Something rotten about this culture

Differences in cultural capital prevent marginalised students from fully benefiting from higher education, a fact that is not widely acknowledged

- Raju Kendre

Over the five years between 2019 and 2023, more than 25,000 Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) students have dropped out of top educational institutions, including IITs (Indian Institutes of Technology) and Central universities, according to Rajya Sabha data shared by the minister of state for education in 2023.

These aren't just students; they represent 25,000 generational legacies excluded from the stream of higher education. Persisting discrimination in hostels, education and placements culminates in suicides among students from marginalised communities in IITs and IIMs (Indian Institutes of Management), highlighting the severe caste-based discrimination and linguistic inferiority they face. Adapting to the culture of elite institutions becomes especially difficult for rural students without systems in place to provide them with mental and emotional support.

The founding ideals of institutions like IITs and IIMs are rooted in meritocracy. When higher education upholds caste hierarchies instead of dismantling them, it betrays its very purpose.

B.R. Ambedkar famously said, "Educate, Agitate, Organise", and notably, education comes first. Marginalised communities educate themselves, organise, and yet struggle in pursuit of education because the universities fail to safeguard their interests.

Once universities become safe havens, without discrimination, shared learning can foster invincible collective strength. Therefore, education must be the top priority for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, ensuring they are not merely used as foot soldiers or vote banks in divisive agendas of majoritarian regimes.

A HISTORY OF LEARNING