IITs offer fee waivers and relaxed cut-offs for SC, ST, PwD, EWS students

The IITs are offering fee waivers, cut-off relaxation, and preparatory courses for students from SC, ST, PwD, and EWS categories to improve accessibility and equity in higher education.

In Short

• IITs offer fee waivers and cut-off relaxation to reserved category students
• SC, ST students below cut-off can take IIT preparatory courses
• New initiatives like rural service centres launched to support IIT applicants

The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are stepping up efforts to ensure inclusive education by offering fee concessions and relaxed cut-offs for students from reserved categories. These measures are part of a broader initiative aimed at making high-quality education more accessible to underrepresented groups, including SC, ST, PwD, and OBC students.

As part of JEE-based admissions, IITs have implemented fee remissions right from the application stage.

“At the application stage, students belonging to the SC, ST, and PwD categories need to pay only half the examination fee. Further, cut-offs are relaxed to support a greater number of admissions in the SC, ST, PwD and OBC categories,” said V Kamakoti, Director of IIT Madras, which conducted this year’s JEE-Advanced.

Cut-offs for these categories are also relaxed to allow for a larger number of admissions, offering a significant boost to students from disadvantaged backgrounds.

SUPPORT THROUGH PREPARATORY COURSES

For SC and ST students who do not meet the relaxed cut-off marks, IITs offer a preparatory course designed to enhance their academic readiness.

After completing this course, students can join the IITs directly, bridging the gap and ensuring they don’t miss out on quality education.

NEW INITIATIVES TO ASSIST STUDENTS

This year, IITs introduced several new initiatives to further support applicants, particularly those from rural areas.

'Citizen Service Centres' were set up across the country to help students with the online application and fee payment process.

Additionally, a multilingual call centre was established to answer student queries, along with a 'reconciliation day' to address last-minute technical glitches in fee payments.

FEE WAIVERS AND ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE

To ensure financial constraints do not hinder education, students with a parental income below Rs 1 lakh receive a full tuition waiver, regardless of category.

“For students from SC, ST, and PwD categories, full tuition waivers are also provided,” Kamakoti added. Students from the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) with an income between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 5 lakh can benefit from a two-thirds tuition fee waiver.

(With PTI inputs)