Do we need more IITs and IIMs, ask academics

The announcement of five new IITs and five IIMs has drawn mixed reactions from the academic community which believes that there are bigger issues, such as quality and faculty shortage, which need to be addressed.

Rohan Shukla, a student at IIT Bombay, said, “If big brands are also diluted, students will have all the more reason to go abroad and pursue higher studies. There is already a dearth of good quality teachers and this would be further aggravated with more IITs and IIMs being announced.”

Foolproof plan While this means that more aspirants can now avail themselves of quality education, Aakash Chaudhry, Director, Aakash Educational Services Ltd, which runs Aakash coaching institutes for engineering and medicine, said, “A foolproof plan bearing the right kind of faculty, infrastructure, jobs and market ready curriculum is vital for expansion of these centres of excellence. A great amount of mentorship is also important from the existing centres to facilitate the same level of excellence for new institutes.”

Existing institutes also need revision in curriculum, besides infrastructure upgrade. Sanjay Dhande, former Director, IIT Kanpur, said, “While this definitely means more opportunities for the middle class which is increasingly demanding high-quality education, just making provisions of money is not enough. For IITs, innovation in the curriculum in needed, besides strong academic leadership.”

Long run New IITs and IIMs were a poll promise of the BJP in its manifesto for the general election. Shukla said the decision could have been stalled for a while, adding that “in the long run it might add value, with more focus on quality than quantity”.

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