IIT cutoff for SC/ST falls to 18 pc

Mumbai, Aug 2: The entrance test result released by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) shows that students belonging to SC and ST category who even scored a mere 18 percent made it to the top technology institutes of the country.

Though a minimum of 35 pc is essential to be promoted to a higher class under almost every Indian school board or university, but in IIT entrance the students who scored even 18 pc made it to the top technology schools.

The IITs were forced to make various concessions to fill SC and ST seats from this year. Entry levels were lowered to half of what the last general category student scored.

So, as the last general category student admitted to the IITs scored 178 out of 480, the cut-off for an SC and ST student was brought down to 89 that is half of 178. Till last year, the cut-off for SC and ST students used to be 60 pc of the score of the last general category student.

But even this did not help the IITs to fill up the quota seats, which are nearly 1,100 out of 2,500 seats for reserved category students. IITs opened up the preparatory programme, a yearlong bridge course to equip these students for the competitive level of these top institutes.

In a report on the performance of the SC and ST students in IIT, given by two former Directors of IITs, P. V. Indiresan, and N.C.Nigam, says "Nearly 50 pc of the reserved seats remain vacant as SC/ST students are unable to secure the minimum threshold marks. Of those admitted, almost 25 pc are asked to leave due to poor performance."

ANI