TISS withdraws ‘mass termination’ notice: ‘Tata trust to release funds’

The contracts of over 100 staffs at TISS campuses in Mumbai, Tuljapur, Hyderabad, and Guwahati, which were set to expire on June 30, will now continue.

The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) has retracted its notice to terminate contracts of over 100 teaching and non-teaching staff after facing strong criticism from faculty and student body.

Tata Institute of Social Sciences

TISS stated that discussions with the Tata Education Trust (TET) have assured the necessary resources to address the issue.

“Ongoing discussions with the Tata Education Trust have provided assurance that resources will be made available to TISS to resolve this issue. TET has committed to releasing funds for the salaries of TET project/programme faculty and non- teaching staff,” it said in a statement.

Established in 1936 as a Deemed University and fully funded by the University Grants Commission (UGC), TISS is governed by the TISS Society under UGC guidelines. The contracts for its teaching and non-teaching staff were funded by grants from the Tata Trust.

The contracts at TISS campuses in Mumbai, Tuljapur, Hyderabad, and Guwahati, which were set to expire on June 30, will now continue.

TISS said that termination notice to all concerned TET Programme faculty and non-teaching staff, is hereby withdrawn with immediate effect. Staff are requested to continue their work, and salaries will be disbursed once the TET Support Grant is received by the institute.

The Progressive Students Forum, a student body, criticised the TISS administration on Saturday, demanding the immediate revocation of the "termination" of over 100 faculty and staff members.

They blamed the current TISS leadership (appointed by Centre) and Union government for the situation. The forum warned that the “mass termination” would lead to a scarcity of staff and negatively impact students' futures, potentially paving the way for "politically motivated" appointments.