In the last five years, more than 13,600 students from reserved categories withdrew from central universities, Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), according to information provided in the Lok Sabha on Monday.

Union Minister of State for Education Subhas Sarkar shared these statistics in response to a query by BSP member Ritesh Pandey in the Lok Sabha. In the case of Central Universities (CUs), Sarkar mentioned that 4596 OBC, 2424 SC, and 2622 ST students dropped out in the last five years.

For IITs, the figures were 2066 OBCs, 1068 SC, and 408 ST students who dropped out. In IIMs, the numbers were 163, 188, and 91 for OBC, SC, and ST students, respectively.

Sarkar mentioned that in the higher education sector, students have multiple options, and they choose to migrate across institutions or change courses/programs in the same institution. The reasons for migration or withdrawal are diverse and can be based on securing seats in other departments or institutions, or personal grounds.

Regarding National Law Universities (NLUs), Sarkar clarified that as state universities established under the Acts enacted by respective state legislatures, the central government does not maintain data on dropout students of NLUs.

In response to addressing the issue, Sarkar highlighted various government initiatives, including fee reduction, establishing more institutes, scholarships, and priority access to national-level scholarships to support students with poor financial backgrounds. He also mentioned specific schemes for the welfare of SC and ST students, such as the waiver of tuition fees in IITs and grants of national scholarships under the Central Sector Scheme.

Also read: Over 19,000 SC, ST and OBC students dropped out of higher ed institutions in 5 years: Centre