On Tuesday, we discussed how the MHRD was finding it difficult to intervene in a tussle between NIT
Rourkela’s Director and the Chairperson of the Board of Governors.
Over the last few days, reports of the MHRD interfering with
IITs and NITs have been pouring out. First, it was an article in the Telegraph that mentioned the MHRD setting up a committee to create a model syllabus,
common for all NITs. This is a move towards complete uniformity, which runs
against the autonomy the NITs enjoy at present.
Yesterday, Times of India ran a front page story of how the NHRD was interfering in the operation of IIT Delhi, with the deans
threatening to quit. This comes after last year’s fracas, when the IIT-D Director,
Prof. R K Shevgaonkar, resigned in protest against the interference he faced.
The Times ran a follow-up story today as well, mentioning that Anil Kakodkar, Chairman of the Board of Governors of
IIT Bombay had resigned in March this year after disagreement with the MHRD.
But it is not always that an MHRD intervention results in
allegations of intrusion and disagreement. Yesterday, NDTV reported that the MHRD has instructed all state boards to declare the Class 12 results
by May 31 next year. This comes in response to this year’s delay in starting
the Joint Seat Allocation process, which could not start in time, because some
boards had not released their results in time for CBSE to tabulate the results
and generate the JEE (Main) ranks. If the intervention succeeds, this will be a
very welcome move.