TEQIP Phase II to create parity between NITs and IITs
With a main focus on up-grading research facilities for Masters and Ph.D programmes, the phase II of World-Bank aided Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQIP) set to commence from July, 2009, promises to bridge the gap between National Institutes of Technology and Indian Institutes of Technology.
The main factor that NITs, which are to receive Rs. 15 crore each as lead institutions, consider advantageous to research is the institution of scholarships. A total of 55 scholarships will be given in each institution per year for a three-year period. Senior research fellows will receive Rs. 15,000 per month as stipend and Junior Research fellows Rs. 10,000 per month, in addition to annual contingency grants of Rs. 15,000 and Rs. 10,000 respectively.
Of the Rs. 2,430 crore proposal that the Ministry of Human Resource Development is planning to forward to the World Bank, Rs. 310 crore would be spent for Central institutions and the rest for State Universities and Colleges. By availing themselves of the benefit of TEQIP funding, they are expected to up-grade P.G. programmes, undertake staff development, carry out community development programmes, create good curriculum, and evolve good teaching-learning process. In the second phase of TEQIP, the MHRD expects the State Governments to make a nominal contribution for TEQIP.
In the first phase, the focus was on modernising the under-graduate education to remove obsolescence, and upgrading laboratories. A total of 127 institutions, including 18 Central institutions benefited from the first phase. A sum of Rs. 1,339 crore was spent. Of this, Rs. 320 crore was provided to Central institutions and the rest to Universities and Colleges in 13 States.
As in the first phase, each NIT could send 30 faculties abroad for training purposes every year for the three-year duration, thereby enabling integration of the best practices. The prospect of going abroad for training will be an effective motivation for youngsters to take up teaching jobs in NITs, M. Chidambaram, Director, National Institute of Technology – Tiruchi, told ‘Education Plus’.
The MHRD has circulated a concept paper on TEQIP Phase II to elicit the feedback from the participating institutions. The allocation to State institutions being much higher this time, a lot more institutions, particularly government colleges, are expected to be covered.
R. KRISHNAMOORTHY
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