PanIIT Alumni oppose quota; suggest alternatives

New Delhi, June 18: The PanIIT Alumni organisations have opposed quotas for OBC and said reservation is not the correct approach to creating equal opportunities for all sections of society.

The PanIIT Organisation, US, PanIIT-India Executive Council and Global PanIIT Coordination Council, which represent about 1,50,000 alumni of seven IITs worldwide, have written to President A P J Abdul Kalam and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recommending alternatives for quotas.

They have also urged the government to include its members as representatives on the advisory panel to help implement affirmative action.

''Overall we are supportive of affirmative action... However, we do not believe that the system of reservation is the correct approach. We oppose the creation of reservation quotas for OBC,'' PanIIT Alumni Organisations said in the letter.

''We admire the Government's allocation of resources and the appointment of the advisory council for examining these issues,'' it added.

IIT alumni have held considerable deliberations on the reservation issue and ''we believe that quotas are not the viable alternatives'', they said.

They recommended that merit and excellence be the guiding principles in implementing reforms.

''Reservation along lines of caste, creed and ethnicity have only served to divided people and are regressive and counter productive to the fundamental goals of social change,'' they added.

''Consensus amongst us is that we can bring about reforms through fundamental changes in the method in which opportunities are created for all people regardless of caste, colour, religion or social orientation.'' Advocating affirmative action for mass education at primary level, they said the IITs were formed to create a group of Indians to be globally competitive.

''IITs were not created for mass education.... From the beginning, the vision that has guided the IITs was that these should be institutions of excellence in technology education and research.'' ''Increased access to primary and secondary education in backward areas will create opportunities for people from all classes to be better prepared for the joint entrance examinations for IIT,'' they said.

Pointing out that the current system of quotas is ineffective, and facilities for education are inadequate in IITs, the organsiations advocated improvement of infrastructure at the seven premier institutions.

''The acute shortage of faculty and inadequate infrastructure-- hostel rooms, facilities for pupils, research labs and other such issues must be addressed before increasing the intake of students.'' They claimed that reservation would compromise national interest.

''IITs have gained worldwide recognition, which is hard won, and have played a very important role in rising international esteem for India in the recent years.... We urge the current and future leaders to preserve and enhance this great brand,'' they added.

''This recognition can be preserved by continuing to be uncompromising in the highest standards of education and maintaining the system of merit. Anything else would be against national interest,'' the recommendations said.

They said IITs need to enhance their standards to be an important part of the emerging knowledge economy.

UNI

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