Part 3: What Happened and What Didn’t—A Look into the Ministries: Ministry of Community Well-Being, Ministry of Technology and Jazbaa

In a three-part series, The Edict examines the achievements of the Ministries within the Ashoka University Student Government (AUSG) so far. The goals set by the ministries at the AUSG open meeting on 23rd September 2024 are compared with the Recap Reports sent to the student body via email on 31st December 2024, AUSG Monthly Reports released on 2nd April, interviews with the Ministers, and any other emails sent to assess their accomplishments.

This is the final part of the series.

Ministry Of Community Well-Being (MCWB) 

The Ministry of Community Well Being (MCWB) works closely with the Ashoka Centre for Well Being (ACWB) and the Infirmary to help students with their mental and physical well-being on campus. 

At the beginning of the academic year, Rs. 25,750 was allotted to MCWB. After the reallocation of the budget in Spring ‘25, the ministry was left with Rs. 23,750. Of the reallocated budget, it has spent Rs. 18,803, according to the AUSG expense sheet. MCWB Minister, Padma Morusupalli (UG ’25), tells The Edict that the budget is expected to be fully utilized by the end of the semester, as they have to cover expenses including Mental Health workshops, printing costs for the Mental Health repository, and team meetings. 

In the budget open meeting on 23rd September 2024, MCWB outlined a goal to hold more workshops and events for students. As per email records many of the workshops— Outlet Nostalgia,  (a nostalgic event for food outlets that are missed on campus,), Forks Up (an online recipe contest on social media that got over 15 responses), a Karaoke event, Crochet workshop, Sharing circles and a Gynecology Camp—were organised. 

MCWB also collated and shared a ‘Mental Health Repository’ with the student body that contained contacts of various mental health professionals in October 2024. They conducted several surveys about the infirmary, Pad Care Vending machines and psychotherapists in the Monsoon ‘24 semester. A comprehensive repository of the infirmary policies, available medications and summary profiles of the doctors was released in April 2025. 

On 7th April, MCWB released a Sexual Health Repository to help Ashokans access information about hygienic and safe sex. “...we realised that it was really important to not just talk about  the amenities and the facilities that the campus provides, but also in general have a place where you can go to to talk about consent, to talk about what safe sex looks like”, says Morusupalli.

According to the AUSG’s monthly reports from January-February,  MCWB is collaborating with Pahunch—an initiative by YIF students to create inclusive and accessible places on campus– to create sensory relief spaces. Additionally, they are also collaborating with the Ministry of Academic Affairs on a mental health accommodations project, where they aim to appoint a Chief Medical Officer through whom prescription medications and mental health accommodations can be routed. 

Currently, MCWB is attempting to work with a third-party organisation to establish a 24/7 mental health helpline and counselling services. 

In February 2025, MCWB formalised a collaboration with MAA and Campus Life Ministry (CLM) to compile an International Student Handbook. Interviews are currently being conducted for this project. 

The AUSG monthly report from October to November mentions that the MCWB conducted pilot interviews for the Workers Project. However, the ministry has not shared any updates about the project via email.

Ministry of Technology (TechMin) 

The Ministry of Technology (TechMin) provides students with digitised help through initiatives like semester planners, CGPA calculators, SG Compose, online course review resources, a public ticketing system, cab and subscription pool systems, grade planners, assets borrow resources that help students borrow electronic assets from chargers to phones, a WiFi heat map and an intercollegiate events portal. 

The ministry has spent Rs. 23,329 of its Rs. 37500 budget so far, primarily on server costs and organising events. According to Minister Ibrahim Khalil (UG ‘26) they expect to exhaust the remaining approximately 40% on recurring server costs for the months remaining (till July), Events, Marketing and Team Management by the end of the academic year.

After repeated complaints about campus WiFi, the goal of the WiFi heatmap was to gather data to raise the issue with the administration. This issue was later put forth to the administration to no avail. 

To increase transparency, TechMin has also introduced a separate ticketing system, available on the AUSG’s website, to address any concerns. 

 The ‘SG compose’ email management tool became popular by minimising inbox clutter and organising communications from the AUSG into aliases.  The initiative made it easier to send emails to the student body. 

Alongside that, TechMinalso organised various events and workshops. While some of them, like the real-life Among Us game, were recreational, others, like the course registration workshops or the ‘Tech-It Easy’ workshop in collaboration with the MAA to introduce students to all the tech tools they need to know in Ashoka, made for useful resources, especially for first years. 

TechMin, in collaboration with MAA and the IT Team, made Space Bookings available on the Academic Management System (AMS) to increase transparency. In February 2025, the ministry completed the Mailroom Digitisation Project, where students receive notifications when “their packages are logged”. According to AUSG’s monthly report from January-February, this initiative reduces the “workload for mailroom staff” and “minimises student wait times”.

The Cultural Ministry (Jazbaa)

A variety of events like Shaam-E-Jazbaa, Freshers, Garba Night and Sopaan, to name a few, were organised by the Cultural Ministry during Monsoon ‘24. In the open meeting, presenting the AUSG Budget, the ministry mentioned its priority towards maintaining an atmosphere of inclusivity and accessibility during events this academic year.  

In an interview with The Edict, Minister Saransh Goel (UG ‘26) said that Jazbaa has done a great job this year in honouring that commitment.  In collaboration with MCWB and CLM, Jazbaa has proposed that the administration should install ramps at the amphitheatre, Reddy’s auditorium and the frisbee field (this project is expected to be completed by August 2025), by collaborating with other clubs and societies such as ALF. This served to make events more inclusive and accessible through a more friendly induction process for those with special needs and including sensory zones during the concert. 

In collaboration with the Ministry of Technology, Jazbaa also launched the intercollegiate events portal to track the upcoming festivals and streamline opportunities for students.

Other attempts towards this inclusion involved initiatives like including clay in the Mural painting programme during Janmashtami,  for the visually impaired students, and observing World Deaf Day and the International Day of Sign Languages. According to the minister, Jazbaa’s inclusivity team actively participated in the accessibility and inclusivity workshops held across campus, using the opportunity to learn and grow. 

According to the AUSG’s monthly report from January and February, Jazbaa worked on a proposal to increase participation in performing arts societies by increasing available spaces on campus and providing a structured budget for student-led activities.

So far, Jazbaa has spent Rs. 71,007 from its budget of Rs. 1,06,550. Goel expects to allocate the remaining fund of Rs. 35,443 to the Seniors Week. 

(Edited by Srijana Siri and Fatema Tambawalla)