Unlike general category students, SC/ST (scheduled castes/scheduled tribes) applicants do not have counsellors to guide them through the admissions process at Delhi University. The university is to blame for this because it is responsible for assigning counsellors for these applicants.

These applicants are made to fill a preference list of colleges and courses they wish to pursue and then they are allotted colleges in a centralised manner by the university. However, there is nobody to guide the SC/ST students who have not made it to the first and second lists or who have not made it to their colleges of choice.

Suraj, who got admission to Shraddhanand College but did not take admission there to keep his avenues open in the second list said, “There is nobody from the university here to guide us. I did not know I had to give an application in writing to the Students Welfare Body stating that I did not wish to take up the seat allotted to me in the first list and kindly consider me for the second list. So my name is not there in the second list and I don't know what to do."

Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS), a voluntary youth body has replaced the university in working to help SC/ST students. Alok, who is associated with KYS informed, “Students who don't get the course or college of their choice even after the second list have to wait till July 27, when SC/ST students will be told about vacancies in colleges for the courses they want and they can choose then. All this will be done when colleges are scheduled to start from July 21.”

On addressing SC/ST students’ grievances, J M Khurana, dean, student’s welfare said, “We are only following guidelines from the university and the UGC (University Grants Commission). We don’t have any say in who's going to be allotted what. It is all centralised. We cannot help all the students who want BCom (Hons) and Economics (Hons), students every year complain about not getting colleges of their choice, we cannot help that.”

Anita, an ST student, who does not want to take up Shivaji College, because it is far away from her house and does not offer hostel accommodation said, “There will be a face to face counselling for ST students for the first time on July 5, when we will be told how many seats are vacant in how many colleges that offer the course we want to do. So I am hoping to make it to a better college of my choice.”

Counselling on July 5 means more than a week after the second list was released. And for the SC students, the first counselling is scheduled for July 6 to July 8 and that too for students who have scored at least 60% in their school exams. As a result, many SC/ST students who will end up getting admission are being barred from availing counselling.