For this year, SPPU will not charge transgender students’ tuition
Pune: Beginning with the 2024–2025 academic year, transgender students enrolled at Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) would not be required to pay tuition.
Transgender admissions to SPPU and its associated institutions will be subject to the regulation. The management of the institution said that increasing the proportion of transgender students on campus was the goal.
This new regulation will be beneficial to transgender students applying to any professional degree, including engineering, management, polytechnic, and any other courses offered by the state’s department of higher and technical education.
In an April 23 announcement, Munjaji Rasve, the deputy secretary of SPPU’s admissions department, said, “Transgender cells at institutions will serve as watchdogs, especially ensuring there is no prejudice against transgender students on campus. The college-level cells will strive to reduce bias and discrimination against students who identify as transgender. It must raise awareness about any kind of sexual or mental abuse directed against transgender pupils.
The announcement also said that the university-level cell would take a more thorough approach, with a coordinator focusing on awareness and sensitization in addition to offering transgender candidates resources like career assistance and counseling, among other things.
To encourage transgender students to enroll in higher education, the Maharashtra government sent a notice in December of last year requesting all public colleges to cover the full cost of tuition for these students.
“In addition, universities are expected to create more inclusive environments on campus through the implementation of financial aid, the development of infrastructure, and gender-sensitization programs,” said Rasve.
