, IIT-G is pocketing the money twice from us," the scholar said.
