Cuttack: The administration has decided to withhold salaries of employees for next month in over half of the 210 state-run and aided colleges in the district over failure to submit mandatory internal complaints committee (ICC) compliance reports within the deadline. The administration has also threatened to suspend college principals if they fail to provide required information within the next 24 hours. Colleges were given a 48-hour window to provide comprehensive reports detailing the composition of ICCs, contact information, complaints received, actions taken and verification by the principals.“We requested for these reports to upload them on the district website, ensuring transparency and accountability. Despite clear instructions, more than half of the colleges failed to respond,” Cuttack district collector Dattatraya Bhausaheb Shinde said on Wednesday.The directive was issued in response to the July 12 self-immolation by a 20-year-old female student at a college in Balasore over alleged inaction in a sexual harassment case she had lodged against her department head. The incident has heightened scrutiny on the functionality of ICCs across educational institutions and the higher education department has since demanded urgent updates on ICC operations. Previously, the collector’s office had issued letters to institutions, urging them to submit signed verification regarding constitution and operations of the ICCs. These reports are crucial to comply with UGC regulations and for fostering safe campuses for students and staff. “It is a matter of institutional responsibility. ICCs are mandatory by law and non-compliance puts students at risk. For such irresponsible conduct, salary disbursal was stalled for the colleges,” Shinde added.
