SRINAGAR: Even as the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has joined academia and the civil society in opposing New Delhi’s extension of Union-backed IITs and IIMs to J&K, the largely unregulated coaching businesses in Kashmir is lobbying hard to get the project going. The coaching businesses are anticipating enhanced opportunities in case hundreds of thousands of non-Kashmiri students start swarming Valley.
A newly floated organization “Coaching Centers Association”, being run by a real estate upstart, has not just welcomed the Modi government’s move to set up institutes of technology and management studies in every state but has also ridiculed the chief minister’s opposing stance.
“Instead of welcoming the central policy and giving suggestions to improve them, CM has straightway opposed a plan that could have expanded the reach of these quality institutes to more students,” says G N Var, who has business interest in the haphazardly growing coaching industry of Indian cities.
In his fresh tweet the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has derided the move stating, “IITs and IIMs in every state is a terrible idea and will dilute these institutions. There’s a need to make existing IITs and IIMs world class.”
Omar’s opposition, though not substantiated by any impressive record from J&K, has found resonance across the Indian academia.
An IIT and IIM in every state means setting up 13 new IITsand 15 IIMs in the country. Instead, academia wants the Modi government to focus on improving the existing institutes by improving infrastructure and retaining talent by enhancing the pay package of faculty.
“Had the Modi government done a reality check and seen how the new IITs and IIMs set up in the past five years are grappling with shortage of faculty members and fund, they would have scrapped this idea. Thirteen new IITs would mean around 1,300 more qualified faculty members. Where can you get them from? The faculty positions are existing IITs itself are going vacant,” a media report quoted an unnamed director of an IIT Against the sanctioned strength of teaching staff of 5,356, there are only 3,158 in regular posts in these colleges. Vacancy for teaching posts is the highest at IIT-Banaras Hindu University (57 per cent), followed by IIT-Delhi (50 per cent), IIT-Kharagpur (48 per cent) and IIT-Guwahati (42 per cent). At the remaining four IITs, vacant teaching positions range between 19 per cent and 38 per cent.
All IIMs put together offer 3,335 seats. Certain business quarters in India have argued that the government should ease norms for private players to enter the education segment. “Many companies have the willingness and wherewithal to be a serious player in the education segment. Why not facilitate that? There are no gains by setting up more IIMs,” said another IIM director. When even the Indian corporate argues against the setting up of new IIMs and IITs, without setting the older ones in order, Kashmir’s Coaching Center Association is sticking its neck out to support Modi’s idea of hollow expansion.
Recently the state government declared over 1800 posts to replenish the higher education department. Past decade has seen phenomenal growth in Kashmir’s higher education. 62 percent colleges have been set up in J&K in a span of ten years. 43 percent of this growth was witnessed in just six years.
“The government has mooted a perspective plan to MHRD for approval under Rashtriya Ucchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) for establishment of more higher education institutions besides upgradation of infrastructure in existing colleges in the state,” says Muhammad Akbar Lone, J&K’s minister for higher education.
Omar’s opposition to the IIM and IIT expansion might have stemmed from the need to have an elbow room for developing the appropriate education infrastructure in the state. But certain quarters in the society fear a social and culture backlash as well. “Look at NIT in Srinagar. The locals are outnumbered by the non locals. Those seeking more business by supporting a silly idea should rather call for 51 percent reservation for the locals in any Union-backed education enterprise that sets up shop here,” says Raees Ahmad, a student who is concerned for reform in Kashmir’s higher education.
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