Gujarat Central University "deprives" SC, ST, OBC students fair admission, prefers interviews for Phil-PhD intake

By Kalyani Pradhan
Serious issues of unequal opportunities and deprivation done to students from disadvantaged sections from scheduled castes (SC), scheduled tribes (ST) and other backward classes (OBC) and rural India in the admission process of the Central University of Gujarat (CUG), Gandhinagar, have come to light.
The CUG Prospectus for 2016-17 stated that merit list for admission into M Phil-PhD shall be based on entrance test (i.e written test) and interview. However, contrary to this declared criterion, the final merit list for admission into the admission was prepared based on interview scores alone and the result was announced by the CUG on July 23, 2016. This change in criterion has been done keeping the students, parents and the society in dark and unaware.
This is a great injustice to students from deprived sections, as numerous students from SC, ST and OBC or those coming from rural India are relatively better at written examination and hence are likely to do well in the written test for CUG, while many of them may have performed poorly in the interview due to their limitation of English language or articulation.
Such meritorious but deprived students must have been adversely affected in the admission process due to this changed the criterion of merit list preparation purely based on interview.
The written test comprising of multiple type questions involves objective evaluation, whereas interview is a highly subjective evaluation. Removing objective evaluation (i.e. objective type written test score) from preparing merit list for admission into M Phil-PhD, while entirely relying on subjective evaluation, implies students from SC, ST, OBC and those from rural India are compel to face greater risk of arbitrariness and biasness.
It is unheard of an admission process anywhere in the world that involves 100 marks for written test and another 100 marks for interview, and finally ignoring the written test score to prepare the merit list for admission, purely based on interview score.
Further, the minimum cut off in written score was set at 40 for general and OBC candidates for inviting them into interview, which is contrary to the judgement of the Supreme Court. The University Grants Commission (UGC) also treats SC, ST and OBCs equally as far as relaxation from cut-off marks are concerned, while prescribing eligibility for the UGC-NET examination or for teaching position.
This is because SC, ST and OBC come from similar social and deprived background. Therefore, not inviting OBC students securing marks 35-39 in the written test for interview has deprived an unknown number of Indian students from the opportunity of attending the interview and getting equal chance to compete for admission.
Being a national institution, the CUG has received 797 applications for its M Phil-PhD programmes during 2016-17 covering students for almost all Indian states. Its admission process must be fair and transparent and should provide equal opportunity to students from every sections of the society. However, the policy adopted by the university has been grossly against the deprived students and those from rural India as the policy ignore the component in which these students are stronger.
Representation has been made to the Liaison Officer on Matters Related to OBC, Central University of Gujarat. Also similar representations were sent to the President, the Prime Minster, the HRD Minister, the Chairperson of National Commission for Backward Classes, and the Joint Secretary, SC/ST/OBC Division, University Grants Commission.
Also, a writ petition has been filed in the Gujarat High Court in relation to admission process of the CUG. The High Court has granted an interim stay on the admission process of the university.

Comments

Manufacturing, services: India's low-skill, middle-skill labour remains underemployed

By Francis Kuriakose* The Indian economy was in a state of deceleration well before Covid-19 made its impact in early 2020. This can be inferred from the declining trends of four important macroeconomic variables that indicate the health of the economy in the last quarter of 2019.

Why Indo-Pak relations have been on 'knife’s edge' , hostilities may remain for long

By Utkarsh Bajpai* The past few decades have seen strides being made in all aspects of life – from sticks and stones to weaponry. The extreme case of this phenomenon has been nuclear weapons. The menace caused by nuclear weapons in the past is unforgettable. Images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki from 1945 come to mind, after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities.

Food security? Gujarat govt puts more than 5 lakh ration cards in the 'silent' category

By Pankti Jog* A new statistical report uploaded by the Gujarat government on the national food security portal shows that ensuring food security for the marginalized community is still not a priority of the state. The statistical report, uploaded on December 24, highlights many weaknesses in implementing the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in state.

Civil society flags widespread violations of land acquisition Act before Parliamentary panel

By Jag Jivan Civil society organisations and stakeholders from across India have presented stark evidence before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj , alleging systemic violations of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RFCTLARR) Act, 2013 , particularly in Scheduled Areas and tribal regions.

Incarceration of Prof Saibaba 'revives' the question: What is crime, who is criminal?

By Kunal Pant* In 2016, a Supreme Court Judge asked the state of Maharashtra, “Do you want to extract a pound of flesh?” The statement was directed against the state for contesting the bail plea of Delhi University Professor GN Saibaba. Saibaba was arrested in 2014, a justification for which was to prevent him from committing what the police called “anti-national activities.”

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Concentration of wealth in India at levels 'comparable to colonial times', says new report

By Jag Jivan A new report published in March 2026 by the Centre for Financial Accountability and the Tax The Top campaign paints a stark picture of deepening economic disparity in India, documenting a concentration of wealth that it argues is “comparable to colonial times.” Titled Wealth Tracker India | Tax the Top. Close the Gap , the compilation presents data from the World Inequality Database and the Hurun Rich List to illustrate the meteoric rise of the ultra-wealthy alongside the stagnation and debt burdens of the majority.

Protesters in UK cities voice concerns over alleged developments in Bastar region

By A Representative Demonstrations were held across several cities in the United Kingdom on March 28, as groups and activists gathered to protest what they described as state actions in India under the reported “Operation Kagar.”

Beneath the stone: Revisiting the New Jersey mandir controversy

By Rajiv Shah A recent report published in the British media outlet The Guardian , titled “Workers carved the largest modern Hindu temple in the west. Now, some have incurable lung disease,” took me back to my visits to the New Jersey mandir —first in 2022, when it was still under construction, though parts of it were open to visitors, and again in 2024, after its completion.

Search This Blog