The Maharashtra government on August 25 withdrew the 30-year upper age limit for admission to government-run tribal hostels, following a 13-day student agitation and hunger strike in Pune.
Tribal Development Minister Ashok Uike said the August 14 Government Resolution (GR) and related revised rules would be cancelled after discussions with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and tribal representatives.
The decision came a day after Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi wrote to Fadnavis, urging him to meet the protesting students and address their grievances.
While the government has removed the age barrier, students say their agitation will continue until wider concerns including inflation-linked maintenance allowances, insurance cover, better hostel facilities and compensation for the families of three tribal girls who died after a snakebite in Gadchiroli are addressed.
The controversy began with an earlier 26-year age limit, later raised to 30 after protests. Students have also raised concerns over alleged pregnancy tests for women returning to hostels after extended leave, as well as poor sanitation, food, healthcare and safety. Uike, meanwhile, has disputed Rahul Gandhi’s account of the hunger strike, saying the protest had ended before Gandhi’s visit.
Government Reverses Age Rule
The rollback marks a significant U-turn by the Maharashtra government after weeks of mounting opposition from tribal students. The Tribal Development Department had initially introduced a 26-year age ceiling for students seeking accommodation in government tribal hostels.
Following protests, the limit was revised to 30 through the August 14 GR, but students rejected the change and demanded that the upper age restriction be removed altogether. On August 25, Uike announced that there would now be no age restriction for admission.
“We have decided not to impose any age restriction after detailed deliberation on this issue,” he said after a meeting on hostel facilities, admissions and management. He also said the decision had been taken with Fadnavis’ approval and after discussions with protesting students and tribal legislators from different political parties.
The students, however, view the move as only one step towards resolving a much larger set of problems. Their demands include annual maintenance allowances linked to inflation, insurance protection, improved food and sanitation, medical facilities, pest control, recruitment against vacancies and stronger grievance mechanisms.
Reports have also cited demands for substantial compensation for the families of the three girls who died in the Gadchiroli snakebite incident.
Protest Grew Beyond Age Cap
The agitation gained momentum at a Pune hostel in Manjari, where students had been protesting for nearly two weeks. Their concerns extended beyond the eligibility rules to what they described as degrading and unsafe conditions in tribal hostels.
During Rahul Gandhi’s August 22 ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ programme in Pune, student Nisha Sable raised the issue directly with him. Gandhi subsequently wrote to Fadnavis on August 24, saying tribal students had told him that government hostels were often affected by inadequate food, sanitation and medical care.
He also highlighted allegations that female students returning after extended absence were required to undergo pregnancy tests and other medical examinations to establish their “fitness”. Gandhi described the alleged practice as an attack on students’ dignity and urged the Chief Minister to meet their representatives.
The government’s response came the following day, but the political narrative around Gandhi’s intervention has itself become contested. Uike criticised the Congress leader, saying Gandhi arrived after the hunger strike had already ended and that Congress leaders had not informed him of this development.
Meanwhile, the students’ concerns have been reinforced by a recent tragedy in Gadchiroli, where three tribal girls died after a snake entered a residential school hostel while they were sleeping. The incident prompted the state to order action against the institution and a wider safety review of tribal residential schools.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
The Maharashtra government’s decision to remove the age cap is an important acknowledgement that access to education cannot always be measured by a fixed number. Students from remote and economically disadvantaged communities may face disruptions that delay their education, making flexibility in public welfare schemes particularly important.
At the same time, the controversy shows why policy changes affecting vulnerable students must be accompanied by consultation, transparency and sensitivity to their lived realities. The allegations concerning women students, the reported hostel deficiencies and the Gadchiroli deaths deserve careful, independent scrutiny rather than political point-scoring.
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