IIT Bombay data shows limited SC, ST and OBC faculty representation

An RTI application has highlighted limited SC, ST and OBC representation across IIT Bombay's faculty ranks. The figures have drawn attention amid scrutiny of the institute and renewed questions over how caste concerns are addressed.

In Short

• IIT Bombay had 412 professors, including five SC and six OBC members
• The institute had no ST professor as of September 2026
• Among 363 junior faculty, 29 were SC, eight ST, 35 OBC

The representation of Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Other Backward Classes (OBC) communities among the faculty of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay remains limited, according to figures obtained through a Right to Information (RTI) application.

The RTI data shows that, as of September 2026, IIT Bombay had 412 professors, of whom five belonged to the SC community and six to the OBC community. There was no ST professor at the institute.

SC FACULTY COUNT RISES AMID SCRUTINY

At the levels of associate professor and assistant professor, the institute had 363 faculty members. Among them were 29 SC, eight ST and 35 OBC faculty members, according to the information supplied under the RTI.

The application was filed by Gowd Kiran Kumar, chairperson of the All India OBC Students Association. The latest figures were compared with information supplied by IIT Bombay in response to an earlier RTI application in February.

The February figures recorded 33 SC faculty members across the professor, associate professor and assistant professor ranks. At that time, the institute had one ST associate professor and seven ST assistant professors, while 41 faculty members belonged to the OBC community.

The September figures therefore show an increase of one in the total number of SC faculty members across the three ranks, according to Kumar.

The figures have come to public notice at a time when IIT Bombay is under scrutiny following the death of 22-year-old student Sahil Wakode earlier this month. Wakode allegedly died by suicide after being caught cheating in a mid-semester examination.

The institute has stated that he was counselled by faculty members, while his parents have alleged that he was subjected to caste-based slurs. An inquiry into the matter is in progress.

Kumar has questioned the extent of SC, ST and OBC representation in premier educational institutions and raised the question of whether limited representation may affect the manner in which caste-related concerns among students and researchers are understood and addressed.

He has also stressed the importance of greater faculty diversity, arguing that qualified scholars from SC, ST and OBC communities, including those possessing doctorates from leading Indian and foreign universities, should receive greater opportunities in academic institutions.

The RTI figures thus present a picture of faculty representation at IIT Bombay in which the numbers differ considerably according to rank and community, with the smallest representation appearing at the professor level.

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