The Hindu : `No rollback of IIM fees'

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Feb 17, 2004

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`No rollback of IIM fees'

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, FEB. 16. The Union Human Resource Development Minister, Murli Manohar Joshi, today ruled out any rollback on the reduction of the fees of the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs). Briefing mediapersons here today after the first hearing of the public interest litigation challenging the decision by the Supreme Court, Dr. Joshi said there would be no rollback, "at least not from my end."

Pleased with the proceedings in the Supreme Court today — where the Bench had asked the petitioners a number of questions — Dr. Joshi said: "From the court's observations, it is very clear that the direction in which the HRD Ministry has been moving is likely to be vindicated." However, he conceded that the case was still at an early stage while pointing out that the court had posed appropriate questions to the petitioners.

Maintaining that the IIMs are "the creations of the Government of India," Dr. Joshi denied any interference by the Ministry in their functioning. "All that we are saying is that each one is accountable. Nowhere in the world do government-funded institutions enjoy the kind of autonomy they do in India." He reiterated that the IIMs would not face any shortage of funds owing to the fee reduction, as the Government would meet the deficit. Of the view that the IIMs were reluctant to open their accounts to public scrutiny, the Minister said the criticism of his decision was nothing but "tendentious propaganda." He was reluctant to comment on the reported effort by N.R. Narayanamurthy and M.S. Banga, who chair the Board of Governors of the IIM, Ahmedabad and IIM, Bangalore, to seek the Prime Minister's intervention in this regard, stating that they were entitled to their views.

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