🎓 College Grievance Management System (CGMS)

A comprehensive web-based grievance management system built for educational institutions to streamline complaint handling and resolution processes.

🌟 Features

👥 Multi-Role System

• Students: Submit complaints, track progress, provide feedback
• Staff: Manage assigned complaints, send responses, update status
• Admin: Oversee all operations, manage users, assign complaints

📋 Complaint Management

• Complete complaint lifecycle (Submit → Assign → Progress → Resolve)
• File attachment support (Images, PDF, DOC, DOCX)
• Real-time status tracking with unique tracking IDs
• Priority-based categorization (High, Medium, Low)
• Department-wise complaint routing

📧 Email Notifications

• Student registration notifications
• Admin approval confirmations
• Staff account creation with temporary passwords
• Complaint assignment notifications
• Status update alerts

🔐 Security Features

• JWT-based authentication
• Role-based access control
• Admin approval for student registrations
• File upload validation and security
• CORS protection

📊 Analytics Dashboard

• Real-time complaint statistics
• User role distribution
• Department-wise metrics
• Status-based filtering

🛠️ Technology Stack

Backend

• Framework: Django 6.0.2 + Django REST Framework
• Database: SQLite (development) / PostgreSQL (production ready)
• Authentication: JWT (Simple JWT)
• Email: SMTP (Gmail)
• File Storage: Local storage with validation

Frontend

• Framework: React 19.2.4 + Vite
• Routing: React Router DOM
• Styling: Bootstrap 5.3.8 + Custom CSS
• HTTP Client: Axios
• Icons: Bootstrap Icons

🚀 Installation & Setup

Prerequisites

• Python 3.8+
• Node.js 16+
• Git

Backend Setup

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/krushnajadhav09/college-grievance-management-system.git
   cd college-grievance-management-system/grievance_backend

2. Create virtual environment

   python -m venv venv
   source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

3. Install dependencies

   pip install -r requirements.txt

4. Environment Configuration

   cp .env.example .env
   # Edit .env with your settings:
   # - SECRET_KEY (generate a new one)
   # - EMAIL_HOST_USER (your Gmail)
   # - EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD (Gmail app password)

5. Database Setup

   python manage.py makemigrations
   python manage.py migrate
   python manage.py createsuperuser

6. Run Backend Server

   python manage.py runserver

Frontend Setup

1. Navigate to frontend directory

   cd ../grievance_frontend

2. Install dependencies

   npm install

3. Environment Configuration

   cp .env.example .env
   # Edit .env if needed (API URL is auto-configured)

4. Run Frontend Server

   npm run dev

🌐 Access the Application

• Frontend: http://localhost:5173
• Backend API: http://localhost:8000/api/
• Admin Panel: http://localhost:8000/admin/

📱 User Guide

For Students

1. Register: Create account (requires admin approval)
2. Login: Access after approval
3. Submit Complaint: Fill form with details and attachments
4. Track Progress: Monitor status updates
5. Provide Feedback: Rate resolution quality

For Staff

1. Login: Use credentials provided by admin
2. View Assignments: See complaints assigned to you
3. Update Status: Mark progress (Pending → In Progress → Resolved)
4. Send Responses: Communicate with students
5. Internal Notes: Add staff-only comments

For Admin

1. Dashboard: View system analytics
2. User Management: Approve students, create staff accounts
3. Complaint Assignment: Route complaints to appropriate staff
4. Department Management: Organize staff by departments
5. Category Management: Maintain complaint categories

🔧 Configuration

Email Setup (Gmail)

1. Enable 2-Factor Authentication on your Gmail account
2. Generate an App Password: Google Account → Security → App passwords
3. Add credentials to .env file:

   EMAIL_HOST_USER=your-email@gmail.com
   EMAIL_HOST_PASSWORD=your-app-password
   

Security Settings

• Change SECRET_KEY in production
• Set DEBUG=False for production
• Configure ALLOWED_HOSTS for your domain
• Update CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS for your frontend URL

📁 Project Structure

college-grievance-system/
├── grievance_backend/          # Django Backend
│   ├── config/                 # Project settings
│   ├── users/                  # User management app
│   ├── complaints/             # Complaint management app
│   ├── notifications/          # Notification system
│   ├── media/                  # File uploads
│   └── requirements.txt
├── grievance_frontend/         # React Frontend
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── components/         # Reusable components
│   │   ├── pages/              # Page components
│   │   ├── services/           # API services
│   │   └── assets/             # Static assets
│   └── package.json
└── README.md

🔒 Security Features

• Authentication: JWT tokens with refresh mechanism
• Authorization: Role-based access control
• File Upload: Type and size validation
• CORS: Restricted to specific origins
• Input Validation: Server-side validation for all inputs
• Password Security: Django's built-in password validation

📊 API Endpoints

Authentication

• POST /api/auth/register/ - Student registration
• POST /api/auth/token/ - Login
• POST /api/auth/token/refresh/ - Refresh token

Complaints

• GET /api/complaints/ - List complaints (role-filtered)
• POST /api/complaints/ - Create complaint
• PUT /api/complaints/{id}/ - Update complaint
• POST /api/complaints/{id}/assign/ - Assign complaint
• POST /api/complaints/{id}/respond/ - Add response

Users

• GET /api/auth/users/ - List users (admin only)
• POST /api/auth/users/ - Create user (admin only)
• GET /api/auth/users/pending/ - Pending approvals

🤝 Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

👨‍💻 Developer

Krushna Jadhav

• Email: jadhavkrushna705@gmail.com
• GitHub: @krushnajadhav09

🙏 Acknowledgments

• Built as part of academic project
• Inspired by modern grievance management systems
• Thanks to the open-source community for the amazing tools

---

⭐ If you found this project helpful, please give it a star!