Anti-Ragging Failures: UGC Issues Show-Cause Notices to Top Indian Institutions

Premier Institutes Under Scrutiny as UGC Cracks Down on Ragging Lapses

Despite years of regulatory safeguards, ragging remains a persistent and deeply troubling reality within India’s higher education landscape. Recent data reveals that over 8,000 complaints have been lodged with the national anti-ragging helpline in the past decade, and an alarming 78 student deaths have been linked to ragging incidents between 2012 and 2023. Moreover, a 2024 report by the Society Against Violence in Education highlighted that medical colleges alone accounted for over 45% of ragging-related fatalities in the last three years.

Against this unsettling backdrop, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has issued show-cause notices to 89 institutions nationwide, including four Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and three Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) for non-compliance with mandatory anti-ragging regulations. This action underscores the systemic gaps in enforcing student welfare protocols and raises serious concerns about institutional accountability, particularly within some of the country’s most prestigious academic establishments.

Furthermore, the UGC has reiterated the obligations outlined in the Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009, which mandate that every student, along with their parents or guardians, must submit an anti-ragging undertaking at both the time of admission and the commencement of each academic year. Despite multiple advisories, follow-up calls, and direct intervention by the Anti-Ragging Monitoring Agency, several institutions reportedly failed to submit the required compliance documentation.

Notably, seventeen Institutes of National Importance were listed among the defaulters. These include IIT Bombay, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Palakkad, IIT Hyderabad, IIM Bombay, IIM Rohtak, IIM Tiruchirappalli, AIIMS Raebareli, and National Institutes of Design in Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, and Haryana. Other prominent names on the list are NIPER Hyderabad, Aligarh Muslim University, Nalanda University, IGNOU, and the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.

UGC Secretary Manish Joshi emphasised that non-compliance with anti-ragging norms not only violates regulatory guidelines but also compromises student safety, particularly amid growing concerns about hostility and abuse on campuses. He added that institutions failing to rectify their non-compliance within 30 days could face severe repercussions, including withdrawal of grants and funding, cancellation of financial assistance for research projects, and even de-recognition or loss of affiliation. This episode highlights the urgent need for rigorous enforcement of anti-ragging measures and a collective commitment to ensuring safer, more inclusive learning environments across Indian campuses.

Editor’s Note:

It is profoundly concerning that several of India's most esteemed institutions have failed to adhere to fundamental anti-ragging regulations. Ragging is not merely a "rite of passage" or an act of youthful indiscretion; it has inflicted enduring trauma and, in an alarming number of instances, resulted in fatalities. While the statistics are compelling, the reticence from these institutions is even more pronounced. The necessity for the University Grants Commission to issue notices to 89 institutions, including Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), demonstrates a regrettable lack of commitment to student safety and well-being. Regulations such as the Anti-Ragging Regulations of 2009 were established for specific purposes. Disregarding these regulations, particularly after persistent reminders, constitutes outright negligence.

Skoobuzz asserts that institutions must stop treating anti-ragging rules as just a formality and start seeing them as a serious responsibility. Students' lives and well-being are at risk. Campuses should be places of discipline, openness, and care, not fear and silence. Only by respecting and following these rules can universities truly become safe spaces for learning, growth, and trust.