‘Severe crisis’ in JNU? Academic funds cut by over 36%; women, research students drop to 40%, says JNUTA

JNUTA Report: The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers’ Association (JNUTA) has reported a simultaneous fall in faculty recruitment, student diversity, and academic expenditure, marking a major shift in the university’s functioning over the past decade.

According to a report released on October 7, titled JNU: The State of the University, more than 40% of faculty vacancies considered since 2022 were left unfilled under the “no suitable candidate” category, with most of these positions belonging to reserved categories – Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST).

The report notes a parallel decline in student diversity and academic investment. The share of women students fell to 43.1% in 2024-25, while SC and ST representation dropped below the mandated reservation percentages. The proportion of research students also declined to 40.1% of total enrolment, marking a sharp departure from the university’s earlier research-oriented model.

Core academic spending contracted by more than one-third during the same period, with allocations for seminars and workshops slashed by over 97% between 2015–16 and 2024–25.

It also documents wider institutional issues, including the centralisation of governance under the vice-chancellor, the discontinuation of the seniority-based rotation system for deans and chairpersons, irregular meetings of statutory bodies – the Academic and Executive Councils – pending promotions, delays in faculty confirmations, and the prolonged suspension of the university’s crèche. It also notes the erosion of university autonomy, the handling of sexual harassment complaints after the replacement of the committee on Gender Sensitization and Committee on Sexual Harassment (GSCASH) mechanism, and the decline of research programmes following the adoption of centralized admission tests.

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JNUTA Report: Faculty recruitment

The JNUTA report states that selection committees were set up for 326 faculty vacancies between February 2022 and August 2025. Of these, 184 resulted in appointments, while 133 were declared to have “no suitable candidate” (NFS) — accounting for 40.8% of all cases.

Of the 326 vacancies for which Selection Committees were set up, candidates were recommended for appointment in only 184 cases. In over 40 percent of cases—133 vacancies—the Committees found ‘no suitable candidate’ (NFS). The majority of these were reserved posts, and the proportion is rising: in the last 81 vacancies considered, NFS was declared in 55 cases.

In some instances, NFS was declared even when eligible and qualified existing JNU faculty applied for higher posts within their own Centres. Many internal candidates were ruled out solely for being ‘internal,’ although this principle was applied selectively. Consequently, numerous faculty members were denied their legitimate legal claim to appointments, without consideration of merit. In certain cases, technicalities created within JNU were used as pretexts to prevent faculty from being considered by the Selection Committee. Overall, the treatment of faculty in direct recruitment has mirrored the selectivity observed in promotions.”

As of July 2025, 112 faculty promotion applications under the Career Advancement Scheme were pending. The association said the recruitment and promotion processes have slowed considerably since 2024.

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Changes in JNU student composition

The report shows a decline in the proportion of women, SC, and ST students in the total enrolment, alongside a reduction in research student strength.

The JNUTA linked these trends to the discontinuation of JNU’s deprivation point system and the adoption of centralised entrance examinations through the National Testing Agency.

JNU Students: Fall in representation of women and researchers

The share of women students fell from 44.4% in 2021–22 to 43.1% in 2024–25. The number of SC students declined from 1,500 to 1,143, and ST students from 741 to 545 during the same period, bringing their representation down to 14.3% and 6.8 %, respectively. This is below the prescribed reservation levels.

The proportion of research students in the total student population decreased from 62.2 %in 2016–17 to 40.1% in 2024–25, reflecting a shift away from JNU’s earlier research-centric structure.

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JNU’s academic spending

Between 2015–16 and 2024–25, Jawaharlal Nehru University’s total academic expenditure (excluding examination costs) fell by 36.3%, from Rs 30.28 crore to Rs19.29 crore.

JNU’s academic expenditure (in Rs crore) and cuts

Specific areas of spending saw even sharper reductions. Seminars and workshops, fieldwork and conferences, and laboratory running expenses – all had their funding reduced to less than half of what they were a decade ago.

The report also notes that legal expenses in 2024–25 exceeded the total spent in the previous two years combined.

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Administrative changes

The JNUTA report states that JNU’s earlier system of rotation by seniority for Deans and Chairpersons has been discontinued, with appointments now made at the discretion of the vice-chancellor. “It weakened the structural basis for collegial functioning of Centres and Schools and the role of the faculty committees in decision-making,” says the report. “It similarly eroded the representation and reflection of faculty opinions in statutory bodies like the Academic and Executive Councils, where Deans and Chairpersons are ex-officio members and make up a substantial part of the membership.”

The JNUTA report concludes that the issues documented reflect a “severe crisis” that is negatively impacting JNU’s core teaching, learning, and research activities. According to the JNUTA, the only option for teachers committed to their responsibilities is to consistently resist what they describe as the “destruction of the university”.

"The only option before JNU teachers, if they are to remain true to their responsibilities, is to consistently resist this process of destruction of a university, a public asset over which no administration and no government can claim ownership. As part of that endeavour, we release this report with the objective of informing those to whom the institution ultimately belongs - the public."