Kerala will be granted an IIT to fulfil its long due request

Updated on: Tuesday, January 08, 2013

Union HRD Minister Pallum Raju said, Kerala was the front runner for IIT.

In the 11th plan, some IITs were granted. They were in various stages of progress. "We need to consolidate and definitely we will look into new requests and I think definitely Kerala is the front runner", he told reporters on the sidelines of a function here when asked about the state's long plea for IIT.

Kerala Excise and Ports minsiter, K Babu, had urged the minister at the function to consider the state's plea for IIT favourably.

Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, during his visit to Kerala in September for the inauguration of 'Emerging Kerala' investors meet had said the Centre was seriously considering a proposal to set up IIT in the state.

In an interactive session with the Malabar Chamber of Commerce at Kozhikode, Union Minister of State for HRD, Shashi Tharoor noted there are certain challenges in realising the demand for an IIT in Kozhikode.

Despite the challenges, he was not going to give up the IIT issue, he said. There have been challenges, he said. "The first is our planning commission has not been sympathetic in terms of giving money for an IIT in Kerala," he said.

"They have taken the position that Kerala already has IIM and an NIT. Therefore one more institution under the plan was not fair..we have been trying to battle that."

"Because we have a centralised planning system we are very much dependent on the planning commission allotting benefits to various states," he said, adding "as of now there is actually no provision for an IIT for Kerala in the 12th five year plan.It is not looking particularly easy right now."

Tharoor said he did not want to "raise any unrealistic hopes." I had already a meeting inside the HRD ministry and spoke to Pallam Raju, the cabinet minister.I am not going to give up, but I am not going to pretend that this is going to be easy to do."

"We need more educational institutions in our state, but if we are looking for central funding the challenge faced is the Centre has to allocate these funds across 28 states and in that process we may have to wait," he said.

Tharoor said "there is a proposal to upgrade Cochin University of Science and Technology not to an IIT, but to upgrade to something called Indian Institute of Engineering Sciences Technology (IIEST), and even that is going to cost over Rs 600 crore'.

On the demand for another Kendriya Vidyalaya in Kozhikode, Tharoor said Kozhikode is one among few cities in the country where there are already two Kendriya Vidyalayas. "There is a case for a third one and we will certainly look into it," he said.

Pointing out that the broader education picture in the country was interesting, Tharoor said "we do not give credit for the kind of transformation that had happened since 1947." In 1947 there were barely 30 Universities, while today the number is 670. The literacy rate then was 17 per cent and now 74 per cent. The transformation in our system is the result of 65 years of independent Indian Government trying to spread education throughout the country, he said.

Noting that there are high quality institutions in India, Tharoor said the importance of expansion, equity, employability, and excellence “the four' E's“ should not be underestimated.

The minister also emphasised the need for giving proper training to the country's young people. India has 54 crore young people under 25 years and 22.5 crore in the age group of 10 to 19, who are ready to become youthful productive workforce for India and the world at a time when the rest of the world, including China, are aging, he said.

Kerala will be granted an IIT to fulfil its long due request

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