The Delhi University (DU) teachers have been offended with the recent proposal by the HRD ministry to declare St. Stephen's as an autonomous institution which can give its own degrees. Teachers have questioned whether the institution will be able to function well if made autonomous adding the move by the ministry might deprive the University of one of its best colleges that has earned the reputation for being a prestigious institution all over India. The concept of autonomous colleges had already been rejected by DU when it was first introduced in the country as its primary aim was to make institutions more self sufficient by increasing their resources as it creates a sense of diversity rather than unifying entities that are socially diverse. DU has already lost the Delhi College of Engineering and since St. Stephen's is one of the jewels of the university, making it autonomous will not be a wise move. DUTA members have also been urging the DU Vice Chancellor Dinesh Singh to oppose any move by the HRD ministry to declare St. Stephen's an autonomous institution.
