UGC notifies regulations on caste discrimination; mandates 'equity committees', redress in 24 hours

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has notified new regulations for all higher education institutions, mandating them to constitute “equity committees” to address complaints of discrimination on campus. As per the regulations, the equity committees must include representatives from Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Persons with Disabilities (PwD), and women.

The new UGC regulations also include strict timelines for action on complaints, equity helplines, and other guidelines, the report added.

Earlier, the number of committee members from SC, ST, and women was 2. However, now it has been kept open. The draft said, atleast one member of the committee shall be a woman and one member each from the SC and ST categories.

According to the University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, if a complaint of discrimination is reported, the equity committee must meet within 24 hours, submit its report within 15 working days, and the head must further initiate action within seven days, it said.

A draft of the new regulations was made public for feedback in 2025 after the Supreme Court directed the UGC to submit the new regulations while hearing a plea by the mothers of Rohit Vemula and Payal Tadvi, who died by suicide in 2016 and 2019, respectively, allegedly due to caste bias.

UGC's regulations on caste discrimination

Furthermore, the equity committee, upon receiving such information, has to meet the complainant within 24 hours to take appropriate action. The complainant can also submit the complaint in writing or by emailing it to the coordinator of EOC. The regulation draft only talked about filing a complaint through the online portal.

Additionally, the Equal Opportunity Centre will have to publish a bi-annual report of its activities by the end of January and July every year, and the report has to be made available on the website of the institute.

The HEI report should include demographic composition of students and staff, dropout rates of the students for the previous academic year, grievances, complaints received under these regulations, and their current status.

False complaint with fine provisions removed: UGC

The new regulations have removed a section on false complaints, along with provision for fines or disciplinary proceedings, which were included in the draft. Moreover, student groups had objected to these provisions, including the definition of discrimination, arguing that they could deter victims from raising complaints.

The final regulations have also included OBCs in the definition of caste discrimination and in the composition of equity committees, whereas the draft had excluded the OBCs from both.

In addition, the new UGC regulations strengthen measures to set up a national-level monitoring committee to oversee implementation and recommend measures to prevent discrimination on campus, it added.

As per the final regulations, institutions that fail to comply may be debarred from UGC schemes, including eligibility for central grants, it said.