COIMBATORE: Due to technical issues, around 12 scholars pursuing PhD programmes at Government Arts College (Autonomous) in Coimbatore have not received their Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) amount for the past seven months.
Scholars raised concerns that they would have to spend their own money for research, attending seminars, and purchasing chemicals.
A PhD scholar told TNIE that over ten scholars in the science and arts departments who cleared the JRF of UGC NET are currently pursuing their PhD programmes.
"Since January, we have not received the monthly fellowship amount of Rs 35,000. Although we complained several times, the college administration simply states they are taking steps to resolve the issue, without explaining the reason for the delay," she said.
She expressed concern that without the fellowship amount, they have been forced to use their own money for research activities, seminar participation, and chemical acquisitions, adding that they were unable to meet their expenses. She said that this issue is only in this college, and she urged officials to take immediate action.
According to sources from the college, the fellowship amount can only be approved for scholars by the nodal officer, who checks monthly research activities using the Scholarship and Fellowship Management Portal (SFMP).
Last December, the nodal officer from the mathematics department was replaced by one from the Tamil department. However, the college administration should have obtained formal approval from the UGC by sending a request letter before making this change. The administration failed to do this, making the new nodal officer unable to login to SFMP. After that, the administration allegedly requested the UGC to allow the new nodal officer to log in through mail.
Even though the nodal officer received a new login ID and password from UGC for the portal a few months ago, she has been unable to log in due to a technical issue. The administration allegedly decided to send a teaching faculty member to UGC's office at New Delhi directly to resolve this issue," sources added.
When contacted, College Principal MR Yezhili told TNIE that they are taking steps to ensure scholars receive their fellowship amount soon.