Seven Indian Institutes of Technology report that faculty members from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes make up a total of 18 percent of their faculty strength.

Under the Central Educational Institutions Act of 2019, 15 percent of positions are reserved for Scheduled Castes, 7.5 percent for Scheduled Tribes, and 27 percent for Other Backward Classes.

Faculty representation and mental health resources at IIT Kharagpur

At IIT Kharagpur, out of 781 faculty members, only 68 or 8.7 percent belong to these reserved categories. However, applications for faculty recruitment received in 2025 show that 48 percent were from reserved category applicants.

Additionally, IIT Kharagpur has one mental health professional for every 1136 students, whereas University Grants Commission standards require one professional for every 500 students.

Student suicides and measures at IIT Bombay

On September 18, IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode died by suicide. This marks the third such incident at the institution this year and the ninth across IITs nationwide.

According to the Global IIT Alumni Support Group, a total of 160 students have died by suicide across IITs over the past 20 years.

Following the suicide of Sahil Wakode, IIT Bombay decided to remove ceiling fans from the campus and hostels and replace them with wall-mounted fans.

Ravindra, the father of the deceased student, has alleged that his son faced repeated caste-based discrimination at the institution.