Phd scholars at Mangalore University face delays in fellowship disbursement

Mangaluru: The full-time PhD scholars at Mangalore University who receive monthly fellowship (JRF/SRF) have been left in the lurch as the disbursement has been delayed for more than five months.
According to PhD scholars, there was a maximum delay of 1.5 months earlier at the cash-strapped varsity; however, this time it has taken longer. The monthly fellowship starts from Rs 25,000 per month for full-time scholars under Junior Research Fellowship and Rs 30,000 for Senior Research Fellowship per month. Mangalore University has about 78 SC/ST PhD scholars on campus.
The PhD scholars said it is difficult to survive without the funds and it hampers their research work. "There is no clear communication from the finance office on when it (the pending amount) will be credited to our accounts," a research scholar said.
Another research scholar complained that the office sends back their claim bills citing unnecessary queries and finds fault in their claims. "As a result, we are frequently running to the administrative block to clear it," the scholar complained.
An official from the special officer SC/ST cell section at MU maintained that the delay is due to the varsity experiencing financial issues. Meanwhile, the fellowship of those scholars who recently joined and whose details have been sent to the finance official will be approved in a few days.
There was an attempt to cut down the current Rs 25,000 scholarship to Rs 10,000 per month to bring relief to the financial status of MU. However, it was opposed by the syndicate members, who advocated continuing the old practice. "It was proposed by the MU officials; however, it was opposed by syndicate members," said an official from the finance department of MU.
MU's finance officer Y Sangappa said the fellowship was not paid for the past four months and it will be done soon. "Last payment was done in December. The reasons are that some scholars were moved from JRF to SRF as they completed three years. Some scholars have not submitted the bills properly. However, the fellowship amount will be processed soon," he said.