📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Sudipta Maulik
Education
Thousands Rally at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar to Oppose UGC Norms and Quota Reforms
✍️ India Today
🗓 22 Aug 2026, 05:37 AM
👁 11
A large crowd gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, demanding the reversal of recent University Grants Commission regulations and proposed quota changes.
Thousands of students, faculty members and supporters converged on Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Saturday, staging a mass demonstration against the latest University Grants Commission (UGC) norms and the government's quota reform proposals. Organisers estimated the turnout to be in the high‑thousands, with participants holding placards and chanting slogans calling for the protection of merit‑based admissions.
The protest targets a set of UGC guidelines introduced earlier this year that tighten accreditation criteria for higher‑education institutions, alongside a cabinet‑approved amendment to expand reservation quotas in central universities. Critics argue that the changes could dilute academic standards and undermine the principle of equal opportunity.
Delhi police deployed a modest contingent of personnel to manage the crowd but reported no major incidents or arrests. Government officials, however, have not yet issued an official response, and the Ministry of Education is expected to address the concerns in an upcoming press briefing.
The demonstration follows a series of similar rallies across major cities, reflecting growing unease among the academic community about policy shifts that could reshape India's higher‑education landscape.
The protest targets a set of UGC guidelines introduced earlier this year that tighten accreditation criteria for higher‑education institutions, alongside a cabinet‑approved amendment to expand reservation quotas in central universities. Critics argue that the changes could dilute academic standards and undermine the principle of equal opportunity.
Delhi police deployed a modest contingent of personnel to manage the crowd but reported no major incidents or arrests. Government officials, however, have not yet issued an official response, and the Ministry of Education is expected to address the concerns in an upcoming press briefing.
The demonstration follows a series of similar rallies across major cities, reflecting growing unease among the academic community about policy shifts that could reshape India's higher‑education landscape.