Of the 10 Afghan students who were admitted to various Master’s in Technology (M.Tech) courses at The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, in 2021, only one was able to travel to India to take offline classes. Others await clarity.
Following the crisis in their home country in August last year, the institute had opened the campus for students from Afghanistan, even as it remained closed for other students due to pandemic restrictions.
Some of the students had begun the course online in 2021. However, once the campus opened after the pandemic, it completely shifted to the offline mode. As per information provided by the institute, Afghan students have not been able to travel to India and join the course. Some have had to cancel their admissions.
A student, who is currently in Afghanistan, told The Indian Express that he has received an email informing him about the cancellation of his admission.
“I am unclear about the content of the email as it mentions my failure in the course. However, it has been a difficult time since the admission was confirmed. I am trying to travel to India but I am not able to get a visa. Online learning is not useful, not only due to its nature, but also due to connectivity and other issues in my country. After the college went back to the offline mode, there is no online learning,” the student said.
He said he has “requested IIT to extend his admission on humanitarian grounds so that he can pursue his dream to study in IIT Bombay.” The IIT Bombay administration said “it has been reviewing the admissions with a compassionate view, considering the crisis”. Refusing to comment on the performance or grades of any particular student, the Dean of International Relations, Prof Amit Agrawal, said: “Academics are not allowed online anymore. Since they are not able to join offline, most of the Afghan students have deferred their course. It is allowed in extraordinary situations such as medical grounds. A semester break or a year’s extension is allowed, which can also be extended in case of extraordinary conditions,” he said.
Courtesy : The Indian Express