VARANASI: IIT (BHU) has reconstituted its postgraduate Grievance and Conflict Resolution Standing Committee through a registrar's office notice dated Thursday, October 29, 2026, and listed on the institute's website on October 30. The order changes the committee's leadership for escalated student concerns on the BHU campus in Lanka while retaining the existing rules governing how cases reach it.
For postgraduate students with unresolved academic or administrative problems, the key practical point is the referral route. The committee examines matters formally forwarded by the Dean or Director. Students cannot approach it directly under the guidelines enclosed with the new order. A change in the membership therefore does not create a separate walk-in complaints counter.
Students seeking escalation should prepare a clear account of the issue and the correspondence already exchanged at department level, then seek the appropriate referral through the Dean or Director. Keeping those records is useful because the committee's procedure includes reviewing written communications, documents and relevant evidence. The order concerns IIT (BHU), rather than a general complaints mechanism for every university in Varanasi.
Who is on the reconstituted committee
Professor P. K. Mishra of the Department of Chemical Engineering and Technology is the chairman. Professor Sandip Chatterjee of the Department of Physics is the co-chairman. Professor Neeraj Sharma of the School of Bio-Medical Engineering serves as a member, and Joint Registrar Swati Biswas is the member secretary.
The registrar's office order and enclosed guidelines supersede the earlier committee composition notified on November 25, 2025. The enclosure shows that Mishra previously served as co-chairman. The new notice expressly keeps the earlier terms, conditions, general guidelines and instructions in force.
| Role | Member |
|---|---|
| Chairman | Professor P. K. Mishra |
| Co-chairman | Professor Sandip Chatterjee |
| Member | Professor Neeraj Sharma |
| Member secretary | Joint Registrar Swati Biswas |
The institute's official news listing dates the publication entry October 30. The attached order itself is dated October 29. Reading both establishes the timing of the administrative change and prevents the older enclosed guidelines from being mistaken for a new set of rules issued this week.
Which student concerns it can examine
The retained guidelines cover escalated complaints from doctoral students and academic or administrative issues that remain unresolved within a department. Certain master's student cases can also be considered when specifically referred by the competent authority. The mechanism is intended for assessed, escalated concerns rather than unrestricted direct submissions.
Examples listed in the enclosure include disagreements involving a supervisor or co-supervisor, issues involving a head of department or departmental postgraduate committee, and guide allotment or change of guide. Academic progress difficulties that have not been resolved within the department also fall within its stated scope.
The guidelines additionally recognise persistent interpersonal friction or unfair treatment affecting academic work. They mention concerns shaped by residential campus life, including laboratory access, shared workspaces, interactions with staff and safety. Cases involving indiscipline or counterclaims may be examined so that competing accounts can be considered together.
Some matters remain outside this committee's remit. The enclosure directs sexual harassment of women, SC/ST discrimination, violent altercations and physical misconduct to the statutory or specially constituted bodies empowered to handle them. Students should use the body responsible for the particular concern rather than assume that every grievance belongs before the postgraduate committee.
What students should do and what happens next
For a matter within its remit, seek formal referral and preserve relevant records. The guidelines require the committee to hear the parties confidentially, examine the material and work towards resolution through counselling, mediation and respectful discussion. Counselling is given priority as the first step in resolving academic and interpersonal conflicts.
If counselling or mediation does not resolve a case, the committee may recommend appropriate administrative or disciplinary action with due process. It must submit a detailed written report to the competent authority, maintain confidentiality and keep records through the member secretary. It can also identify recurring problems and suggest improvements to departmental or institutional processes.
For separate campus background, read the reports on IIT (BHU)'s equal opportunity cell, BHU's student coordination committee and earlier local research recruitment notices. These concern distinct bodies or announcements; applicants should check the relevant institution's own notice for their purpose.
