The Indian Agriculture Research Institute (IARI) in Delhi widely known as Pusa Institute has asked nearly 2,200 students to vacate the campus and return home, with classes shifting online from April 6, 2026. The government-run institute cited the ongoing fuel crisis stemming from the US-Iran war in West Asia as the reason behind the move.
The students affected include all undergraduate batches, master’s degree first-year students, and PhD first-year students of the academic year 2025-26.
An official notice dated March 25, issued by Suresh Kumar, senior registrar at IARI, pointed to “the current energy crisis being faced by the country and its impact being felt by the institute” in running hostel messes. Kumar stated the decision was taken “based on inhouse due diligence in consultation with students’ representatives.”
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The notice left no room for ambiguity on compliance. “Students of these batches shall leave the campus for their respective homes till further communication from The Graduate School. Students should note that it will not be optional,” it read.
Second-year and beyond students in Masters, MTech, and PhD programmes at both IARI New Delhi and its sister institutes are not affected. They will continue attending offline classes and carry on with their research as usual.
On academics, the notice said professors must submit a plan to the Joint Director of Education for conducting practicals of courses taught online, to be implemented once students return to campus.
“This order is being issued in compliance to the directive of the competent authority, ICAR-IARI, New Delhi,” the notice added.
IARI is one of India’s premier agricultural research institutions, funded and administered by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).
