NEW DELHI: Ragging complaints have been on the surge annually since 2022 as per data furnished by the Education Ministry in the Lok Sabha with the highest incidences occurring in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh this year.
The University Grants Commission (UGC) issued a show-cause notice to 107 Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs), including 18 medical colleges in 2025, for violating the Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009, according to the Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar.
He was responding to a written questionnaire in the Lok Sabha from MP Sayani Ghosh. She sought details on the number of ragging complaints received from HEIs during the last five years and the state-wise break-up and the action taken in this connection. She also sought to know if the government has reviewed the effectiveness of the existing anti-ragging mechanism of the UGC regulations.
Majumdar said, “These notices highlight lapses such as failure to secure
anti-ragging undertakings from students and parents/guardians, and non-submission of institutional compliance reports despite repeated advisories and follow-ups.”
Greater awareness among students and institutions have resulted in a higher reporting of such cases, the minister claimed. “Advisories are issued by UGC to HEIs twice every year to strengthen awareness, reporting, and grievance redressal mechanisms for the prevention of ragging. There is greater awareness among students, which itself reflects the effectiveness of the regulatory framework in encouraging reporting and redressal.”
According to data submitted by the Minister for states and union territories, a total of 755 ragging complaints were reported in 2026 (up to July 22). The number of complaints reported over the past four years is as follows: 2025 – 1,369; 2024 – 1,084; 2023 – 962; and 2022 – 655.
Uttar Pradesh has consistently recorded the highest number of ragging complaints each year. Among the other states with the highest number of complaints in 2026 (up to July 22) are West Bengal with 75 complaints (102 in 2025), Madhya Pradesh with 63 (117 in 2025), Maharashtra with 53 (89 in 2025), and Bihar with 50 (122 in 2025).
The regulatory approach has remained corrective and preventive, ensuring that institutions rectify lapses and adhere strictly to anti-ragging measures, thereby safeguarding student welfare and campus safety, Majumdar added.
The UGC introduced the third amendment in 2016 to the existing Regulations on the curbing of the menace of ragging in higher educational institutions. The definition of ragging has been broadened, he pointed out.
The UGC has taken multiple steps to curb the menace in the form of anti-ragging measures such as the establishment of a 24x7 national anti-ragging helpline, anti-ragging workshops and seminars, mandatory inclusion of severe consequences of ragging in the prospectus of institutions, mandatory online undertaking by students and parents every academic year, and display of anti-ragging posters at prominent locations inside the institution.
