Saurabh Kumar Kedia is a student at IIM-Bangalore. He says no student wants to pay more fees for his studies, but at the same time, no IIM student wants the quality of his education to suffer either.
Mr Murli Manohar Joshi finally had his way! He cut the (IIM) fees to Rs 30,000 and also had the budget allocation reduced to Rs 48 crore (Rs 480 million)from Rs 73 crore (Rs 730 million).
But what is the most surprising element in this whole process is the silence of the Prime Minister and other senior Cabinet ministers.
Even the most stringent opposition from the most-affected lot, the IIM students, was completely disregarded by the ministry. This, when the IIM students are said to be the best brains in the country!
It is true that no student wants to pay more fees for his studies, but at the same time, no IIM student wants the quality of his education to suffer either.
The kind of measures the government has taken has put a question mark over the IIM's autonomy. It seems the government is bent on taking control of one of the most visible faces of the Indian education system in the guise of 'public welfare.' It seems to be a political gimmick.
Another factor that is troubling the minds of the students is the higher intake of students. While an increase is required, the quality of the education should not suffer.
With an average classroom already having 70-plus students, there are doubts over how fast the institutes can build up extra infrastructure and add faculty to cope with the higher intake.
It is sure to impact the quality of learning in the long term as well as the short term.
We hope that Mr Joshi will come out and ensure that every student will continue to get the best facilities. Later, I hope, no one says : 'What can students expect for just Rs 30,000?,' because we, Mr Joshi, are ready to bear the extra expenditure for quality, something that the IIMs exemplify!
- As told to rediff.com Business Desk
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