The Hindu Business Line : Standing tall among B-schools

THE Indian Institute of Social Welfare & Business Management (IISWBM), Kolkata, was earlier known as the All India Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management.

Founded in 1953, it was christened IISWBM in 1958. The institute celebrated its fifty years of existence as a separate legal entity this April 25. It was created through a resolution adopted by the Syndicate of the University of Calcutta on April 25 fifty years ago.

IISWBM has the distinction of introducing the first programme on management education in India. The golden jubilee celebrations of the IISWBM, therefore, will also mean the celebration of `fifty years of management education in India'.

The institute is located in the most exciting and prestigious academic ambience of College Square where the University of Calcutta, Presidency College, Calcutta Medical College and the All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health are also located.

The institute building has two blocks. The foundation stone of one was laid by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, and the other by Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy, the famous Chief Minister of West Bengal.

Created in response to a strongly felt need of independent India, the institute had, as its midwives, the Ministry of Scientific and Cultural Affairs, Government of India; All India Board of Technical Studies in Management, Ministry of Education, Government of West Bengal; Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Indian Chamber of Commerce, Bharat Chamber of Commerce, Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry and personalities such as Sir Biren Mukherjee, Srimati Renuka Ray, Professor D.K. Sanyal, Lala Lakhsmipat Singhania and many others.

Since 1958, the institute has been run by a board of governors which includes, among others, the Vice-Chancellor and the Pro-Vice Chancellor (Finance), University of Calcutta, Principal Secretary, Department of Education, Government of West Bengal, representatives from four Chambers of Commerce, the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, and the All India Council of Technical Education as members.

Dr B.C. Roy, the former Chief Minister of West Bengal, was the first President of the board of governors. He was succeeded by Mr Prafulla Chandra Sen, the then Chief Minister of West Bengal. At present, Dr Pratap Chandra Chunder, eminent educationist and a former Union Minister of Education, is the President of the board of governors.

IISWBM runs a few programmes during the day and others in the evening. The Masters in Business Administration course is affiliated to the University of Calcutta and is offered both during the day and in the evening.

The programme on Public Systems Management offered during the day has four areas of specialisation: Energy, Environment, Health Care and Hospital Management and Transportation and Logistics Management. The Post-Graduate Diploma in Business Management and Post-Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management are offered in the evening.

All the courses offered by the institute are approved by the All India Council for Technical Education and are run in accordance with its guidelines.

The institute now has about 1,200 students, of which over a third are women. A spokesperson of IISWBM said the institute has an effective placement programme, which helps students start satisfying and rewarding careers.

In the course of its existence for five decades, IISWBM has produced quite a few distinguished alumni who are internationally and nationally known for their contributions and command the admiration of their colleagues in the areas of their choice.

Some of the better known are Professor Sumantra Ghosal of London Business School, Mr L.N. Mittal, the global steel magnet, Mr Sudhir Jalan, former President of FICCI, and Dr C.V. Chandrashekaran, Managing Director of Balmer Lawrie group.

Dr Jyotirmoy Pal Chaudhuri, Professor-in-charge of the golden jubilee celebrations of IISWBM, is of the opinion that a degree in management has become a highly coveted "commodity".

"To cater to the demands of the market, new suppliers have appeared and we notice a mushrooming of institutions awarding management degrees in our country. The altered backdrop, however, has not changed the status of IISWBM — the oldest of the management institutes in India. It continues to project an unsullied and unassailable image of itself and attract students from all over India and from foreign countries as well," Dr Palchaudhuri said.

He further felt that the institute's rich tradition, ability to combine time-honoured values with state-of-the-art technology constitutes its strength and so remains unique among other B-schools in the country.

IISWBM's claims to offer the first business management education course at times met some controversies. Several organisations disagreed with it time and again. However, IISWBM has its records right.

"Sir Dorabji Tata School of Social Work, Bombay, was founded earlier than IISWBM in 1936 but this institute offered diploma in social work only and not in business management. So was the case with XLRI, Jamshedpur. This institute was earlier known as Xavier Labour Relations Institute. It was founded in 1949. Again XLRI offered diploma courses in labour relations and not in business management," Dr Pal Chaudhuri clarified.

Professor Ashoke K. Dutta, Director of IISWBM, also claimed that the institute was the first to market itself on the Internet. "We have a modern video conferencing facility that allows the students to interact with the students of others parts of the world on joint programme and joint teaching assignments. They get access to lectures from abroad on the video conferencing mode," he said.

Meanwhile, the faculty members of IISWBM regularly undertake several consultancy projects. For example, the institute participated in the World Bank's rehabilitation and resettlement schemes for project oustees in NTPC Farakka Project and mining projects of Coal India Ltd. It had also undertaken preparation of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environmental Management Plans (EMP).

In 1996-97, the faculty of the institute worked as consultant to Coal India in several matters including recruitment to their executive cadre. The institute also acted as consultant in personnel matters to the Calcutta State Transport Corporation and the West Bengal State Electricity Board.

The institute assisted Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad, in their newly introduced MBA programme by way of providing teaching support in some areas of the course. The Environment Department of the institute provided consultancy to some companies in preparation of their EIA and EMP.

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