IIT student strength to be one lakh by 2020

The Minister said the IIT-Council took the decision at its 50th meeting held on Wednesday.

New Delhi, Nov 24 The overall students' strength of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in the country will be enhanced to one lakh by 2020, the government told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.

In a written reply, Minister of State for Human Resource Development Mahendra Nath Pandey said the IIT-Council has approved, in-principle, the proposal for increasing the overall students' strength in the IITs from the current 82,604 to one lakh by the year 2020.

The Minister said the IIT-Council took the decision at its 50th meeting held on Wednesday.

While asserting that there "is no adverse effect" on studies in the institutes due to shortage of faculty, Pandey said the IITs were taking faculty-enhancing measures.

"The IITs have been taking measures to attract quality faculty, which include year-round open advertisements, invitation through search-cum-selection procedures to alumni/scientists/faculty, advertisements in international journals, and appointment of NRIs and PIOs to faculty positions on the same terms as applicable to regular faculty.

"In addition, Institutes are engaging contract, adjunct and visiting faculty," he said.

"The government has also launched the Global Initiative for Academic Networks (GIAN) to enable foreign faculty to teach some courses in the higher educational institutions," said the minister.

He also said that several steps such as outstanding young faculty awards, mobility of faculty from one central educational institute to another, and pay parity to faculty have also been taken to attract best faculty in these institutions.

IANS