UoH students protest misuse of IoE funds

Hyderabad: In solidarity with students at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and Dr BR Ambedkar University in Delhi, the students of the University of Hyderabad (UoH) staged a protest late on Monday. They raised concerns over the Institute of Eminence (IoE) fund distribution by the varsity and alleged that there was misprioritisation. They said that a comprehensive, publicly accessible report detailing IoE expenditure should be released for transparency and accountability."An RTI filed by SFI revealed disturbing details about the misuse of IoE funds at UoH. Instead of strengthening research and academic infrastructure, the administration prioritised luxury expenditure while neglecting genuine research support on campus," said R Srihari, president, Students Federation of India (SFI) HCU unit, under whose aegis the protest was organised, adding that about 150 students took part in the protest, which started at South LH9 hostel and ended at the south gate of the campus.
He added, "For example, Rs 116 crore was spent on an interdisciplinary research centre, allegedly with no clarity on who will use the facility, even as the school of social sciences, humanities, medical sciences, the department of music, education, and others face severe infrastructure neglect."The demands of students include an increase in non-NET fellowships and Departmental Assistance Grants (DAG) support through IoE funds, reinstating travel grants for conferences, and upgrading the library with research software, among others.