Is IIT Guwahati Using Fee Hikes to Fill Budget Gaps at Students’ Expense?

On Tuesday, July 22, over a hundred students at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati gathered in protest—peaceful, resolute, and rightfully angry. Their grievance was simple, yet deeply telling: a sudden and steep hike in academic fees across various programmes, including PhD, MTech, and BTech, without prior consultation or consideration of its impact on those most vulnerable.

This is not just a question of numbers or institutional budgeting. It’s a question of fairness, accountability, and empathy—values one would expect from an institution of national importance. Instead, what students received was a ₹10,000 fee hike with barely a warning, affecting even those who were already enrolled and struggling to make ends meet.

PhD scholars—many of whom are older, married, supporting families, or repaying education loans—are especially hit hard. Unlike undergraduate students, many research scholars juggle teaching assistantships and academic duties while surviving on modest stipends. An abrupt financial burden of this scale may seem like a small line item to the administration, but for students living on tight monthly budgets, it can mean choosing between essentials and education.

Even MTech and BTech students, who already bear the weight of rising hostel, mess, and tuition charges, are now expected to stretch their families’ finances further. The timing is especially poor—mid-semester fee hikes not only disrupt financial planning but also erode trust in the institution's governance.

One can argue that running a world-class technical institute demands money—and indeed, public funding for education has been declining steadily across India. But that cannot justify unilateral decisions that treat students as mere revenue streams rather than stakeholders. If anything, institutes like IIT Guwahati should be advocating for increased public investment in higher education, not shifting the burden onto students.

What adds insult to injury is the lack of effective communication. Students had already raised their concerns during an open session with the administration on July 17. Yet, their pleas seem to have been met with bureaucratic silence. When the very body that is meant to guide and support young minds chooses not to listen, protests become not just inevitable—they become essential.

Speaking exclusively to Pratidin Time, a PhD student said, “Three weeks back, we received a mail that the fees have been hiked by Rs 10,900, taking the amount to Rs 45,700 from Rs 34,800. The students are now traumatized, as they have many personal commitments. Some students had also taken loans for their course. There was an open house meeting with the administration, especially the dean of academics, following the fee hike, and after student representatives didn’t agree with the decision, no final call was made. Though the administration told students they would review the fee structure and inform us of any changes, nothing concrete came out of that July 17 meeting."

"On Tuesday, it was registration day. After the fee payment, students usually provide proof of registration to confirm enrollment for the next six months. The students who didn’t pay the fees couldn’t register for the semester. This led to chaos, and students came out to protest today. We had a discussion, although there was no open house meeting. Once we pay the fees, we are left with nothing to negotiate. Thus, from 11:30 am, around 100 students protested until 5 pm. One of the representatives from the administration told us that protests will not yield a positive outcome and said they had extended our registration deadline to July 29, 2025, after which they would come to a conclusion. We asked for a written assurance via mail regarding any relief that might be provided, but the representative said he could not guarantee anything. After 5 pm, the vice president of the student union spoke to the same representative, who again verbally assured us of an email—but no mail has been received yet from the administration," the student added.

This episode at IIT Guwahati is part of a worrying trend across Indian academia. Fee hikes are becoming the norm, often without due transparency or consultation. Elite institutions are slowly pricing out the very students they were meant to uplift. For every student who can bear this financial load, there are many who will quietly fall through the cracks—dropping out, postponing degrees, or forgoing higher studies altogether.

Students from the PhD group are in discussion to organize a candle march tonight, but it's unclear how many will participate. There are also reports that another protest may take place tomorrow. Almost 70% of PhD students have not paid their fees yet. Many students suspect that the administration has no intention of revising the fee structure and has merely extended the registration date to buy time. Compared to other IITs, only IIT Guwahati has allegedly increased fees for students continuing their courses. In other IITs, there has reportedly been no mid-course hike in fees. For new students, fee hikes have been introduced—but that is still considered more reasonable than penalizing continuing students mid-programme.

Another PhD student told Pratidin Time, “For the five-year PhD programme, we paid Rs 34,000 for the semester in June last year, and Rs 36,000 in December. This semester, our fees have been hiked by Rs 10,900. We also get a stipend during the course, but since we didn’t register today, the administration might withhold our stipend and possibly deny us mess access starting tomorrow. Currently, Senior Research Fellowship (SRF) at IIT Guwahati amounts to Rs 42,000. When we first join the PhD programme, we receive Rs 37,000 as stipend for the first two years, which is then increased. The administration claims that the stipend was increased to match inflation—but the same logic hasn’t been applied to the fee hike. The fact is, the stipend was increased by 18%, while fees jumped by 33%, which is not acceptable to us.”

The moral failure here lies in the institute’s inability—or unwillingness—to consider the human cost of its decisions. Education, particularly in a country like ours, must remain a right, not a privilege bought with sudden and steep price tags.

IIT Guwahati owes its students more than just a bill. It owes them an explanation, a dialogue, and above all, a vision of education that is equitable, inclusive, and humane.

Until then, the protestors stand not only against a fee hike but against the creeping commercialization of public education in India. And they deserve our attention—not just as students, but as the conscience of our academic future.

Also Read: Burdened With Loans, Students at IIT Guwahati Fight for Fairness