This is an archive article published on July 5, 2024
Alumni of TISS’s women studies centre demand reinstatement of 4 faculty members
The centre runs one full-time MA in Women’s Studies and PhD programme. But its students are now staring at uncertainty as out of the seven faculty members who ran the centre, only three are now currently on-board.
Written by Pallavi Smart
Mumbai | Updated: July 6, 2024 09:57 AM IST
3 min read
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Expressing solidarity with the faculty members, alumni from the ACWS issued a public statement on Thursday night. (Express File)
Alumni of the Advance Centre for Women’s Studies at the Tata Institute of Social Science have demanded to retract the termination of contracts of four of their faculty members.
Last week, the Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS) had dismissed without notice over 100 contractual staff members, including teaching and non-teaching, appointed under programmes funded by the Tata Education Trust (TET), citing non-release of funds.
The institute withdrew the sudden dismissal after the trust assured that resources will be made available to the TISS.
However, the termination of contracts of four faculty members from Advance Centre for Women’s Studies (ACWS) located on its Mumbai campus have still not been retracted.
Expressing solidarity with the faculty members, alumni from the ACWS issued a public statement on Thursday night.
The statement comes in the wake of beginning of the new academic year from June 8.
Apart from demanding reinstatement of their faculties, the statement highlights various other concerns at the centre, especially related to fund-crunch and lack of clarity on faculty positions which is important to run the academics.
“The ACWS runs MA and PhD programmes and there are many PhD scholars under the faculties who are extremely anxious with the current developments. The first year MA batch is going to start in a week’s time and there is no direction about who will teach in the current scenario.
It must be mentioned that many PhD students come from very marginalised locations, who have fought economically, socially and academically to be admitted to TISS. The consistent negligence of the institute especially to the ACWS centre only shows its lack of vision and irresponsibility,” read the statement.
The centre runs one full-time MA in Women’s Studies and PhD programme. But its students are now staring at uncertainty as out of the seven faculty members who ran the centre, only three are now currently on-board.
One of the students said, “The second year MA students will start their lectures on Monday. Whereas a new batch of first year students will begin in August. Apart from this, there are a considerable number of students who are pursuing PhD, many of them under the faculty members who are terminated. The lack of clarity is causing stress for us ahead of the academic year.”
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Meanwhile ,the administration has stated that these faculty members will be reinstated as soon as UGC funds arrives.
However, one of the faculty members said, “Funding from UGC has been an issue in the past too, especially since these positions require annual renewal of approvals. All four have been working without salary since March due to the delay. But the termination letters had come as a shock to us.”
Pallavi Smart is a Principal Correspondent with The Indian Express, Mumbai Bureau. Her reporting is singularly focused on the education sector, demonstrating exceptional Expertise and Authority across the entire spectrum of learning, from foundational schooling to advanced higher education. She is a highly Trustworthy source for policy, institutional developments, and systemic issues affecting students, teachers, and parents in Maharashtra.
Expertise
Senior Role: As a Principal Correspondent at The Indian Express, her designation reflects her seniority, specialized knowledge, and the editorial rigor applied to her reporting.
Core Authority & Specialization: Pallavi Smart is the definitive voice for Education news in the region. Her coverage scope is comprehensive:
Policy and Regulatory Changes: Reports on major shifts in educational policy, including the restructuring of entrance exams (e.g., MHT-CET adopting the JEE Main model), the draft regulatory framework for coaching classes, and revised teacher recruitment processes.
Higher Education Institutions (HEIs): Provides in-depth reporting on prestigious institutes like IIT Bombay and TISS (Tata Institute of Social Sciences), covering institutional initiatives, administrative debates (e.g., renaming IIT Bombay), and student welfare programs (e.g., mandatory mental health courses).
Teachers and Eligibility: Covers crucial issues affecting the teaching fraternity, such as the mandatory Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) for in-service teachers and related controversies and application numbers.
Student Welfare & Rights: Focuses on issues concerning students, including the rollout of government scholarships, the financial strain on schools due to midday meal reimbursement delays, and instances of child rights violations (e.g., the Powai studio hostage crisis).
Admissions and Vacancy: Tracks the outcome of centralized admission processes (e.g., MBBS, BPharm) and analyzes vacancy concerns, providing essential data-driven insights for parents and students.
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Dedicated Beat: Her consistent focus on the "KG to PG" education beat allows her to develop unparalleled subject matter knowledge, ensuring her reports are accurate, detailed, and contextualized.
Proactive Reporting: Her articles frequently break news on policy and institutional planning, providing the public with timely, essential information about a sector that directly impacts millions of families.
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