Grievance Committee - Kumaraguru College of Liberal Arts & Science (KCLAS)

Preamble

Kumaraguru College of Liberal Arts and Science fosters a conducive and harmonious work environment. The College recognises the importance of establishing an effective mechanism and instituted a Grievance Redressal Committee in accordance with University Grants Commission regulations 2018. Grievance Redressal Committee facilitates the resolution for grievances in a fair and transparent manner, maintaining necessary confidentiality. Any stakeholder with legitimate grievances is encouraged to approach the Grievance Redressal Cell and submit their grievances in writing or via email to [email protected]

Objectives

1. Attend to the general grievances of the students, staff (teaching and nonteaching), parents, alumni and suggest redressal measures within the framework of the College/ University/ Government Rules.
2. Instruct the official/s concerned to attend the grievances.
3. Ensure expeditions settlement of grievances of students to maintain a harmonious academic atmosphere in the college.
4. Promote cordial relationships among students, among staff and among students & teachers.
5. Maintain records of the Grievances redressed/ reported/ referred.

Definition

Grievance: A grievance refers to a formal complaint lodged by any stakeholder regarding any discomfort experienced within the workplace. There are various reasons for raising a grievance, and multiple approaches to handling such situations. It encompasses any form of dissatisfaction or negative perception, whether expressed or unexpressed, arising from any aspect related to the institution that a student, parent, staff member, alumni, or the public believes to be unfair, unjust, or inequitable.

Grievant: Grievant means stakeholder i.e., a student, parent, staff member, alumni, public or group of students or parents or staff members submitting the grievance.

Grievance Redressal Mechanism

Grievance Redressal Committee

The grievance redressal committee is a high-power committee holds the responsibility of addressing and remedying grievances. The committee adheres to the principal of natural justice, is dedicated to expeditiously considering each grievance and applying its best efforts to arrive at a just and amicable resolution. The committee will consider only the formal grievances received via email at [email protected] or in person.

The Grievance Redressal Committee consists of the following members:

The Grievance Redressal Committee consists of the following members
S.No	Name	Designation	Position	Contact No	Mail ID
1	Dr. Vijilla Edwin Kennedy	Principal	Chairperson	99944 95193	[email protected]
2	Dr. N.Manicka Mahesh	Associate Professor – Commerce	Convenor	90035 07476	[email protected]
3	Dr. G. Jayanthi	Associate Professor – Administration	Member	94427 38561	[email protected]
4	Dr.K.Deepa	Associate Professor – Commerce	Member	97902 01146	[email protected]
5	Ms. S. Nivetha	Assistant Professor-English	Member	87784 86273	[email protected]
6	Mr. Clifford Chetan Ambler	Assistant Professor Visual Communication – Member		9538525368	[email protected]

Student Members
1	Bhuvaneswari P	B.Com P.A –	2021-24	80724 09175	[email protected]
2	Siddharth SM	B.Com	2021-24	75388 81542	[email protected]
3	N Vinu Varshini	BBA	2022-25	90251 02992	[email protected]
4	Mohith Ram S G	Viscom	2022-25	73391 88186	[email protected]
5	Rithik Sanjay K	Political Science – PG	2022-23	80153 33223	[email protected]

Functions of the Committee :

To enable stakeholders to express their grievances openly, without any fear of retaliation.
To ensure that there is no retribution against applicants, witnesses, or participants involved in the grievance redressal process due to their engagement
To assess the merits of grievances and conduct formal hearings and investigations, as required by each case
To safeguard the privacy and confidentiality of all parties involved in the investigation, while adhering to the established policy guidelines.
To gather relevant and unbiased information from reliable sources in a fair and impartial manner, aiming to reach a resolution between the parties mentioned in the grievance application
To ensure expeditious resolution of every grievance application, within a maximum period of one month from its receipt

Scope of the Committee

Process for Addressing the Grievance

Any complaint may directly be addressed to the grievance committee or may reach through student representatives / department
Upon receiving a complaint, the grievance committee will promptly send a response to the complainant, acknowledging the receipt of the grievance
During this stage, the committee will document the grievance, conduct an inquiry, and investigate the issue
Based on the nature of the grievance, the committee may directly resolve the issue with the assistance of the relevant department or redirect it to the appropriate problem solver
The committee will communicate the actions taken or the work-in-progress in a timely manner
Once the issue has been resolved, the committee will inform the complainant of the decision taken.
The committee will maintain an updated record of all documents and submit them to the head of the institution.

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)

Stakeholders with genuine grievances should submit their complaints, along with any necessary documents, either through the email [email protected] , or by filling out the online form on the respective webpage, or by submitting a signed hard copy of the grievance complaint in person to the Grievance Committee.
The Grievance Redressal Committee will promptly acknowledge the receipt of each grievance complaint. In the case of emails, the sender will receive a reply acknowledging the receipt of their email.
Upon receiving a grievance, the committee will categorize and analyse its merits, aiming to resolve the issue 0 – 7 working days. If necessary, the grievance will be forwarded to the respective problem solver.
The Grievance Redressal Committee will coordinate, monitor, and ensure timely redressal based on the seriousness of each grievance. Regular follow-ups will be conducted, including reminders, until final disposal.
After the hearing or investigation, the Grievance Redressal Committee will make its best efforts to reach a resolution of the issues involved with the parties named in the grievance application. The committee will pass an order indicating the reasons for the decision, as deemed appropriate.
Upon conclusion of the proceedings, the committee will communicate the final decision to the complainant via email.
Each grievance proceeding will be systematically recorded. Information regarding the proceedings will be treated as confidential and accessible only to the members of the Grievance Redressal Committee for investigative purposes.

Exclusions

The Grievance Redressal Committee will not consider or address the following complaints or grievances :

Decisions made by the Academic Council/Academic Committees established by KCLAS.
Complaints involving policy matters that have not directly or indirectly affected the grievant
Decisions pertaining to the allocation of Fellowships, fee concessions, awards, etc.
Decisions related to disciplinary matters and instances of misconduct.
Decisions regarding selection and admission.
Decisions made by the competent authority concerning assessment, examination results, revaluation, or remarking of answer sheets
Anonymous and frivolous complaints will not be entertained or processed.